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Background: Providing high-quality healthcare services at low or no cost, especially in a densely populated country like India, is an enduring challenge. Thus, the efficacy of government-run hospitals and healthcare instructions has become critical for developing and developing countries. Aim: The current study aimed to investigate the relative performances under variable ownership patterns and scrutinise whether the differences in performances are significant or not to explore determinants of the performance of the hospitals. Methods: The study has been conducted in East and West Bardhaman, West Bengal, India. Data envelopment analysis measures hospitals' performance under variable ownership patterns. The Mann-Whitney U Test is employed to examine whether the performance differences among these hospitals are significant. Finally, Censored Tobit Analysis is used to gain insight into the determinants of their performance. Hospitals are categorized according to their ownership pattern: government hospitals owned by the state government, public hospitals owned by public sector undertakings, and private authorities. Results: Considering the input-output variables, relative performances have been measured. The hospitals under government ownership show the best performance, followed by public hospitals owned by public sector undertakings and private authorities. This performance level has significant determinants like the size of the hospital, bed occupancy rate, and the management and authority of the hospitals. Conclusion: In a developing or underdeveloped nation, all healthcare service providers need to be efficient enough to attain the health of the masses. This study has revealed that the vision of 'health for all' can be reached through the mission of 'healthcare inclusion' strategy by including all hospitals on the supply side regardless of their motive, ownership pattern, or other phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Advances in treatment have extended the life expectancy of patients with metastatic bone disease (MBD). Patients could experience more skeletal-related events (SREs) as a result of this progress. Those who have already experienced a SRE could encounter another local management for a subsequent SRE, which is not part of the treatment for the initial SRE. However, there is a noted gap in research on the rate and characteristics of subsequent SREs requiring further localized treatment, obligating clinicians to extrapolate from experiences with initial SREs when confronting subsequent ones. This study aimed to investigate the proportion of MBD patients developing subsequent SREs requiring local treatment, examine if there are prognostic differences at the initial treatment between those with single versus subsequent SREs, and determine if clinical, oncological, and prognostic features differ between initial and subsequent SRE treatments. Methods: This retrospective study included 3,814 adult patients who received local treatment – surgery and/or radiotherapy – for bone metastasis between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2019. All included patients had at least one SRE requiring local treatment. A subsequent SRE was defined as a second SRE requiring local treatment. Clinical, oncological, and prognostic features were compared between single SREs and subsequent SREs using Mann-Whitney U test, Fisher’s exact test, and Kaplan–Meier curve. Results: Of the 3,814 patients with SREs, 3,159 (83%) patients had a single SRE and 655 (17%) patients developed a subsequent SRE. Patients who developed subsequent SREs generally had characteristics that favoured longer survival, such as higher BMI, higher albumin levels, fewer comorbidities, or lower neutrophil count. Once the patient got to the point of subsequent SRE, their clinical and oncological characteristics and one-year survival (28%) were not as good as those with only a single SRE (35%; p < 0.001), indicating that clinicians’ experiences when treating the initial SRE are not similar when treating a subsequent SRE. Conclusion: This study found that 17% of patients required treatments for a second, subsequent SRE, and the current clinical guideline did not provide a specific approach to this clinical condition. We observed that referencing the initial treatment, patients in the subsequent SRE group had longer six-week, 90-day, and one-year median survival than patients in the single SRE group. Once patients develop a subsequent SRE, they have a worse one-year survival rate than those who receive treatment for a single SRE. Future research should identify prognostic factors and assess the applicability of existing survival prediction models for better management of subsequent SREs. Cite this article: Bone Joint Res 2024;13(9):497–506.

