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Slope instability due to tectonic, hydrological and anthropogenic activities cause severe landslides in Himalaya. Joshimath, a densely populated Himalayan town witnessed a catastrophic landslide event during December 2022 and January 2023 causing damages to ∼700 buildings. We use Interferometric synthetic aperture radar, Global Positioning System and rainfall measurements to probe the kinematics of the Joshimath landslide. We separate the seasonal and episodic deformation components using singular spectrum analysis. While the low amplitude annual landslide motions are modulated by seasonal precipitation, acceleration phases are triggered by extreme rain events. Our analysis revealed episodes of cascading motions triggered by extreme rain events resulting an overall increase in landslide velocity from −22 mm/yr during 2004–2010 to −325 mm/yr during 2022–2023. We estimate the landslide depth (∼30 m) and hydraulic diffusivity (∼3 × 10−5 m2/s) using a 1‐D pore‐water pressure diffusion model. Our study reveals the importance of systematic monitoring of ground deformation and weather parameters for landslide hazard mitigation. Plain Language Summary: The Himalayas, world's largest and youngest mountain range formed as a result of the India‐Eurasia continental collision hosts thousands of landslides each year related to tectonic and anthropogenic activities. It is important to characterize the landslide kinematics, especially the slow moving landslides at the fast‐developing Himalayan urban centers for hazard assessment. A recent catastrophic landslide event in the Joshimath town in NW Himalaya occurred between December 2022 and January 2023 caused damages to ∼700 buildings leading to mass evacuation. We map the spatio‐temporal evolution of land deformation at Joshimath using about two decades of geodetic measurements and singular spectrum analysis technique. While the decadal‐scale landslide motions match well with the overall increase in rainfall intensity, the episodic accelerations are triggered by extreme rain events. The extreme rainfall event on 19 October 2021, triggered the latest episode of landslide acceleration, which eventually led to the tragic disaster. The present study, for the first time, provides constraints on the landslide depth and hydraulic diffusivity. Our study also emphasis on the systematic monitoring of ground deformation and weather parameters at the Himalayas for an effective landslide hazard preparedness and mitigation. Key Points: Joshimath landslide displays episodic and seasonal kinematic changes; episodic accelerations are triggered by extreme rain eventsThe 19 October 2021 extreme rain event triggered the latest episode of landslide acceleration culminating to the 2022 disasterDepth and hydraulic diffusivity of the landslide is constrained using 1‐D pore‐water pressure diffusion model [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To study the effect of nanofiller particle TiO2 on sodium (Na+) – ion conducting solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) film: [80PEO:20NaPF6] and nanocomposite polymer electrolyte (NCPE): [80PEO:20NaPF6] + xTiO2, where x = 1–9 wt. (%) have been prepared. SPE film composition: [80PEO:20NaPF6] selects as Ist‐phase host and nano‐sized (<100 nm) filler materials TiO2 as IInd‐phase dispersoid. Both SPE and NCPE films have been prepared by the hot‐press technique. Filler particle‐dependent conductivity study reveals the NCPE system: [80PEO:20NaPF6] + 8TiO2 as the highest conducting composition with σrt − 3.53 × 10−6 S cm−1, which is approximately one order of magnitude higher than the SPE optimum conducting composition (OCC) (σrt) ≈ 7.78 × 10−7 S cm−1. Ion transport properties for both SPE and NCPE system have been evaluated in terms of ionic conductivity (σ) and total ionic (tion)/cationic (t+) transference numbers using combined AC/DC techniques in order to evaluate its usefulness in all‐solid‐state battery applications. Structural/thermal properties have been characterized using X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques. A cyclic voltammetry (CV) study has been performed in SPE and NCPE OCC film to evaluate the electrochemical performance for battery application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cross‐task generalization is a significant outcome that defines mastery in natural language understanding. Humans show a remarkable aptitude for this, and can solve many different types of tasks, given definitions in the form of textual instructions and a small set of examples. Recent work with pre‐trained language models mimics this learning style: users can define and exemplify a task for the model to attempt as a series of natural language prompts or instructions. While prompting approaches have led to higher cross‐task generalization compared to traditional