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Background: Menstruation is a common and normal experience during the reproductive age of adolescent females and if not well managed might expose the female to menstrual distress. Aim & Objectives: To determine the menstrual hygiene management practices and menstrual distress among adolescent secondary school girls. Methods & Materials: Six hundred participants randomly drawn participated in the study. A structured questionnaire which had two inventories was used to collect data. The first inventory was a self-developed Menstrual Hygiene Management Practices Questionnaire (MHMPQ) (r = 0.71) and the second one was a modified 11-item Menstrual Distress Scale (MDS) (r = 0.74). Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: Results showed that menstrual hygiene management practices of the girls were poor and they were very highly distressed. Statistically significant differences were observed in menstrual hygiene management practices among the girls with regard to age, location of residence and occupation of mother and on menstrual distress in relation to occupation of father (p < 0.05). Significant positive relationship between menstrual hygiene management practices and menstrual distress was observed. Conclusion: The findings accentuate the need for a caring atmosphere for menstrual sanitation both at home and in school. Keywords: Menstrual hygiene; management practices; menstrual distress; adolescent secondary school girls.

Musculoskeletal disorders –MSD, particularly on the muscles, tendons, ligaments, joints and cartilage decline the general physiological efficiency of the human body systems. The study aimed to ascertain the status of awareness of awkward posture and repetitive motion as ergonomic factors associated with MSD by health promotion professionals -HPP. The study adopted descriptive survey approach and was carried out in Enugu State of Nigeria, from August 2019 to February 2020. The participants were experts in health promotion through physical exercises. A well-structured questionnaire with reliability index of 0.86 was the only instrument used for data collection. The data analysis was completed using SPSS version 21. All the participants were Nigerians totaling 323 and responded to the questionnaire items completely and correctly. Majority of them were: females 196(60.7%) and rural dwellers 183(56.7%). The study revealed that the health promotion professionals were aware of awkward posture (M=3.22; SD=0.80) and repetitive motion (M=3.18; SD=0.79) as ergonomic factors associated with MSD. The status of awareness of the study phenomenon varied within variables of gender and location. A statistically significant difference was observed with regards to location (P-value 0.05). Although, the awareness status varied within variables, there is clear demonstration that the status of awareness regarding awkward posture and repetitive motion as ergonomic factors associated with MSD was encouraging. This translates the actual application of the rehabilitative and remedial measures in health promoting exercises involved in improving the quality of life and wellness. Indeed, there is need for routine workshops, seminars and conferences organized for these professionals on addressing ergonomic factors associated with MSD.

A regular method is applied to search for the maximum-element non-redundant configuration on a square or hexagonal grid of large size. The method is based on using special type sequences, namely, planar difference sets; it automatically ensures non-redundancy of the configuration obtained on a 2-D grid thus saving the computation time that is important when dealing with great element numbers. Usage of this method enables one to simulate a non-redundant antenna arrangement on the aperture of a large-sized 2-D interferometer. Such a simulation for integer square grids with the sidelengths up to 150 and for hexagonal ones having radii from 15 up to 75 was carried out, and the maximum numbers of the configuration elements obtained in such a way are presented.

Estimates for the maximum number of elements of non-redundant configurations on integer square and hexagonal grids of given sizes are derived (a “non-redundant” configuration implies that the vector differences between its elements are all distinct). When projecting a large 2-D interferometer or a telescope, such an estimate can be used as a guide for evaluating the maximum possible number of antennas in a non-redundant configuration that can be arranged within a given area. The suggested estimates are empirical and based on the available data. They are obtained by reducing the problem to the linear case and by generalizing the method applied therein. Examples of applying the method are presented.

This study sought to better characterize the natural history of AIDS-associated disseminated Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) infection. Towards that end two retrospective studies were done: a case-control survival study and a MAC respiratory colonization study. Among 137 consecutive patients who had a sterile body site cultured for mycobacteria within 3 months of their first AIDS-defining episode of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, median survival was significantly shorter in those with disseminated MAC infection (107 days; 95% confidence interval [CI] 55-179) than those with negative cultures (275 days; 95% CI 230-318; P less than .01), even after controlling for age, absolute lymphocyte count, and hemoglobin concentration. Among 34 patients with AIDS and respiratory MAC colonization, 22 later developed disseminated infection (65% predictive value for subsequent MAC dissemination). Disseminated MAC infection was associated with significantly shorter survival for patients with AIDS, and the presence of MAC in respiratory specimens has substantial predictive value for subsequent disseminated infection.

Phased antenna arrays are widely exploited in radio astronomy as well as in other branches of radio science. Their attractiveness lies in the possibility to realize huge apertures up 103λ, and more, and also in the possibility of practically instantaneous non-mechanical pointing the beam in any direction of space. At the present time, the majority of large radio telescopes are employing phased arrays. Such are, for example, the Mills cross, radio telescopes DKR-1000 and UTR-2, and many others. In contrast to the interferometric systems described in Chapters 1 and 2, antenna arrays do not use correlation products. The signals from their elements are summing with some complex factors (weights). Owing to this, in the output a field pattern is formed (rather than a power pattern as in interferometers).