After 1999 private players are allowed to enter into the life insurance market. Foreign direct investment in the Life Insurance sector has been increased from 49 % to 74%. LICI the only public life insurer is going towards an initial public offering. Given the aforementioned conditions, the effectiveness and capital sufficiency of Indian life insurance companies must be evaluated. This study examine the comparative efficiency of capital adequacy of life insurance companies in India. To judge the efficiency of capital adequacy of life insurance companies in India, 2 methods are followed. One is the traditional method i.e. CARAMEL model and another one is the modern method i.e. Data Envelopment analysis. Levene's test is used to judge the equality of variance. An equality of variance test is required to know whether we used a parametric or non-parametric test. Levene's test shows that there is no homogeneity of variance so the Mann-Whitney U test is used to judge the statistical significance. According to the study, public and private life insurers' mean capital adequacy differs significantly, with LICI managing capital the most effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bangladesh's Ready-Made Garments contribute significantly to the country's economy and employment. In Bangladesh, spontaneous outbursts are usually caused by Ready-Made Garment workers due to inadequate pay, unpaid wages, and compensation for overtime work. Since these three criteria affect workers' job satisfaction, and some socio-demographic characteristics such as age, education, gender, marital status also influence job satiety, finally, all of these were needed to be studied in a single research study to narrate the impact of pay scale on garment workers, which had not done yet with the aid of nonparametric tests. So this research explored the impact of the 2018 revised minimum wage policy by examining workers' perceptions of wages, including basic pay, overtime compensation, various allowances (housing, medical, food, transportation), and the degree of workers' satisfaction within a group based on demographic traits. 80 responses, according to convenience sampling, were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests. The results highlighted dissatisfaction with basic pay, late payments, medical, and housing allowances but higher satisfaction with overtime compensation and transportation stipends. The study also found no significant difference in overall satisfaction with the wage structure based on gender or marital status, but it showed that aged, more educated workers are, for some reason, happier. Thus, the findings provide important insights for policymakers and industry stakeholders, shedding light on timely payment with a revised pay scale according to the present circumstances, considering worker needs like medical, housing allowances, etc. and creating an environment to involve women and young people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Objectives: Temporomandibular disorder (TMD) is the term used to describe a pathology (dysfunction and pain) in the masticatory muscles and temporomandibular joint (TMJ). There is an apparent upward trend in the publication of dental research and a need to continually improve the quality of research. Therefore, this study was conducted to analyse the use of sample size and effect size calculations in a TMD randomised controlled trial. Methods: The period was restricted to the full 5 years, i.e., papers published in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023. The filter article type—"Randomized Controlled Trial" was used. The studies were graded on a two-level scale: 0–1. In the case of 1, sample size (SS) and effect size (ES) were calculated. Results: In the entire study sample, SS was used in 58% of studies, while ES was used in 15% of studies. Conclusions: Quality should improve as research increases. One factor that influences quality is the level of statistics. SS and ES calculations provide a basis for understanding the results obtained by the authors. Access to formulas, online calculators and software facilitates these analyses. High-quality trials provide a solid foundation for medical progress, fostering the development of personalized therapies that provide more precise and effective treatment and increase patients' chances of recovery. Improving the quality of TMD research, and medical research in general, helps to increase public confidence in medical advances and raises the standard of patient care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Being susceptible to natural disasters, Bangladesh is one of the most disaster-prone countries. Among the various natural calamities, droughts are a frequent occurrence in the western region of the country. Hence, this study first compared the efficacy of five bias-corrected Regional Climate Models (RCMs) - MIROC, NOAA, MPI, IPSL, and CCCma - for the Western region of Bangladesh with observed monthly precipitation and subsequent SPI values. Various evaluation methods- RMSE, Taylor Diagram, Mann–Whitney U Test, and t-test, were applied to precipitation and SPI3 values for the historical base period. Through these analyses, the MIROC model exhibited the highest level of accuracy. Accordingly, future projections for short-term droughts (SPI-3) and their characteristics were conducted using the ensemble of top three climate model under the RCM 8.5 W/m2 scenario. Short-term droughts are anticipated to become less frequent and severe in the 2060s and 2080s compared to the 2020s. Nonetheless, North-West region is projected to be more drought-prone than South-West until 2100. This research shows the importance of evaluating the better-fitting RCMs for assessing historical droughts and making reliable projections for the future. The methodology and findings can be employed in evidence-based decision-making and applied in other drought-prone areas to understand future drought risks.

Continuous Software Process Improvement (SPI) is essential for achieving and maintaining high-quality software products. Web-based software enterprises, comprising a substantial proportion of global businesses and forming a cornerstone of the world’s industrial economy, are actively pursuing SPI initiatives. While these companies recognize the critical role of process enhancement in achieving success, they face challenges in implementing SPI due to the distinctive characteristics of Web-based software projects. This study aims to identify, validate, and prioritize the sustainability success factors that positively influence SPI implementation efforts in Web-based software projects. Data have been meticulously gathered through a systematic literature review and quantitatively through a survey questionnaire. The findings of this research empower Web-based software enterprises to refine their management strategies for evaluating and bolstering SPI practices within the Web-based software projects domain.

