Search

BACKGROUND: Scientific understanding of indoor air pollution is predominately based on research carried out in cities in high-income countries (HICs). Less is known about how pollutant concentrations change over the course of a typical day in cities in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).OBJECTIVE: To understand how concentrations of fine particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM2.5) change over the course of the day outdoors (across a range of countries) and indoors (using measurements from Dhaka, Bangladesh).DESIGN: Data on PM2.5 concentrations were gathered from 779 households in Dhaka as part of the MCLASS II (Muslim Communities Learning About Second-hand Smoke in Bangladesh) project, and compared to outdoor PM2.5 concentrations to determine the temporal variation in exposure to air pollution. Hourly PM2.5 data from 23 cities in 14 LMICs, as well as London (UK), Paris (France) and New York (NY, USA), were extracted from publicly available sources for comparison.RESULTS: PM2.5 in homes in Dhaka demonstrated a similar temporal pattern to outdoor measurements, with greater concentrations at night than in the afternoon. This pattern was also evident in 19 of 23 LMIC cities.CONCLUSION: PM2.5 concentrations are greater at night than during the afternoon in homes in Dhaka. Diurnal variations in PM2.5 in LMICs is substantial and greater than in London, Paris or New York. This has implications for public health community approaches to health effects of air pollution in LMICs.

Understandings of the nature of scientific inquiry (NOSI), as opposed to engaging students in inquiry learning experiences, are included in science education reform documents around the world. However, little is known about what students have learned about NOSI during their pre-college school years. The purpose of this large-scale follow-up international project (i.e. 32 countries and regions, spanning six continents and including 3917 students for the high school sample) was to collect data on what exiting high school students have learned about NOSI. Additionally, the study investigated changes in 12th grade students' NOSI understandings compared to seventh grade (i.e. 20 countries and regions) students' understandings from a prior investigation [Lederman et al. (2019). An international collaborative investigation of beginning seventh grade students' understandings of scientific inquiry: Establishing a baseline. "Journal of Research in Science Teaching," 56(4), 486-515. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21512]. This study documents and discusses graduating high school students' understandings and compares their understandings to seventh grade students' understandings of the same aspects of scientific inquiry for each country. It is important to note that collecting data from each of the 130+ countries globally was not feasible. Similarly, it was not possible to collect data from every region of each country. A concerted effort was made, however, to provide a relatively representative picture of each country and the world.

Abstract This work initiates a concept of reduced reverse degree based $$\mathcal {RR_D\,M}$$ RR D M -Polynomial for a graph, and differential and integral operators by using this $$\mathcal {RR_D\,M}$$ RR D M -Polynomial. In this study twelve reduced reverse degree-based topological descriptors are formulated using the $$\mathcal {RR_D\,M}$$ RR D M -Polynomial. The topological descriptors, denoted as $$\mathbb{T}\mathbb{D}$$ T D ’s, are numerical invariants that offer significant insights into the molecular topology of a molecular graph. These descriptors are essential for conducting QSPR investigations and accurately estimating physicochemical attributes. The structural and algebraic characteristics of the graphene and graphdiyne are studied to apply this methodology. The study involves the analysis and estimation of Reduced reverse degree-based topological descriptors and physicochemical features of graphene derivatives using best-fit quadratic regression models. This work opens up new directions for scientists and researchers to pursue, taking them into new fields of study.

