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Introduction Along with the rapid development in technology, a handful of mobile interventions are now introduced to improve outcomes in TB medication. Sembuh TB app is an Android app, designed to increase medication adherence for tuberculosis patients in Indonesia. This report has an objective to analyse the influence of Sembuh TB app in improving TB-related knowledge and behaviour among TB patients, as well as reaching 2022 target for 90% treatment success rate. Methods Two methods were conducted in order to reach the study objective. First method involved initial interview with stakeholders. Meanwhile in the final method or demonstration project, feedbacks received from stake holders interview were evaluated and applied to the TB patients as subjects using the app. Results In initial interview, total sample of 69 individuals were gathered. The interviews demonstrated that the app indeed has strong potential to be used by and have desired effects on TB patients. It also pointed to the importance of target segmentation for mobile apps; apps are more suitable to younger generations than to older generations. Meanwhile, a total of 45 users were recruited to participate in the demonstration project. There were 10 active users (22%) at the end of the threemonth period of the project and they performed better than app dropouts across four proxies of app effectiveness indicators. Conclusion This study succeeded in identifying specific features to be improved and, more importantly, proving the potential of the Sembuh TB App in improving TB-related knowledge and behaviour if the app can be used properly and continuously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the dār al-islām , a juristic and contractual conception of the institution of marriage prevailed. Marriage was considered to be a contract that set the rights and duties of the spouses. On the basis of legal documents written between the third/ninth and the tenth/sixteenth centuries, coming from different parts of the Medieval Arabic world, we examine women's legal entitlements in marriage contracts, notably, with regard to dowry dispositions (ṣadāq) and stipulations pertaining to conjugal relationships (shurūt). During the married life, a succession of private law contracts can be concluded by the spouses: marriages, receipt of the dowry, repudiation or divorce. The corollary is that some women do not hesitate to request a qāḍī to enforce the clauses they, or their representative, have written in the legal documents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Dynamic Optimal Timing (Dot) is a smartphone application (app) that estimates the menstrual cycle fertile window based on the user's menstrual period start dates. Dot uses machine learning to adapt to cycles over time and informs users of 'low' and 'high' fertility days. We investigated Dot's effectiveness, calculating perfect- and typical-use failure rates.Methods: This prospective, 13 cycle observational study (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02833922) followed 718 women who were using Dot to prevent pregnancy. Participants contributed 6616 cycles between February 2017 and October 2018, providing data on menstrual period start dates, daily sexual activity and prospective intent to prevent pregnancy. We determined pregnancy through participant-administered urine pregnancy tests and/or written or verbal confirmation. We calculated perfect- and typical-use failure rates using multi-censoring, single-decrement life-table analysis, and conducted sensitivity, attrition and survival analyses.Results: The perfect-use failure rate was calculated to be 1.0% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.9%, 2.9%) and the typical-use failure rate was 5.0% (95% CI: 3.4%, 6.6%) for women aged 18-39 (n = 718). Survival analyses identified no significant differences among age or racial/ethnic groups or women in different types of relationships. Attrition analyses revealed no significant sociodemographic differences, except in age, between women completing 13 cycles and those exiting the study earlier.Conclusion: Dot's effectiveness is within the range of other user-initiated contraceptive methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • While considered essentially pathognomonic of Rathke's cleft cysts, the presence of an intracystic nodule on MRI – the so-called 'dot' sign – has not been comprehensively described for colloid cysts of the third ventricle. • Here, we retrospectively characterized the prevalence and MRI characteristics of the 'dot sign' in colloid cysts at a single-institution. • The 'dot sign' was observed in 38% of radiologically verified colloid cysts – the 'dot' displayed low intensity with respect to cyst fluid on T2-weighted sequences in all cases. • An intracystic low T2 'dot' is a common MRI feature of colloid cysts of the third ventricle, and to our knowledge not previously systematically described. Abstract Purpose To determine the incidence of the 'dot sign' in patients with colloid cysts of the third ventricle and to characterise its MRI appearances. Materials and Methods Single institution retrospective analysis between January 2007 and October 2016 of all patients with either an imaging or imaging