Introduction Age and sex are known demographic risk factors for requiring revision surgery following primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Military service members are a unique population with barriers to long-term follow up after surgery. This study aims to compare demographic data between active duty military personnel and a nationwide sample to identify differences that may impact clinical and economic outcomes. Methods A retrospective observational analysis was performed using the Military Health System Data Repository (MDR) and the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP). Databases were queried for patients undergoing primary TKA between January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2020. The MDR was queried for demographic data including age, sex, duty status, facility type, geographic region, history of prior military deployment, history of deployment-related health condition, branch of military service, and military rank. National Surgical Quality Improvement Program was queried for age and sex. Median age between populations was compared with the Mann–Whitney U test, and gender was compared with a chi-squared test. Results During the study period, 2,094 primary TKA patients were identified from the MDR, and 357,865 TKA patients were identified from the NSQIP database. Military TKA patients were 79.4% male with a median age of 49.0, and NSQIP TKA patients were 38.9% were male, with a median age of 67. Military TKA patients were significantly more likely to be male (P  < .001) and younger (P  < .001). Conclusion Patients undergoing TKA in the military are younger and more likely to be male compared to national trends. Current evidence suggests these factors may place them at a significant revision risk in the future. The application of quality metrics based on nationwide demographics may not be applicable to military members within the Military Health System. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study utilized non-parametric tests, specifically, the Mann-Whitney U test, to evaluate the performance of a proposed model called QRPCA-t-SNE, along with two other models, MDS and UMAP. The study compared these three models with two datasets on performance metrics such as model accuracy, training accuracy, testing accuracy, mean square error, AUC scores, precision, recall, and F1 scores. Once the model's performance was conducted, the Anderson-Darling test was to check for data normality before applying the hypothesis for model proof. The analysis revealed that Model 1 (QRPCA-t-SNE) significantly outperformed Model 2 (UMAP) and Model 3 (MDS) in terms of accuracy, with p-values of 0.0027 and 0.0003, respectively. This finding suggests that Model 1 (QRPCA-t-SNE) is suitable for highaccuracy and reliability applications, providing valuable insights into predictive analytics with a 95% confidence interval (confidence level a= 0.05). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parkinson's disease is one of the most common neurodegenerative diseases, which is incurable according to recent clinical knowledge. Evaluating motor symptoms across diverse modalities such as speech, handwriting, and movement composes a conventional diagnostic approach. However, concurrently utilizing multimodal datasets encompassing drawing and acceleration data remains an underexplored field. Our investigation involved examining drawing and movement data of 45 Parkinson's disease (PD) patients and 47 healthy individuals (HC). The PD group presented mild symptoms in the right hand. We transformed drawing data into spiral images and used visual representations of motion data, employing pre-trained models for feature extraction and classifiers. While motion representations exhibited superior performance compared to drawing images, a comprehensive evaluation with the Mann-Whitney U test at a significance level of 0.05 revealed no statistically significant difference between the efficacy of movement and drawing data in all classification scenarios. Significant improvements were made by combining the drawing data predictions with the motion data predictions. The key finding of the research is that the recognition of the disease can be improved by connecting (post-model) the two modalities. Furthermore, it can be concluded that with the present approach, neither the drawing nor the movement data produced lower results on average. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Synthetic data have been proposed as a solution for sharing anonymized versions of sensitive biomedical datasets. Ideally, synthetic data should preserve the structure and statistical properties of the original data, while protecting the privacy of the individual subjects. Differential Privacy (DP) is currently considered the gold standard approach for balancing this trade-off. Objectives The aim of this study is to investigate how trustworthy are group differences discovered by independent sample tests from DP-synthetic data. The evaluation is carried out in terms of the tests' Type I and Type II errors. With the former, we can quantify the tests' validity, i.e., whether the probability of false discoveries is indeed below the significance level, and the latter indicates the tests' power in making real discoveries. Methods We evaluate the Mann–Whitney U test, Student's t -test, chi-squared test, and median test on DP-synthetic data. The private synthetic datasets are generated from real-world data, including a prostate cancer dataset (n = 500) and a cardiovascular dataset (n = 70,000), as well as on bivariate and multivariate simulated data. Five different DP-synthetic data generation methods are evaluated, including two basic DP histogram release methods and MWEM, Private-PGM, and DP GAN algorithms. Conclusion A large portion of the evaluation results expressed dramatically inflated Type I errors, especially at levels of ϵ ≤ 1. This result calls for caution when releasing and analyzing DP-synthetic data: low p -values may be obtained in statistical