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is an insidious and irreversible condition that eventually progresses to end stage renal failure and important cause of morbidity and mortality in children worldwide. However, the care of these patients represents a challenge for health care providers, which must pay attention not only to renal disease, but also to the various extra renal manifestations that affect growth and development. Evaluation of clinical and biochemical profile of children with chronic kidney disease can help to meet up this challenge. Methods: This cross-sectional observational cohort study evaluated clinical, anthropometric and biochemical variables of children with chronic kidney disease aged 2 to 16 years in the department of Pediatric Nephrology, Dhaka Shishu (Children) Hospital, Bangladesh, during July' 2018 to December' 2018. A total of thirty-six children with chronic kidney disease with creatinine clearance <60ml/min/1.73 m2 and on supportive treatment and haemodialysis were included. In control group, equal number of age and sex matched healthy children without any preexisting chronic diseases were included. Both study group and control group were assessed for sociodemographic data, nutritional status, clinical and biochemical parameters. Results: The mean age was 9.09±3.01 years in case group and 7.85±3.69 years in control group. In case group, 22 patients (61.1%) were male and 14 (38.9%) were female and the ratio was 1.5:1. In this study we found that a statistically significant decrease in Z-score for (Weight, Height and Body Mass Index) in the CKD patients' group than control. In terms of blood pressure, 66.7% of patients in the cases group were hypertensive (P = 0.001). There was no significant difference of hypertension among CKD stages in this study. CKD Patients were found anemic with significant decrease in hemoglobin level. Anemia found in 35 patients (97.2%) in the case group than control (P=0.001). CKD stage 5 children had significantly lower hemoglobin level. Serum phosphate and potassium were significantly higher while serum calcium was significantly lower and parathyroid level was higher in case group than control. Conclusion: The present study stated that CKD patients had significantly lower BMI and hemoglobin but hypertensive in comparison to case group. Serum potassium, phosphate and parathyroid higher but serum calcium level was lower in case group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work investigates the dynamics of solitary waves in a thin-film ferroelectric material model, an essential component of optical systems. The study recognizes the limitations of the inverse scattering transform in solving the Cauchy problem for this conformable thin-film ferroelectric material model and applies a new Kudryashov approach and Bernoulli’s equation technique to ordinary differential equations. We apply these methods to the present model and obtain closed form analytical solutions. A variety of traveling wave and soliton solutions are constructed, including kink, bell, bright, and dark soliton solutions. It is acknowledged that the nonlinear evolution equation can be transformed into an ordinary differential equation by applying traveling wave transformations. Suitable physical parameters are chosen to create 2D, 3D, and contour plots that graphically depict the graphical dispersion of obtained fractional soliton solutions. The impact of the conformable fractional parameter is further demonstrated by the graphical representation of solitons propagation. Furthermore, the study develops the Hamiltonian function of the dynamical system to discuss the system’s total energy in terms of momentum and position. While a chaos analysis describes chaotic, quasi-periodic, and periodic behaviors, a sensitivity analysis demonstrates how responsive the model is to various initial conditions. Due to their dual-purpose nature as nonlinear ferroelectric and dielectric materials, thin ferroelectric films are widely used in modern electrical devices.

Abstract It is mentioned that understanding linear and non-linear thermo-elasticity systems is important for understanding temperature, elasticity, stresses, and thermal conductivity. One of the most crucial aspects of the current research is the solution to these systems. The fractional form of several thermo-elastic systems is explored, and elegant solutions are provided. The solutions of fractional and integer thermo-elastic systems are further discussed using tables and diagrams. The closed contact between the LRPSM and exact solutions is displayed in the graphs. Plotting fractional problem solutions demonstrates their convergence towards integer-order problem solutions for suitable modeling. The tables confirm that greater precision is rapidly attained as the terms of the derived series solution increase. The faster convergence and stability of the suggested method support its modification for other fractional non-linear complex systems in nature.

The quantale module introduced by Abramsky and Vickers, engaged a large number of researchers. This research article focuses the combined behavior of rough set, soft set and an algebraic structure quantale module with the left action. In fact, the paper reflects the generalization of rough soft sets. This combined effect is totally dependent on soft binary relation including aftersets and foresets. Different soft substructures in quantale modules are defined. The characterizations of soft substructures in quantale modules based on soft binary relation are presented. Further, in quantale modules, we define soft compatible and soft complete relations in terms of aftersets and foresets. Furthermore, we use soft compatible and soft complete relations to approximate soft substructures of quantale modules and these approximations are interpreted by aftersets and foresets. This concept generalizes the concept of rough soft quantale modules. Additionally, we describe the algebraic relationships between the upper (lower) approximations of soft substructures of quantale modules and the upper (lower) approximations of their homomorphic images using the concept of soft quantale module homomorphism.

The solutions to fractional differentials equations are very difficult to investigate. In particular, the solutions of fractional partial differential equations are challenging tasks for mathematicians. In the present article, an extension to this idea is presented to obtain the solutions of non-linear fractional Korteweg–de Vries equations. The solutions comparison of the proposed problems is done via two analytical procedures, which are known as the Residual power series method (RPSM) and q-HATM, respectively. The graphical and tabular analysis are presented to show the reliability and competency of the suggested techniques. The comparison has shown the greater contact between exact, RPSM, and q-HATM solutions. The fractional solutions are in good control and provide many important dynamics of the given problems.