supervised learning, analyzing 'bias' in the task instructions given to the model is a difficult problem, and has thus been relatively unexplored. For instance, are we truly modeling a task, or are we modeling a user's instructions? To help investigate this, we develop LINGO, a novel visual analytics interface that supports an effective, task‐driven workflow to (1) help identify bias in natural language task instructions, (2) alter (or create) task instructions to reduce bias, and (3) evaluate pre‐trained model performance on debiased task instructions. To robustly evaluate LINGO, we conduct a user study with both novice and expert instruction creators, over a dataset of 1,616 linguistic tasks and their natural language instructions, spanning 55 different languages. For both user groups, LINGO promotes the creation of more difficult tasks for pre‐trained models, that contain higher linguistic diversity and lower instruction bias. We additionally discuss how the insights learned in developing and evaluating LINGO can aid in the design of future dashboards that aim to minimize the effort involved in prompt creation across multiple domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which is deemed a formative phase of dementia, may greatly assist clinicians in delaying its headway toward dementia. This article proposes a deep learning approach based on a triploid genetic algorithm, a proposed variant of genetic algorithms, for classifying MCI converts and non‐converts using structural magnetic resonance imaging data. It also explores the effect of the choice of activation functions and that of the selection of hyper‐parameters on the performance of the model. The proposed work is a step toward automated convolutional neural networks. The performance of the proposed method is measured in terms of accuracy and empirical studies exhibit the preeminence of our proposed method over the existing ones. The proposed model results in a maximum accuracy of 0.97961. Thus, it may contribute to the effective diagnosis of MCI and may prove important in clinical settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In December 2019, a cluster of atypical pneumonia cases were reported in Wuhan, China, and a novel coronavirus elucidated as the aetiologic agent. Although most initial cases occurred in China, the disease, termed coronavirus disease 2019, has become a pandemic and continues to spread rapidly with human-to-human transmission in many countries. This is the third novel coronavirus outbreak in the last two decades and presents an ensuing healthcare resource burden that threatens to overwhelm available healthcare resources. A study of the initial Chinese response has shown that there is a significant positive association between coronavirus disease 2019 mortality and healthcare resource burden. Based on the Chinese experience, some 19% of coronavirus disease 2019 cases develop severe or critical disease. This results in a need for adequate preparation and mobilisation of critical care resources to anticipate and adapt to a surge in coronavirus disease 2019 case-load in order to mitigate morbidity and mortality. In this article, we discuss some of the peri-operative and critical care resource planning considerations and management strategies employed in a tertiary academic medical centre in Singapore in response to the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To study the effect of nanofiller particle TiO2 on sodium (Na+) – ion conducting solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) film: [80PEO:20NaPF6] and nanocomposite polymer electrolyte (NCPE): [80PEO:20NaPF6] + xTiO2, where x = 1–9 wt. (%) have been prepared. SPE film composition: [80PEO:20NaPF6] selects as Ist‐phase host and nano‐sized (<100 nm) filler materials TiO2 as IInd‐phase dispersoid. Both SPE and NCPE films have been prepared by the hot‐press technique. Filler particle‐dependent conductivity study reveals the NCPE system: [80PEO:20NaPF6] + 8TiO2 as the highest conducting composition with σrt − 3.53 × 10−6 S cm−1, which is approximately one order of magnitude higher than the SPE optimum conducting composition (OCC) (σrt) ≈ 7.78 × 10−7 S cm−1. Ion transport properties for both SPE and NCPE system have been evaluated in terms of ionic conductivity (σ) and total ionic (tion)/cationic (t+) transference numbers using combined AC/DC techniques in order to evaluate its usefulness in all‐solid‐state battery applications. Structural/thermal properties have been characterized using X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques. A cyclic voltammetry (CV) study has been performed in SPE and NCPE OCC film to evaluate the electrochemical performance for battery application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Introduction Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurological disorder, which is diagnosed on