and histology-confirmed diagnosis of colloid cysts of the 3rd ventricle was undertaken. For all cases, MRI signal intensities of the cyst fluid component were graded by two independent radiologists relative to brain parenchyma. Presence of a dot, and if present, its size and relative position within the cyst were recorded. Signal intensities of the dot were then similarly assessed. Results 37 cases of colloid cyst were identified. Of these 37.8% (n = 14) demonstrated the dot sign. The majority (11 of 14) were observed inferiorly within the cyst; two cases were anteroinferior, and one other was posterior. All identified intracystic nodules displayed low signal intensity with respect to cyst fluid on T2 weighted sequences, and only two nodules were hypointense to fluid on T1-weighted imaging, with the remainder either iso- or hyperintense. Conclusions An intracystic low T2 'dot' is a common MRI feature of colloid cysts of the third ventricle, and to our knowledge not previously systematically described. Presence of such a dot should not only not dissuade from a diagnosis of colloid cyst being made, but should in fact be used to strengthen the imaging diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In partial differential equation-based (PDE-based) inverse problems with many measurements, many large-scale discretized PDEs must be solved for each evaluation of the misfit or objective function. In the nonlinear case, evaluating the Jacobian requires solving an additional set of systems. This leads to a tremendous computational cost, and this is by far the dominant cost for these problems. Several authors have proposed randomization and stochastic programming techniques to drastically reduce the number of system solves by estimating the objective function using only a few appropriately chosen random linear combinations of the sources. While some have reported good solution quality at a greatly reduced cost, for our problem of interest, diffuse optical tomography, the approach often does not lead to sufficiently accurate solutions. We propose two improvements. First, to efficiently exploit Newton-type methods, we modify the stochastic estimates to include random linear combinations of detectors, drastically reducing the number of adjoint solves. Second, after solving to a modest tolerance, we compute a few simultaneous sources and detectors that maximize the Frobenius norm of the sampled Jacobian to improve the rate of convergence and obtain more accurate solutions. We complement these optimized simultaneous sources and detectors by random simultaneous sources and detectors constrained to a complementary subspace. Our approach leads to solutions of the same quality as obtained using all sources and detectors but at a greatly reduced computational cost, as the number of large-scale linear systems to be solved is significantly reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thyroid cancer is usually diagnosed by ultrasound imaging and fine-needle aspiration biopsy. However, diagnosis of follicular thyroid carcinomas (FTC) is difficult because FTC lacks nuclear atypia and a consensus on histological interpretation. Diffuse optical tomography (DOT) offers the potential to diagnose FTC because it can measure tumor hypoxia, while image reconstruction of the thyroid is still challenging mainly due to the complex anatomical features of the neck. In this study, we attempted to solve this issue by creating a finite element model of the human neck excluding the trachea (a void region). By reconstruction of the absorption coefficients at three wavelengths, 3D tissue oxygen saturation maps of the human thyroid are obtained for the first time by DOT.

Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) are increasingly used for a variety of applications by state Departments of Transportation (DOT) and local transportation agencies due to technology advancements, lower costs, and regulatory changes that have simplified operations. There are numerous applications (e.g., bridge inspection, traffic management, incident response, construction and roadway mapping) and agencies find it challenging to prioritize which applications are most appropriate. Important factors to consider when prioritizing UAS applications include: (1) benefits, (2) ease of adoption, (3) stakeholder acceptance, and (4) technical feasibility. These factors can be evaluated utilizing various techniques such as the technology acceptance model, benefit analysis, and technology readiness level (TRL). This paper presents the methodology and results for the prioritization of UAS applications’ quality function deployment (QFD), which reflects both qualitative and quantitative components. The proposed framework can be used in the future as technologies mature, and the prioritization can be revised on a regular basis to identify future strategic implementation opportunities. Numerous transportation agencies have begun to use UAS, some have developed UAS operating policies and manuals, but there has been no documentation to support identification of the UAS applications that are most appropriate for deployment. This paper fills that gap and documents a method for identification of UAS applications for strategic deployment and illustrates the method with a case study.