tests simply as a byproduct of the noise added to protect privacy. A DP Smoothed Histogram-based synthetic data generation method was shown to produce valid Type I error for all privacy levels tested but required a large original dataset size and a modest privacy budget (ϵ ≥ 5) in order to have reasonable Type II error levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aimed to develop and compare the effects of a combined training program on the agility of football players. The sample group was male football players from the National Sports University, Yala Campus, obtained from the purposive sampling of 30 people, divided into an experimental group of 15 people trained through a combined training program created by the researcher. At the same time, 15 football players of the control group were trained by a regular agility training program for eight weeks, three days per week, and 1 hour and 5 minutes per day. The SEMO agility test was used to measure agility. All data were analyzed by averaging and calculating standard deviation. The Wilcoxon signed ranks test was used to compare the results of agility training within the control and experimental groups' pretest and posttest. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the pretest and posttest between the control and experimental groups. The research found that the combined training program created by the researcher was suitable. It was also found that the experimental group had better agility than the control group at the significant level .05. Both within the experimental and the control group, it was found that the agility posttest was better than the pretest at the significant level .05. The study results will serve as guidelines for enhanced players, coaches, and those who interested the football in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fracture toughness is a fundamental material property that quantifies the critical loading stress necessary to overcome the resistance to mechanical fracture propagation. Herein, exposure of minerals to certain fluids can cause alterations in the fracture toughness, for example, during underground CO2 storage, influencing the integrity and sealing performance of the reservoirs. These changes would require an extensive examination of various properties of the layers, particularly those related to mechanical ones like fracture toughness. However, the role of water in changing the fracture toughness in different shale samples during the ScCO2 interactions is still unknown. In this study, we collected three samples with different lithologies and compared the fracture toughness under three different states (before the interactions, under the interactions without water, and the interactions with water) to further quantify the role of water in the changes of the fracture toughness. The Mann-Whitney U test shows that the interactions with ScCO2 could change the fracture toughness and the role of water involvement in the interactions could further change the fracture toughness. In addition, the role of water in the changes of the same sample parallel and perpendicular to the bedding lines is also different. In the directions parallel to the bedding, the fracture toughness of samples 2 (carbonate-rich felsic shale) and 3 (clayey carbonate-rich shale) increased by 39.2 % and 10.8 %, respectively. Conversely, the fracture toughness of sample 1 (clayey felsic shale) decreased by 21.3 %. In the directions perpendicular to the bedding, the fracture toughness of samples 1, 2 and 3 increased by 23 %, 55 %, and 8.58 %, respectively. Considering the samples that have been exposed to ScCO2 with water, the fracture toughness of Sample 1 decreased by 5.8 %, while the fracture toughness of Sample 2 and Sample 3 increased by 65.8 % and 11.4 % respectively. This study shows that when considering the storage site for the CO2, we should both consider the role of the lithologies and water in the interactions.

In the dynamic terrain of today's business world, the intricate relationship between internal marketing strategies and organizational commitment has emerged as a pivotal area of exploration, as exemplified by this study's investigation into the private commercial banks of Chittagong, Bangladesh. This study investigates whether there are any statistically significant gender differences in internal marketing and organizational commitment and how internal marketing practices influence organizational commitment among employees. Five dimensions are selected for internal marketing, namely communication, supervision, intangible benefits, compensation, and intermediaries. The information obtained from a total of about 130 respondents with a well-structured questionnaire and different kinds of statistical and econometrical tests is used to analyze the data. The result of the Mann-Whitney U test suggests there is no statistically significant difference in internal marketing and organizational commitment between male and female employees. The Spearman correlation test’s outcomes depict that except for supervision, the rest of the internal marketing factors have a positive correlation with organizational commitment. The outcomes of ordinal regression analysis indicate that compensation, intangible benefits, intermediaries, and communication positively influence organizational commitment. Although the effects of compensation, intermediaries, and communication on organizational commitment are significant, the effect of intangible benefits is not. Compensation fosters employee appreciation, motivation, and a supportive workplace culture. Intangible rewards and open communication foster loyalty and dedication. Intermediaries play a pivotal role in bridging communication gaps between supervisors, managers, and employees, impacting employee commitment in organizations. On the other hand, supervision has negative and significant effect on organizational commitment. Overbearing supervision can negatively impact organizational dedication, reducing job satisfaction, trust erosion, and burnout.