the basis of clinical history and examination alone as there are no diagnostic tests available. However, the current diagnosis highly depends on the knowledge and experience of clinicians and hence subjective in nature. Thus, the focus of this study is to develop a computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) method using T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to differentiate PD from controls. Method: The proposed method utilizes graph-theory-based spectral feature selection method to select a set of discriminating features from whole brain volume. A decision model is built using support vector machine as a classifier with leave-one-out cross-validation scheme. The performance measures, namely, sensitivity, specificity, and classification accuracy, are utilized to evaluate the performance of the decision model. The efficacy of the proposed method is checked on volumetric 3D T1-weighted (1 mm iso-voxel) MRI dataset of 30 PD patients and 30 age and gender matched controls acquired with 1.5T MRI scanner. Results: Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method is able to differentiate PD from controls with an accuracy of 86.67%, which encourages the use of CAD. The performance of the proposed method outperforms the existing methods except one. In addition, it is observed that the maximum number of selected features belong to caudate region followed by cuneus region. Thus, these regions may be considered as potential biomarkers in diagnosis of PD. Conclusion The proposed method may be utilized by the clinicians for diagnosis of PD. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 25, 245-255, 2015 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Only limited evidence is available regarding the cytokine repertoire of effector T cells associated with peanut allergy, and how these responses relate to IgE antibodies to peanut components. Objective To interrogate T cell effector cytokine populations induced by Ara h 1 and Ara h 2 among peanut allergic ( PA) children in the context of IgE and to evaluate their modulation during oral immunotherapy ( OIT). Methods Peanut-reactive effector T cells were analysed in conjunction with specific IgE profiles in PA children using intracellular staining and multiplex assay. Cytokine-expressing T cell subpopulations were visualized using SPICE. Results Ara h 2 dominated the antibody response to peanut as judged by prevalence and quantity among a cohort of children with IgE to peanut. High IgE (> 15 kUA/L) was almost exclusively associated with dual sensitization to Ara h 1 and Ara h 2 and was age independent. Among PA children, IL-4-biased responses to both major allergens were induced, regardless of whether IgE antibodies to Ara h 1 were present. Among subjects receiving OIT in whom high IgE was maintained, Th2 reactivity to peanut components persisted despite clinical desensitization and modulation of allergen-specific immune parameters including augmented specific IgG4 antibodies, Th1 skewing and enhanced IL-10. The complexity of cytokine-positive subpopulations within peanut-reactive IL-4+ and IFN-γ+ T cells was similar to that observed in those who received no OIT, but was modified with extended therapy. Nonetheless, high Foxp3 expression was a distinguishing feature of peanut-reactive IL-4+ T cells irrespective of OIT, and a correlate of their ability to secrete type 2 cytokines. Conclusion Although total numbers of peanut-reactive IL-4+ and IFN-γ+ T cells are modulated by OIT in highly allergic children, complex T cell populations with pathogenic potential persist in the presence of recognized immune markers of successful immunotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Early and antemortem diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) may help in the development of appropriate treatment and in slowing down the disease progression. In this work, a three-phase computer aided approach is suggested for classification of AD patients and controls using T1-weighted MRI. In the first phase, smoothed modulated gray matter (GM) probability maps are obtained from T1-weighted MRIs. In the second phase, 3D discrete wavelet transform is applied on GM of five brain regions, which are well-documented regions affected in AD, to construct features. In the third phase, a minimal set of relevant and nonredundant features are obtained using Fisher's discriminant ratio and minimum redundancy maximum relevance feature selection methods. To check the efficacy of the proposed approach, experiments were carried out on three datasets derived from the publicly available OASIS database, using three commonly used classifiers. The performance of the proposed approach was evaluated using three performance measures namely sensitivity, specificity and classification accuracy. Further, the proposed approach was compared with the existing state-of-the-art techniques in terms of three performance measures, ROC curves, scoring and computation time. Irrespective of the datasets and the classifiers, the proposed method outperformed the existing methods. In addition, the statistical test also demonstrated that the proposed method is significantly better in comparison to the other existing methods. The appreciable performance of the proposed method supports that it will assist clinicians/researchers in the classification of AD patients and controls. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Rhinovirus and IgE act in concert to promote asthma exacerbations. While basophils are the principal cell type in the blood that is activated by IgE, their role in virus-induced asthma episodes remains elusive. Objective To monitor IgE responsiveness in circulating basophils of rhinovirus-infected atopic asthmatics during acute infection and convalescence. Methods The capacity for basophils to respond to IgE was assessed by testing the effects of allergen, or cross-linking anti-Fcε RI and anti-IgE antibodies, on surface TSLP receptor in 24-hour PBMC cultures. Activation profiles of basophils from atopic asthmatics challenged intranasally with human rhinovirus 16 were monitored directly ex vivo or else in 24-hour cultures, at baseline (day 0), and then at days 4 and 21 post-challenge. Results Basophils in atopic asthmatics, but not in non-atopic controls, upregulated TSLP receptor upon IgE receptor ligation. The magnitude of this response was correlated with the proportion of serum total IgE that was allergen-specific ( r = 0.615, P < 0.05). Following rhinovirus infection, all subjects developed nasal symptoms that peaked 3-5 days after viral challenge. Basophils displayed maximal IgE responsiveness 3 weeks post-challenge as judged by TSLP receptor levels in 24-hour cultures. No significant change in total IgE or specific IgE antibodies was detected during rhinovirus infection. By contrast, levels of IgE receptor-associated spleen tyrosine kinase, Syk, were increased on day 4 ( P < 0.05), and elevated levels were also detected three weeks post-challenge. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance Circulating basophils display increased IgE responsiveness 3 weeks after rhinovirus infection in atopic asthmatics. This observation, coupled with increased expression of Syk, implicates basophils in promoting, or else prolonging, rhinovirus-induced inflammation in atopic asthmatics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Atopic dermatitis ( AD) is common in children; however, persistence of AD with or without asthma is less common. Longitudinal studies remain limited in their ability to characterize how IgE antibody responses evolve in AD, and their relationship with asthma. Objective To use a cross-sectional study design of children with active AD to analyse age-related differences in IgE antibodies and relation to wheeze. Methods IgE antibodies to food and inhalant allergens were measured in children with active AD (5 months to 15 years of age, n = 66), with and without history of wheeze. Results Whereas IgE antibodies to foods persisted at a similar prevalence and titre throughout childhood, IgE antibodies to all aeroallergens rose sharply into adolescence. From birth, the chance of sensitization for any aeroallergen increased for each 12-month increment in age ( OR ≥ 1.21, P < 0.01), with the largest effect observed for dust mite ( OR = 1.56, P < 0.001). A steeper age-related rise in IgE antibody titre to dust mite, but no other allergen was associated with more severe disease. Despite this, sensitization to cat was more strongly associated with wheeze ( OR = 4.5, P < 0.01), and linked to Fel d 1 and Fel d 4, but not Fel d 2. Comparison of cat allergic children with AD to those without, revealed higher IgE levels to Fel d 2 and Fel d 4 ( P < 0.05), but not Fel d 1. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance Differences in sensitization to cat and dust mite among young children with AD may aid in identifying those at increased risk for disease progression and development of asthma. Early sensitization to cat and risk for wheeze among children with AD may be linked to an increased risk for sensitization to a broader spectrum of allergen components from early life. Collectively, our findings argue for early intervention strategies designed to mitigate skin inflammation in children with AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prevalence of atopy and allergic disease continues to escalate worldwide. Defining immune mechanisms that suppress the underlying Th2-driven inflammatory process is critical for the rational design of new treatments to prevent or attenuate disease. Allergen immunotherapy has provided a useful framework for evaluating changes in the immune response that occur during the development of tolerance. Despite