We built a fiber-less prototype of an optical system with 156 channels each one consisting of an optode made of a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) and a pair of light emitting diodes (LEDs) operating at 700 nm and 830 nm. The system uses functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and diffuse optical tomography (DOT) imaging of the cortical activity of the human brain at frequencies above 1 Hz. In this paper, we discuss testing and system optimization performed through measurements on a multi-layered optical phantom with mechanically movable parts that simulate near-infrared light scattering inhomogeneities. The baseline optical characteristics of the phantom are carefully characterized and compared to those of human tissues. Here we discuss several technical aspects of the system development, such as LED light output drift and its possible compensation, SiPM linearity, corrections of channel signal differences, and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). We implement an imaging algorithm that investigates large phantom regions. Thanks to the use of SiPMs, very large source-to-detector distances are acquired with a high SNR and 2 Hz time resolution. The overall results demonstrate the high potentialities of a system based on SiPMs for fNIRS/DOT human brain imaging applications.

In the area of Directly-Observed Treatment (DOT), one of 5 essential elements of Directly-Observed Treatment, Short-course (DOTS)- the internationally accepted strategy to combat tuberculosis (TB) promoted by the World Health Organization (WHO) - its usefulness has been continuously debated. Many researchers have tried to conduct randomized controlled trials (RCT) to explore its effectiveness. The results have always led to the conclusion that DOT and self-administration (SA) could produce the same treatment outcomes. However, RCT should be conducted under ideal conditions to develop the efficacy of TB drug regimens, and it may not be necessary for it to be conducted in the field under routine circumstances to find out the effectiveness. Instead of RCT, effective management is needed in the fields, both at program level and at individual level, to produce TB treatment outcomes that come close to the efficacy of TB drug regimens.

Background: In tuberculosis (TB) control, nonadherence to treatment persists as a barrier. The traditional method of ensuring adherence, that is, directly observed therapy, faces significant challenges that hinder its widespread adoption. Digital adherence technologies such as video directly observed therapy (VDOT) are emerging as promising solutions. However, as these novel technologies gain momentum, a critical gap is the lack of comprehensive studies evaluating their efficacy and the unique experiences of patients in Africa., Objective: The aim of this study was to assess patients' experiences that affected acceptability, usefulness, and ease of use with an enhanced VDOT system during monitoring of TB treatment., Methods: We conducted individual open-ended interviews in a cross-sectional exit qualitative study in Kampala, Uganda. Thirty participants aged 18-65 years who had completed the VDOT randomized trial were purposively selected to represent variability in sex, adherence level, and HIV status. We used a hybrid process of deductive and inductive coding to identify content related to the experience of study participation with VDOT. Codes were organized into themes and subthemes, which were used to develop overarching categories guided by constructs adapted from the modified Technology Acceptance Model for Resource-Limited Settings. We explored participants' experiences regarding the ease of use and usefulness of VDOT, thereby identifying the facilitators and barriers to its acceptability. Perceived usefulness refers to the benefits users expect from the technology, while perceived ease of use refers to how easily users navigate its various features. We adapted by shifting from assessing perceived to experienced constructs., Results: The participants' mean age was 35.3 (SD 12) years. Of the 30 participants, 15 (50%) were females, 13 (43%) had low education levels, and 22 (73%) owned cellphones, of which 10 (45%) had smartphones. Nine (28%) were TB/HIV-coinfected, receiving antiretroviral therapy. Emergent subthemes for facilitators of experienced usefulness and ease of VDOT use were SMS text message reminders, technology training support to patients by health care providers, timely patient-provider communication, family social support, and financial incentives. TB/HIV-coinfected patients reported the added benefit of adherence support for their antiretroviral medication. The external barriers to VDOT's usefulness and ease of use were unstable electricity, technological malfunctions in the app, and lack of cellular network coverage in rural areas. Concerns about stigma, disease disclosure, and fear of breach in privacy and confidentiality affected the ease of VDOT use., Conclusions: Overall, participants had positive experiences with the enhanced VDOT. They found the enhanced VDOT system user-friendly, beneficial, and acceptable, particularly due to the supportive features such as SMS text message reminders, incentives, technology training by health care providers, and family support. However, it is crucial to address the barriers related to technological infrastructure as well as the privacy, confidentiality, and stigma concerns related to VDOT., (©Juliet Nabbuye Sekandi, Adenike McDonald, Damalie Nakkonde, Sarah Zalwango, Vicent Kasiita, Patrick Kaggwa, Robert Kakaire, Lynn Atuyambe, Esther Buregyeya. Originally published in JMIR Formative Research (https://formative.jmir.org), 10.11.2023.)