This paper is devoted to establishing some criteria for the existence of non-trivial solutions for a class of fractional q-difference equations involving the p-Laplace operator, which is nowadays known as Lyapunov's inequality. The method employed for it is based on a construction of a Green's function and its maximum value. Parallel to this result, it is worth mentioning that the Hartman-Wintner inequality for the q-fractional p-Laplace boundary value problem is also provided. It covers all previous results known in the literature on the fractional case as well as that on the classical ordinary case. The non-existence of non-trivial solutions to the q-difference fractional p-Laplace equation subject to the Riemann-Liouville mixed boundary conditions will obey such integral inequalities. The tools mainly rely on an integral form of the solution construction of a Green function corresponding to the considered problem and its properties as well as its maximum value in consideration where the kernel is the Green's function. The example that we consider here for applying this result is an eigenvalue fractional problem. To be more specific, we provide an interval where an appropriate Mittag-Leffler function to the given eigenvalue fractional boundary problem has no real zeros.2010 Mathematics Subject Classification: 34A08, 34A40, 26D10, 33E12

Objective: To investigate the associations and relative impact of illness, socio-economic and social indicators for nutritional status among elderly persons in rural Bangladesh.Design: A multidisciplinary, cross-sectional study employing home interviews to collect information on demographic, socio-economic and social status; clinical examination to classify medical diagnoses; and Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) to assess the nutritional status of each participant.Setting: Matlab, Bangladesh.Subjects: A total of 625 randomly selected individuals (>or=60 years of age) participated in home interviews and 473 underwent clinical examination. Complete information on nutritional status was available for 457 individuals, median age 68 years, 55 % women.Results: Twenty-six per cent of the elderly participants were undernourished and 62 % were at risk of malnutrition according to MNA. More than three-quarters of the participants had acute infections, 66 % suffered from chronic illnesses, 36 % had sensory impairments and 81 % were suffering from gastrointestinal disorders. Acute infections (P < 0.001), gastrointestinal disorders (P < 0.01), depressive symptoms (P < 0.001) and impaired cognitive function (P < 0.01) were significantly and independently associated with poorer nutritional status. Moreover, female gender (P < 0.05), having no income (P < 0.01), being illiterate (P < 0.01) and not receiving regular financial support (P < 0.05) were also independently associated with poor nutritional status.Conclusions: Malnutrition among elderly people in rural Bangladesh is associated with female gender, medical, psychological, socio-economic and social indicators. A multidimensional approach is probably needed to reduce undernutrition in older populations in low-income countries like Bangladesh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: In stating the Millennium Development Goals, the United Nations aims to halve malnutrition around the world by 2015. Nutritional status of the elderly population in low-income countries is seldom focused upon. The present study aimed to evaluate the magnitude of malnutrition among an elderly population in rural Bangladesh.Design and Setting: Data collection for a multidimensional cross-sectional study of community-based elderly people aged 60 years and over was conducted in a rural area in Bangladesh.Subjects: Of 850 randomly selected elderly individuals, 625 participated in home interviews. Complete nutritional information was available for 457 individuals (mean age 69+/-8 years, 55% female). Nutritional status was assessed using an adapted form of the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) including body mass index (BMI). Age, sex, education, household expenditure on food and self-reported health problems were investigated as potential predictors of nutritional status.Results: BMI<18.5 kg m(-2), indicating chronic energy deficiency, was found in 50% of the population. MNA revealed a prevalence of 26% for protein-energy malnutrition and 62% for risk of malnutrition. Health problems rather than age had a negative impact on nutritional status. Level of education and food expenditure were directly associated with nutritional status.Conclusion: In order to reduce world hunger by half in the coming decade, it is important to recognise that a substantial proportion of the elderly population, particularly in low-income countries, is undernourished. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This investigation aimed to compare the performance of two software packages, namely “Computerized Scoring of the Stuttering Severity (CSSS)” and “Praat,” in calculating the mean duration of stuttered syllables. Methods: In this descriptive-analytical study, 35 eligible stuttering subjects (26 male and 9 female), aged between 18 and 42 (m=26.23±6.02) were selected via the non-probability sampling method to enter the study. Spontaneous speech samples of subjects with stuttering were recorded with the help of a video camera. Two separate tasks were used to calculate the Mean Duration of the Three Longest Stuttering Events (MDTLSE) by applying the second version of the CSSS software and the 5.3.78 version of the Praat software. In the first task, MDTLSE was measured 10 times for a subject with mild stuttering and a subject with severe stuttering. In the second task, MDTLSE was measured just one time for each stuttering participant, and comparison was performed by paired t-test using the SPSS Version 22.0 computer software. Results: In the first task, in which Praat and CSSS-2 were used for the calculation of MDTLSE (10 times), the minimum and maximum obtained values were found to differ by 0.007 seconds (7 milliseconds) and 0.2 seconds (200 milliseconds), respectively. In the second task, in which MDTLSE was calculated with the software CSSS-2 and Praat, the differences were 2.34±2.17 and 3.02±2.98, respectively, that were found to be statistically significant (P=0.025). Discussion: Higher reliability and replicability of duration values calculated by Praat software indicates that this software can be applied for more precise determination of duration of stuttered syllables.