this, elucidating the phenotypic and functional properties of regulatory cells, has proven challenging in humans with allergic disease. This article provides an overview of our current understanding of the immune pathways that orchestrate allergen tolerance, with an emphasis on emerging concepts related to human disease. A variety of regulatory cell types, including IL-10-secreting T and B cells, play a pivotal role in suppressing allergic responses to inhaled, ingested and injected allergens. These cells may inhibit Th2 effectors directly, or else indirectly, through other cell types and mediators. Protective antibodies, including IgG4, Fc sialylated IgG, and IgA, have the capacity to modulate the response by preventing allergen binding to surface-bound IgE, or inhibiting dendritic cell maturation. Immune cell plasticity may augment suppression of Th2 cells by T regulatory cells, through mechanisms that involve T cell conversion, or else unconventional roles of classical effector cells. These actions depend upon external cues provided by the in vivo milieu. As such, specific anatomical sites may preferentially favour tolerance induction. Recent scientific advances now allow a global analysis of immune parameters that capture novel markers of tolerance induction in allergic patients. Such markers could provide new molecular targets for assessing tolerance, and for designing treatments that confer long-lasting protection in a safe and efficacious fashion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives To assess the effect of short-term (2–3 weeks) pituitary suppression and controlled ovarian stimulation on ovarian and uterine artery Doppler measurements during the in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment cycle and to compare the pattern of these changes between conception and non-conception cycles as well as between patients with normal and those with polycystic ovaries. Design Prospective observational study of women undergoing IVF treatment. Subjects Women using the long-treatment buserelin protocol who did not have uterine fibroids, ovarian cysts or endometrioma. Methods Serial transvaginal color and pulsed Doppler measurements of ovarian stromal and uterine artery blood flow velocity were carried out in the early follicular phase of the menstrual cycle, on the day of pituitary suppression and on the day of administration of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). The main outcome measures were the ovarian stromal and uterine artery blood flow peak systolic velocity (PSV) and pulsatility index (PI). Results A total of 105 patients were recruited but six patients were excluded from the analysis because they had only one stage of the measurements performed. There was a significant decline in mean ovarian stromal artery PSV after 2–3 weeks of gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist therapy but no effect on ovarian stromal artery PI. The mean uterine artery PSV or PI did not change significantly after 2–3 weeks of GnRH agonist therapy. There was a significantly higher mean ovarian stromal artery PSV in conception cycles compared to non-conception cycles in the early follicular phase and on the day of pituitary suppression, but not on the day of hCG administration. There were no differences between conception and non-conception cycles in the mean uterine artery PSV or PI. Women with polycystic ovaries had a higher mean ovarian artery PSV on all the three occasions of measurement. Conclusion These data suggest that assessmen... [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Echocardiography plays a significant role in the evaluation of mitral valve repair. Three-dimensional(3D) echocardiography provides surgeon' views not obtainable by two-dimensional echocardiography. We report the live 3D echocardiographic evaluation of Alfieri mitral valve repair. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine whether umbilical cord blood glucose correlates with subsequent hypoglycaemia after birth in infants of well-controlled diabetic mothers.Methodology: Thirty-eight term infants of well-controlled diabetic mothers were enrolled. Five mothers had pre-existing diabetes. Of the 33 gestational diabetic mothers, 16 were managed on insulin and 17 on diet. Maternal blood glucose was maintained between 4 and 8 mmol/L during labour and delivery. Infants' plasma glucose levels were measured from venous cord blood and serially, at less than 30 min, 1 h and 2 h of life by glucose hexokinase method. Blood glucose levels were further monitored by bedside Dextrostix for 24 h.Results: Eighteen (47%) infants developed hypoglycaemia (blood glucose level less than 2 mmol/L) during the first 2 h of life. There was no difference in the cord blood glucose levels between infants with or without hypoglycaemia (3.7 +/- 1.1 vs 4.5 +/- 1.1 mmol/L, respectively). Infants