dot-app is a Cytoscape 3 app that allows Cytoscape to import and export Graphviz (.dot, .gv) files, also known as DOT files due to the .dot extension and their conformance to the DOT language syntax. The DOT format was originally created in the early 2000s to represent graph topologies, layouts and formatting. DOT-encoded files are produced and consumed by a number of open-source graph applications, including Graphviz, Gephi, Tulip, and others. While DOT-based graph applications are popular, they emphasize general graph layout and styling over the topological and semantic analysis functions available in domain-focused applications such as Cytoscape. While domain-focused applications have easy access to large networks (10,000 to 100,000 nodes) and advanced analysis and formatting, they do not have as many styling options as the Graphviz software suite. dot-app enables the interchange of networks between Cytoscape and DOT-compatible applications so that users can benefit from the features of both. dot-app was first deployed to the Cytoscape App Store in August 2015, has since registered more than 1,200 downloads, and has been highly rated by more than 20 users.

Objective: To assess six-cycle perfect and typical use efficacy of Dynamic Optimal Timing (Dot), an algorithm-based fertility app that identifies the fertile window of the menstrual cycle using a woman's period start date and provides guidance on when to avoid unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy.Study Design: We are conducting a prospective efficacy study following a cohort of women using Dot for up to 13 cycles. Study enrollment and data collection are being conducted digitally within the app and include a daily coital diary, prospective pregnancy intentions and sociodemographic information. We used data from the first six cycles to calculate life-table failure rates.Results: We enrolled 718 women age 18-39 years. Of the 629 women 18-35 years old, 15 women became pregnant during the first six cycles for a typical use failure rate of 3.5% [95% CI 1.7-5.2]. All pregnancies occurred with incorrect use, so we did not calculate a perfect use failure rate.Conclusions: These findings are promising and suggest that the 13-cycle results will demonstrate high efficacy of Dot.Implications: While final 13-cycle efficacy results are forthcoming, 6-cycle results suggest that Dot's guidance provides women with useful information for preventing pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Boron-based wood preservative is currently widely used in non-structural products such as furniture and window skirting. Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (DOT) is a boron-based formulation used as wood preservative. This study evaluated the relative ability of various concentrations of DOT in improving the durability of selected Malaysian timber species (Hopea sp., Irvingia malayana, Cynometra sp. and Hevea brasiliensis) in order to fulfil hazard class 2 (H2) condition. DOT-treated wood were tested in accelerated laboratory tests against subterranean termite (Coptotermus curvignathus) for 4 weeks and decay fungi (Lentinus sajor-caju and Coriolus versicolor) for 16 weeks. The results indicated that DOT improved the durability of all timber species tested against termite and white-rot fungi for use under H2 condition. DOT was easily impregnated into the wood using pressure treatment processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Creosote-treated wooden bridge ties in the South-Eastern U.S.A. last about 15-20 years, which falls well below the national average of 40 years for crossties. It was demonstrated that diffusion of inserted liquid disodium octaborate tetrahydrate within wooden bridge ties was dramatically increased during Boulton treatment. The objective of this study was to determine how much diffusion of borate inside the bridge tie occurred over time, after initial treatment. Green hardwood bridge ties were ported, borate treated and then Boulton treated with copper naphthenate at a commercial tie treatment plant. Retention and location of borate within the wood was tested at 3, 14 and 40 weeks after the treatment. As previously found, movement of borate within the wood was significantly enhanced by the elevated temperature and steam generated during the Boulton cycle. It appeared that borate continued to diffuse inside of the tie and would likely treat and protect a significant volume of the heartwood over time and thus increase bridge tie life in a similar way to crossties. It is