In this paper, we apply the pseudospectral method based on the Chebyshev cardinal function to solve the parabolic partial integro-differential equations (PIDEs). Since these equations play a key role in mathematics, physics, and engineering, finding an appropriate solution is important. We use an efficient method to solve PIDEs, especially for the integral part. Unlike when using Chebyshev functions, when using Chebyshev cardinal functions it is no longer necessary to integrate to find expansion coefficients of a given function. This reduces the computation. The convergence analysis is investigated and some numerical examples guarantee our theoretical results. We compare the presented method with others. The results confirm the efficiency and accuracy of the method.

Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Background: There are no randomized data to inform the extent to which transvenous cardiac leads cause tricuspid regurgitation (TR)., Objectives: This study sought to determine the effect of a transvenous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (TV-ICD) on TR severity, and secondarily, on right ventricular (RV) size and function., Methods: We evaluated TR severity before and 6 months after implantable cardioverter-defibrillator insertion in a post hoc analysis of adults randomized to receive a transvenous (n = 252) or subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (S-ICD) (n = 251) device. TR and RV size and systolic function were assessed by echocardiographic images analyzed in a core laboratory., Results: At baseline, at least mild TR was present in 30% of individuals. At 6 months, the proportion of participants with any TR in the TV-ICD group was 42% vs 19% in the S-ICD group (P < 0.001). The proportion with moderate or severe TR was 7% in the TV-ICD group vs 2% in the S-ICD group (P = 0.021). At 6 months, the OR of at least 1 grade worsening of TR in the TV-ICD group as compared with the S-ICD group was 7.2 (95% CI: 3.3-15.8; P < 0.001). There were no differences between groups with respect to RV size or systolic function., Conclusions: Six months following TV-ICD insertion, there was a 7-fold increase in the risk of at least 1 grade worsening of TR, with 7% of individuals having TR that was moderate or severe. There was no detectable difference in RV size or function; however, longer follow-up is needed., Competing Interests: Funding Support and Author Disclosures This study was funded by Boston Scientific through an unrestricted research grant. Boston Scientific did not have any input into the preparation of this manuscript. Dr Leong has received consultancy fees from Boston Scientific. Dr Mondésert has received consultancy and speaking fees from Bostin Scientific, Abbott, Medtronic, and Biotronik. Dr Joza has received research support from Medtronic Inc; consulting fees from Boston Scientific; and honoraria from Biosense Webster Canada. Dr Healey has received research support and speaking fees from BMS/Pfizer, Boston Scientific, and Medtronic; speaking fees from Servier; and consultancy fees from Bayer and Boston Scientific. All other authors have reported that they have no relationships relevant to the contents of this paper to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Importance: The advent of salt-based, high-nicotine electronic nicotine delivery systems [e-cigarettes] has contributed to their epidemic use among young people in the US, necessitating the need for policies to address the addictiveness of these products., Objective: To evaluate the effect of partial nicotine reduction on new-generation e-cigarette users' puffing behaviors., Design, Setting, and Participants: This randomized crossover clinical trial was conducted at the Clinical Research Lab for Tobacco Smoking at Florida International University in Miami between April 15, 2022, and October 17, 2023. Using a volunteering sampling method by distributing flyers and advertisements, current e-cigarette users (who preferred 5% nicotine concentration), aged 21 to 35 years, were included., Intervention: In a crossover design, participants completed 2 sessions of the same product (JUUL or NJOY) that differed by nicotine concentration (3% [JUUL] or 2.4% [NJOY] and 5% [JUUL