of mothers with diabetes diagnosed prior to 28 weeks gestation were at a higher risk of developing hypoglycaemia (8 of 10 vs 10 of 28, OR 7.2, 95%CI 1.3-40.7). Hypoglycaemic infants were of significantly higher birthweight, and were more likely to be born to Caucasian mothers and by Caesarean section. Raised maternal fructosamine blood level, the need for insulin treatment or the infant's haematocrit were not different between infants with or without hypoglycaemia.Conclusions: In well-controlled diabetic mothers, the incidence of early hypoglycaemia in infants is still high, particularly in those mothers who had a longer duration of diabetes. Cord blood glucose level did not identify the infants with hypoglycaemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a case of an adult with moyamoya syndrome and sickle cell trait. The patient presented with left-sided weakness and numbness. A magnetic resonance angiogram revealed bilateral moyamoya disease. Features of the moyamoya disease include bilateral narrowing and a network of collateral channels at the base of the brain. The authors conclude that the association between sickle cell anemia and moyamoya is rare in adults and in hematologically benign conditions.

Purpose To compare the characteristics and treatment outcomes of HIV patients with cytomegalovirus retinitis (CMVR), with and without extra‐ocular CMV (EO‐CMV) infection in Singapore. Methods This is a retrospective cohort study. All HIV patients diagnosed with CMVR at the Singapore Communicable Disease Centre from January 2005 through November 2009 were included. Results 101 patients (138 eyes) were included. 92% were male, with a mean age of 48.6±10.4 years. Median follow‐up was 8 months (range 0.5‐58). 11% defaulted at a median of 6 months, and overall mortality was 24% at a median of 4 months. There were 68 patients (88 eyes) with only CMVR and 33 patients (50 eyes) with CMVR and EO‐CMV. 36% had multiple sites of EO‐CMV infection. In the EO‐CMV group, 24% developed EO‐CMV after CMVR, of which 6 were diagnosed with EO‐CMV infection within 3 months after initiation of anti‐retroviral therapy. Bilateral CMVR was significantly higher in the EO‐CMV group (52% versus 29%; p=0.03). Patients with EO‐CMV were less likely to develop immune reactivation uveitis (OR 0.8; CI 0.3‐2.4), although mortality was higher (42% versus 15%, p=0.002). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that a longer duration of prior anti‐CMV treatment had higher odds (OR 1.127, p=0.037) of CMVR recurrence, but no significant difference between both groups (OR 0.886, p=0.866). Conclusion EO‐CMV infection was significantly associated with increased mortality, bilateral CMVR disease and can manifest as CMV‐associated immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome. Our results also suggest that CMVR recurrence is multi‐factorial and cessation of anti‐CMV therapy should be tailored to an individualized risk factor profile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To assess intra- (repeatability) and inter-observer (reproducibility) variability of laser speckle flowgraphy (LSFG) for retinal blood flow (RBF) measurement in 20 eyes of wild type (C57BL/6J) mice and effect of intravitreal Aflibercept on RBF in optic nerve head (ONH) region of 10 eyes of Ins2 (Akita) diabetic mice., Methods: 'Mean blur rate (MBR)' was measured for all quadrants of tissue area (MT), vessel (MV) and total area (MA) of ONH region. Changes in MT were analysed at each timepoint. Repeatability was evaluated by measuring MBR variability without changing mouse head position, and reproducibility after resetting mouse head position by another operator. Coefficient of repeatability (CR) through Bland-Altman plot method coefficient of variation (COV) and Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was calculated. Intravitreal Aflibercept (1 μg) was administered to Akita eyes and intraocular pressure (IOP) was measured using a tonometer at baseline, day 7, 14, 21 and 28 post-injection. Hurvich and Tsai's criterion was used., Results: Coefficient of repeatability values of repeatability and reproducibility for all quadrants were within limits of agreement. Reliability was excellent (ICC 0.98-0.99) and reproducibility was moderate to excellent (ICC 0.64-0.96). There was a non-significant IOP increase in all Akita eyes at Day 28 (p > 0.05), and significant increase in MT in all quadrants at Day 21 and superior, inferior and temporal quadrants at Day 28 (p < 0.05)., Conclusion: Laser speckle flowgraphy demonstrates excellent repeatability and moderate to excellent reproducibility in measuring RBF. Intravitreal Aflibercept injection results in a significant increase in MT up to 28 days post-injection without significant increase in IOP., (© 2024 The Authors. Acta Ophthalmologica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation.)