hoped that the results will reduce environmental impact, improve safety and enable railroads to continue to use wood with confidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the documentation, and virtual visual analysis of pictographs using interactive relighting, digital image enhancement techniques and diagrammatic representations. It discusses areas of interest for the analysis of low surface detail, large and geometrically complex superimposed pictographs. The synergy of reflectance transformation imaging (RTI) and decorrelation stretch (DS) aimed to improve the study of superimposition via the enhanced visualization of the surface morphology, dominant features, paint characteristics and layering. Additionally, diagrammatic representations of the results of the image-based analysis provided a valuable tool for interpretation and integration of the diverse dataset from the ongoing research in the Pleito Cave in California. This method allows revisiting unresolved hypotheses concerning the site by unpacking chemical and visual data in superimposed sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antimicrobial stewardship program aims to reduce antibiotic use. Periodic measurement and monitoring of antibiotic use and comparison within the institution as well as with other organizations are important indicators. We analyzed antibiotic usage in a general hospital in Saudi Arabia. Antibiotic data were collected retrospectively for 2011 and from 2013 to 2015, and only adult patients (>15 year of age) were included in the study. Data were presented as days of therapy (DOT) and defined daily dose (DDD). DDD was adjusted per 100 bed-days and according to the case mix index (CMI). The total DDD was 37,557 in 2013, 36,550 in 2014 and 38,738 in 2015. The DDD per 100 patient-days was 90.7–94.5. There was a discordant findings of antibiotic measurements based on the DDD compared to DOT, and DDD/100 bed-days compared to DOT/100 bed-days. There was a negative correlation between CMI and DDD per 100 bed days (r −0.696), but a positive correlation of CMI with DOT (r +0.93). Adjusted DDD/100 bed-days showed decrease in the usage of antibiotics, reflecting activities of the antibiotic stewardship program. The increase in DOT/100 bed-days may indicate the favorable utilization of combination therapy. Antibiotic usage needs to be adjusted per 100 bed-days and correlated with CMI for better reflection of optimal antibiotic utilization, activities of the antibiotic stewardship program, and to allow benchmarking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cet article étudie les couvents féminins de clôture de Sanlúcar comme des institutions qui s’ajustaient à une société dans laquelle le sentiment religieux était omniprésent, et la religion, un signe d’identité pesant de tout son poids. Ils étaient aussi un refuge pour de nombreuses jeunes filles sans espoir de trouver dans la société civile une vie digne de ce nom. Dans ces couvents, les mêmes différences sociales présentes dans la société espagnole – et dans la société de Sanlúcar – avaient cours. À Sanlúcar précisément, les couvents furent souvent des lieux accueillant de nombreuses religieuses en partance pour le Nouveau Monde afin de fonder de nouveaux monastères, et de ce fait, les couvents sanlúqueños devinrent des modèles à suivre.

dot-app is a Cytoscape 3 app that allows Cytoscape to import and export Graphviz (*.dot, *.gv) files, also known as DOT files due to the *.dot extension and their conformance to the DOT language syntax. The DOT format was originally created in the early 2000s to represent graph topologies, layouts and formatting. DOT-encoded files are produced and consumed by a number of open-source graph applications, including GraphViz, Gephi, neato, smyrna, and others. While DOT-based graph applications are popular, they emphasize general graph layout and styling over the topological and semantic analysis functions available in domain-focused applications such as Cytoscape. While domain-focused applications have easy access to large networks (10,000 to 100,000 nodes) and advanced analysis and formatting, they do not offer all of the styling options that DOT-based applications (particularly GraphViz) do. dot-app enables the interchange of networks between Cytoscape and DOT-based applications so that users can benefit from the features of both. dot-app was first deployed to the Cytoscape App Store in August 2015, has since registered more than 1,200 downloads, and has been highly rated by more than 20 users.