or NJOY]) in random order. In each session, participants vaped up to 60 minutes ad libitum, preceded by 12 hours of nicotine abstinence., Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcomes were puffing topography parameters (eg, total session time, puffing time, total puffing number, interpuff interval, total inhaled volume, average puff volume, duration, and flow rate) measured during each session and plasma nicotine measured before and after each session., Results: Among 735 participants who were approached for eligibility, 675 were excluded, and 10 did not complete session 2. Of the 50 remaining current e-cigarette users (mean [SD] age, 23 [3] years; 56% men), 23 (46%) were low nicotine dependent. The median topography parameters were significantly higher during the e-cigarette use sessions with 3% or 2.4% nicotine concentration compared with 5% nicotine concentration for 3 outcomes: puffing time (1.3 minutes [IQR, 0.3-9.4 minutes] vs 1.2 minutes [IQR, 0.2-5.6 minutes]; P = .02), puff duration (2.6 seconds [IQR, 0.8-6.9 seconds] vs 2.4 seconds [IQR, 0.4-6.6 seconds]; P = .02), and total inhaled volume (1990.0 mL [IQR, 279.0-24 400.0 mL] vs 1490.0 mL [IQR, 148.0-14 300.0 mL]; P = .05). The median plasma nicotine boost observed in the 5% nicotine concentration condition (0.0060 mg/L [IQR, 0.0001-0.0249 mg/L]) was significantly higher than that in the 3% or 2.4% session (0.0043 mg/L [IQR, 0.0008-0.0225 mg/L]) (P = .001). Additionally, deeper puffing (increased average puff duration and average puff volume) was observed in participants with higher nicotine dependence (1.42 seconds [95% CI, 1.12-1.80 seconds]; P = .03) and male users (1.38 mL [95% CI, 1.09-1.75 mL]; P = .04) in response to nicotine reduction., Conclusions and Relevance: This randomized crossover clinical trial provides direct evidence that partial nicotine reduction in salt-based e-cigarettes was associated with acute compensatory puffing and the potential for increased exposure to toxicants. However, given the reduced nicotine delivery associated with nicotine reduction, the acute compensatory response observed in this study may not preclude a population benefit due to the marketing of less addictive products. These results suggest that at least for current e-cigarette users, partial nicotine reduction can lead to enhanced exposure to some toxicants in the short term., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05205382.

Background: This study reports on the development of pictorial health warning labels for electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) using the Delphi approach with a panel of tobacco control experts. Twenty-four evidence-based ENDS-specific warnings corresponding to three themes (toxicity, health risks and specific harm) were developed and used in the Delphi study., Methods: We conducted a three-round online Delphi study among 60 experts (55% female) between June 2022 and April 2023. We balanced the panel in areas of expertise and positions relevant to ENDS (risks, benefits). In round 1, participants rated the warnings on attention, relevance to evidence and perceived effectiveness (harm perception, motivation to quit) and provided suggestions for improvement. In rounds 2 and 3, participants ranked the revised warnings based on importance in each theme. We assessed levels of agreement between participants using interquartile deviations and medians., Results: Warnings in theme 1, toxicity, received the highest ratings for perceived effectiveness on harm perception and encouraging quitting ENDS (p<0.05). Experts recommended using clear and affirmative text paired with emotion-provoking pictures and avoiding the rare side effects of ENDS. Most of the top-ranked warnings were from theme 3, ENDS-specific harm, pertained to lung damage, dual use of ENDS and cigarettes, nicotine addiction among youth, anti-ENDS industry sentiment and toxicity., Discussion: This study developed 24 evidence-based ENDS health warning labels using a systematic process that included several rounds of expert panel feedback. These warnings can be used to advance ENDS prevention and tobacco control policies and further target different populations., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)