Purpose: To assess the association between perinatal risk factors for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and central retinal structures of former preterm children seen on optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA)., Methods: This prospective cohort study included 40 children with a history of preterm birth and 33 healthy full-term children. We documented their birth weight, gestational age, other significant risk factors for ROP development and presence of ROP. Imaging was performed using swept-source OCTA, and quantitative evaluation was performed. Analytic parameters included the area of foveal avascular zone (FAZ), foveal depth (FD), central subfoveal retinal thickness (CSFT) and capillary density index (CDI) of the deep and superficial capillary plexus., Results: Preterm children had significantly smaller FAZ, lower FD and higher CSFT compared to controls (all p < 0.001). Both groups exhibited no differences in total CDI at the superficial (p = 0.969) and deep capillary plexus (p = 0.370). The duration of mechanical ventilation correlated negatively with FAZ and FD but positively with CSFT. The duration of supplemental oxygen treatment correlated negatively with FD. The presence of intraventricular haemorrhage correlated negatively with FAZ and FD but positively with CSFT. Regression analysis found that the duration of mechanical ventilation and the presence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia were associated with lower FD (p = 0.002 and 0.01, respectively) and higher CSFT (p = 0.002 and 0.028, respectively)., Conclusion: Central retinal anomalies were identified in former preterm children using OCTA. Macular changes were associated with several risk factors for ROP development., (© 2021 The Authors. Acta Ophthalmologica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation.)

Purpose/objective: Self-assessment is a fundamental skill for dentists and other health care providers. It enables these professionals' ability to critically evaluate the quality of their clinical work and improve through self-directed learning. Researchers have investigated how gender affects self-assessment skills and have shown that male students tend to overestimate their performance while female students tend to underestimate theirs as compared to peer or faculty assessment. The goal of this study was to evaluate how the self-assessment skills of dental students differ by gender in operative preclinical dentistry., Methods: Third-year dental students (N = 208, Class of 2016-2021) self-assessed their work using the same rubrics as faculty on four operative dentistry competency examination procedures: Class II amalgam preparation and restoration and Class III resin-composite preparation and restoration. Two calibrated full-time faculty graded all procedures independently. The Student self-assessment-Faculty grade (S-F) gap scores were calculated and statistically analyzed., Results: Overall, both genders overestimated their self-assessment for all four procedures as compared to actual scores given by faculty. Males overestimated more significantly than females for Class II Amalgam preparation, but not for the other three procedures. However, when the S-F gap for all procedures was combined and analyzed together, male students significantly overestimated their self-assessments compared to female students. When female and male students grading scores were stratified into quartiles, there were significantly larger differences between males and females in the lower quartiles, which suggest that difference in self-assessment abilities was more prominent among the lower performing students., Conclusion: The results of this study demonstrate that gender may affect the accuracy of self-assessment in operative preclinical dentistry., (© 2021 American Dental Education Association.)