Introduction: Neurosurgical residency is a challenging journey demanding cognitive acuity and resilience, mirrored strikingly in the dynamics of video gaming. Gaming concepts of Down-But-Not-Out (DBNO), Heal-over-Time (HoT), and Damage-over-Time (DoT) can serve as compelling analogues to elements of neurosurgical training., Material and Methods: An innovative, cross-disciplinary methodology was implemented, blending elements of autoethnography, personal reflective narrative, and comprehensive literary review. The cornerstone of this approach was an experiential reflective analysis, where two neurosurgical residents critically examined the parallels between their residency experiences and video game mechanics, thereby applying a lens of heuristic introspection to their professional journey. Complementing this, a comprehensive narrative synthesis of existing literature on resilience, wellness, and stress in neurosurgical residency training was conducted., Results: The DBNO concept parallels the resilience demonstrated by neurosurgical residents, emphasizing the importance of a supportive network. The HoT concept, analogous to wellness practices, underscores the incremental restoration of energy necessary for maintaining stamina in neurosurgery training. The DoT concept symbolizes the need to manage the often insidious and deleterious effects of chronic stress on residents' wellbeing., Discussion and Conclusion: These gaming concepts provide an integrative framework for understanding the challenges faced and strategies employed in neurosurgical residency. The interplay between resilience, wellness practices, and effective stress management, represented by DBNO, HoT, and DoT respectively, is critical for maintaining health and fostering professional excellence. By embedding these metaphors within the training paradigm, the neurosurgical residency journey can be navigated more effectively, promoting not only professional success but also personal growth and wellbeing., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Background/purpose: Precise detection of respiratory pathogens by molecular method potentially may shorten the time to diagnose and reduce unnecessary antibiotic use., Methods: Medical records of hospitalized children from January 2020 to June 2021 with acute respiratory illness who received a FilmArray RP for respiratory pathogens were reviewed and compared with data from diagnosis-matched patients without receiving the test., Results: In total, 283 patients and 150 diagnosis-matched controls were included. Single pathogen was detected in 84.3% (193/229) of the patients. The most common pathogen was human rhinovirus/enterovirus (31.6%, 84/266), followed by respiratory syncytial virus (18.8%, 50/266) and adenovirus (15%, 40/266). Although antimicrobial days of therapy (DOT) was significantly longer in FilmArray group than the control [7.1 ± 4.9 days vs 5.7 ± 2.7 days, P = 0.002], the former showed a higher intensive care unit (ICU) admission rate (3.9% vs 0%; P = 0.010). All ICU admissions were in FilmArray RP-positive group. There was no difference in antimicrobial DOT between FilmArray RP-positive and the negative groups, in all admissions, even after excluding ICU admissions. Antimicrobial DOT was shorter in the positive than negative group in patients with lower respiratory tract infections without admission to ICU [median (IQR): 6 (4-9) days vs 9 (4-12) days, P = 0.047]., Conclusions: Shorter antimicrobial DOTs were identified in children with lower respiratory tract infection admitted to general pediatric ward and with an identifiable respiratory pathogen, indicating a role of the multiplex PCR in reducing antimicrobial use for children with respiratory tract infection., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest All authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Background: Tuberculosis rates in the world remain high, especially in low- and middle-income countries. International tuberculosis (TB) policy generally recommends the use of directly observed therapy (DOT) to ensure treatment adherence. Objective: This article examines a change in TB treatment support that occurred in 2005 in South Africa, from DOT to the enhanced TB adherence programme (ETA). Design: Seven key individuals representing academics, policy makers and service providers involved in the development of the ETA programme or knowledgeable about the issue were purposively sampled and interviewed, and participant observation was conducted at ETA programme steering group meetings. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyse the data, drawing on the Kingdon model of agenda setting. This model suggests that three independent streams – problem, policy and politics – come together at a certain point, often facilitated by policy entrepreneurs, to provide an opportunity for an issue to enter the policy agenda. Results: The results suggest the empowerment-oriented programme emerged through the presence of policy entrepreneurs with access to resources. Policy entrepreneurs were influenced by a number of simultaneously occurring challenges including problems within the existing programme; a perceived mismatch between patient needs and the existing TB treatment model; and the TB-HIV co-epidemic. Policy entrepreneurs saw the ART approach as a possible solution to these challenges. Conclusions: The Kingdon model contributed to describing the process of policy change. Research evidence seemed to influence this change diffusely, through the interaction of policy entrepreneurs and academics.

We present an efficient method for the reduction of model equations in the linearized diffuse optical tomography (DOT) problem. We first implement the maximum a posteriori (MAP) estimator and Tikhonov regularization, which are based on applying preconditioners to linear perturbation equations. For model reduction, the precondition is split into two parts: the principal components are considered as reduced size preconditioners applied to linear perturbation equations while the less important components are marginalized as noise. Simulation results illustrate that the new proposed method improves the image reconstruction performance and localizes the abnormal section well with a better computational efficiency.

Setting: Papua New Guinea (PNG) has one of the world's highest TB incidence rates. It is difficult for patients to access TB care in remote provinces due to insufficient infrastructure and challenging terrain, making varied, targeted delivery models for treating TB necessary., Objective: To assess treatment outcomes using self-administered treatment (SAT), family-supported treatment and community-based directly observed therapy (DOT) via treatment supporter (TS) in the PNG context., Design: A retrospective, descriptive analysis of routinely collected data from 360 patients at two sites in 2019-2020. All patients were assigned a treatment model based on risk factors (adherence or default) and offered patient education and counselling (PEC), family counselling and transportation fees. End-of-treatment outcomes were assessed for each model., Results: Treatment success rates among drug-susceptible TB (DS-TB) were good overall: 91.1% for SAT, 81.4% for family-supported treatment and 77% for DOT patients. SAT was strongly associated with favourable outcomes (OR 5.7, 95% CI 1.7-19.3), as were PEC sessions (OR 4.3, 95% CI 2.5-7.2)., Conclusion: By considering risk factors when determining their treatment delivery model, strong outcomes were seen in all three groups. Multiple modes of treatment administration, tailored to individuals' needs and risk factors, is a feasible, effective, patient-centred care model for hard-to-reach, resource-limited settings., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest: none declared., (© 2023 The Union.)

Background: WHO recommended multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) should be treated mainly under ambulatory model, but outcome of ambulatory treatment of MDR-TB in China was little known., Methods: The clinical data of 261 MDR-TB patients treated as outpatients in Shenzhen, China during 2010-2015 were collected and analyzed retrospectively., Results: Of 261 MDR-TB patients receiving ambulatory treatment, 71.1% (186/261) achieved treatment success (cured or completed treatment), 0.4% (1/261) died during treatment, 11.5% (30/261) had treatment failure or relapse, 8.0% (21/261) were lost to follow-up, and 8.8% (23/261) were transferred out. The culture conversion rate at 6 months was 85.0%. Although 91.6% (239/261) of patients experienced at least one adverse event (AE), only 2% of AEs caused permanent discontinuation of one or more drugs. Multivariate analysis showed that previous TB treatment, regimens containing capreomycin and resistance to FQs were associated with poor outcomes, while experiencing three or more AEs was associated with good outcomes., Conclusion: Good treatment success rates and early culture conversions were achieved with entirely ambulatory treatment of MDR-TB patients in Shenzhen, supporting WHO recommendations. Advantageous aspects of the local TB control program, including accessible and affordable second-line drugs, patient support, active monitoring and proper management of AEs and well-implemented DOT likely contributed to treatment success rates., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Lecai, Mijiti, Chuangyue, Qian, Weiguo and Jihong.)

This article explores the different gender ideologies behind two dowry systems in Greece. The distinction between Continental Greece and Aegean Greece according to the rights of men and women to property illustrates the impact that the unification of their legal systems in the second half of the twentieth century has had on local legal traditions, which tended to favour women. This unification in the Civil Code since the 1950s, when the institution of the dowry was applied homogeneously across the entire Greek territory, has largely obscured the different meanings of the term 'dowry' as it was understood in customary law, and the meaning it is given in the Greek Civil Code. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A detailed analytical and numerical analysis of the skyrmion core size dependence as a function of the uniaxial perpendicular anisotropy and radius in magnetic nanodots has been carried out. Results from micromagnetic calculations show a non-monotonic behavior between the skyrmion core size and the uniaxial perpendicular anisotropy. The increment of the radius reduces the skyrmion core size at constant uniaxial perpendicular anisotropy. Thus, these results can be used for the control of the core sizes in magnetic artificial skyrmion crystals or spintronic devices that need to use a skyrmion configuration at room temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The incidence of tuberculosis decreases. Flowever, clinical cases frequently raise questions, mainly in the context of contact tracing or when antimicrobial resistance is suspected. Empiric standard treatment consists of rifampin, isoniazid, ethambutol and pyrazinamide.This initial regimen aims to reduce the number of pathogenic germs while the consolidation therapy should eradicate the remaining pathogens. Treatment duration and adherence are crucial for cure. For the treatment of latent tuberculosis the traditional 6 to 9 months isoniazid regimen is still the treatment of choice. In complex cases such as tuberculosis in immunocompromised patients or if resistant tuberculosis is suspected, patients should be referred to a specialized center. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]