Purpose: Impaired red blood cell (RBC) deformability impedes tissue perfusion. This study aims to investigate RBC biomechanics in type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) patients with different grades of diabetic retinopathy (DR) and to correlate RBC deformability with hematological and serum biochemical markers., Methods: This cross-sectional study included 86 type 2 DM patients (31 with no DR, 31 with non-proliferative DR [NPDR] and 24 with proliferative DR [PDR]) and 32 control subjects. RBC deformability was measured by a microfluidic cross-slot channel (elongation index, EI). Venous blood samples were taken for assessment of hematological and serum biochemical markers., Results: RBC deformability showed significant reduction in diabetic patients, being lowest in the PDR group, followed by NPDR and DM with no DR groups, and highest in control group (P = .018). RBC deformability was not affected by age or gender but showed significant associations with certain hematological and serum biochemical markers. In the regression analysis controlling for DM status, urea concentration and reticulocyte count were shown to be negatively associated with EI., Conclusion: Impaired RBC deformability measured by a microfluidic cross-slot channel in DM patients with different grades of DR underscores the contribution of RBC rheological properties to the pathogenesis and progression of DM related microangiopathy., (© 2020 The Authors. Microcirculation published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Purpose: Evaluate choroidal structural changes in preterm children with and without retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) using image binarization technique on swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT) scans., Methods: Prospective case-control study. Forty-one (79 eyes) children aged 5-15 years with a history of preterm birth and 33 (63 eyes) age-matched full-term children were recruited. Demographics including gestational age at birth, birth weight and history of ROP were documented. All subjects had undergone complete eye examinations, including best-corrected visual acuity and SS-OCT imaging. Subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) was calculated, and images were binarized to obtain stromal and luminal areas (LA). The choroidal vascularity index (CVI) was derived from the proportion of LA to the total subfoveal choroidal area., Results: There were no significant differences in SFCT between the preterm children with (286.63 ± 83.98 μm) or without (306.59 ± 77.29 μm) ROP and the full-term children (311.82 ± 42.87; p = 0.20 and 0.67, respectively). The CVI was significantly reduced in the preterm children with ROP (68.66 ± 3.24%; p = 0.005) compared with the CVI in the full-term control group (71.37 ± 3.63%); however, the CVI in the preterm children without ROP (71.68 ± 3.09%; p = 0.93) was not significantly affected., Conclusion: The reduced CVI in preterm children with ROP may indicate compromised choroidal vascularity. The CVI was found to be a more sensitive OCT biomarker than the SFCT and may be helpful in evaluating associated choroidal structural changes in preterm children, especially those with a history of ROP., (© 2019 Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Evidence on strategies to improve infant and young child feeding in India, a country that carries the world's largest burden of undernutrition, is limited. In the context of a programme evaluation in two districts in Uttar Pradesh, we sought to understand the multiple influences on breastfeeding practices and to model potential programme influence on improving breastfeeding. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 1,838 recently delivered women, 1,194 husbands, and 1,353 mothers/mothers-in-law. We used bivariate and multivariable logistic regression models to examine the association between key determinants (maternal, household, community, and health services) and breastfeeding outcomes [early initiation of breastfeeding (EIBF)], prelacteal feed, and exclusive breastfeeding (EBF). We used population attributable risk analysis to estimate potential improvement in breastfeeding practices. Breastfeeding practices were suboptimal: EIBF (26.3%), EBF (54%), and prelacteal feeding (33%). EIBF was positively associated with maternal knowledge, counselling during pregnancy/delivery, and vaginal delivery at a health facility. Prelacteal feeds were less likely to be given when mothers had higher knowledge, beliefs and self-efficacy, delivered at health facility, and mothers/mothers-in-law had attended school. EBF was positively associated with maternal knowledge, beliefs and self-efficacy, parity, and socio-economic status. High maternal stress and domestic violence contributed to lower EBF. Under optimal programme implementation, we estimate EIBF can be improved by 25%, prelacteal feeding can be reduced by 25%, and EBF can be increased by 23%. A multifactorial approach, including maternal-, health service-, family-, and community-level interventions has the potential to lead to significant improvements in breastfeeding practices in Uttar Pradesh., (© 2019 The Authors. Maternal & Child Nutrition published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)