Copyright of Journal of Agro-Environment Science is the property of Journal of Agro-Environment Science Editorial Board and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study examined the Muhurat Trading effect on select top five companies of Textiles and Apparel Industries of India from 1st January 2013 to 31st December 2022. In this paper, the differences in mean returns on Muhurat Trading day to pre-Muhurat Trading, post-Muhurat Trading, and regular Trading day have been examined by using the non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test. We found Muhurat Trading days mean returns five to fifteen times higher than regular trading day mean returns for the select companies but It was statistically significant (at 0.01 and 0.05 levels of significance) only for Trident Ltd and Welspun India Ltd. Similarly, we also found superior positive returns on Muhurat Trading in comparison to pre-Muhurat Trading as well as post-Muhurat Trading day returns but statistically insignificant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to investigate the characteristics of discretionary lane change (LC) duration on freeways based on an enriched dataset that contains the LC vehicle trajectories of 2905 passenger cars and 433 heavy vehicles. The LC duration is comprehensively analysed, and four stochastic LC duration models are established according to vehicle type and LC direction. LC duration varies with vehicle type and LC direction. Considering driver heterogeneity, accelerated failure time (AFT) models with fixed parameters, latent classes, and random parameters were established in this paper. The results show that drivers of heavy vehicles display greater heterogeneity and that vehicle types and LC directions have significant influence on the LC duration. The results of this study are helpful for understanding the mechanism of the LC process and the influence of LC on traffic flow and improving the safety of lane-changing behaviours of connected and autonomous vehicles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ardahan University Journal of the Faculty of Economics & Administrative Sciences / Ardahan Üniversitesi Iktisadi ve Idari Bilimler Fakültesi Dergisi is the property of Ardahan University Journal of the Faculty of Economics & Administrative Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Financial literacy is explained as the cognitive understanding of financial indicators and risk aversion, risk perception and investor behavior. Perhaps the investor behavior may vary depending on several factors such as gender, age, income level, social status, education etc. This research aims to highlight the effect of gender on financial market perception among Turkish investors. The outputs of two surveys the first for the last quarter of 2022 and the second for the first quarter of 2023, are analysed and compared. Therefore, two consecutive quarters are compared by gender for investment behaviors. This reserach observes some factors such as stress level, portfolio holding times, investment decisions and expectations regarding cryptocurrency markets. The methodology follows the Cronbach Alpha, Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk Normality, and Mann-Whitney U tests respectively. The findings support gender differences in perception and investment behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines whether certain macrofinancial indicators can be used for early detection of recessions. Analysing a sample of small open economies from Central and Eastern European Union, we first identify the most important indicators used for early detection of recessions, and then test the validity of the selection by using the signal method and multivariate probit regressions. Our results imply that the most effective predictors of upcoming recessions are the slope of the yield curve, current account balance to GDP ratio, real estate price index, self-financing ratio of commercial banks, nominal effective exchange rate, global exports and LIBOR rate. Using the Mann-Whitney U Test, we also find that foreign indicators emit earlier signals of incoming recessions in analysed countries than domestic ones. This type of research is important because of the various stakeholders that base their decisions on the signals provided by these indicators. Primarily, these are various government agencies that participate in monetary and fiscal policy making. Early warning of an impending recession allows economic policy makers to take corrective action to avoid a recession or to significantly mitigate its effects, while unreliable indicators may lead to adoption of unnecessary measures with adverse effects on the economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: The Ponseti method is the gold standard treatment for congenital talipes equinovarus (CTEV), with the British Consensus Statement providing a benchmark for standard of care. Meeting these standards and providing expert care while maintaining geographical accessibility can pose a service delivery challenge. A novel ‘Hub and Spoke’ Shared Care model was initiated to deliver Ponseti treatment for CTEV, while addressing standard of care and resource allocation. The aim of this study was to assess feasibility and outcomes of the corrective phase of Ponseti service delivery using this model. Methods: Patients with idiopathic CTEV were seen in their local hospitals (‘Spokes’) for initial diagnosis and casting, followed by referral to the tertiary hospital (‘Hub’) for tenotomy. Non-idiopathic CTEV was managed solely by the Hub. Primary and secondary outcomes were achieving primary correction, and complication rates resulting in early transfer to the Hub, respectively. Consecutive data were prospectively collected and compared between patients allocated to Hub or Spokes. Mann-Whitney U test, Wilcoxon signed-rank test, or chi-squared tests were used for analysis (alpha-priori = 0.05, two-tailed significance). Results: Between 1 March 2020 and 31 March 2023, 92 patients (139 feet) were treated at the service (Hub 50%, n = 46; Spokes 50%, n = 46), of whom nine were non-idiopathic. All patients (n = 92), regardless of allocation, ultimately achieved primary correction, with idiopathic patients at the Hub requiring fewer casts than the Spokes (mean 4.0 (SD 1.4) vs 6.9 (SD 4.4); p < 0.001). Overall, 60.9% of Spokes’ patients (n = 28/46) required transfer to the Hub due to complications (cast slips Hub n = 2; Spokes n = 17; p < 0.001). These patients ultimately achieved full correction at the Hub. Conclusion: The Shared Care model was found to be feasible in terms of providing primary correction to all patients, with results comparable to other published services. Complication rates were higher at the Spokes, although these were correctable. Future research is needed to assess long-term outcomes, parents’ satisfaction, and cost-effectiveness. Cite this article: Bone Jt Open 2023;4(11):865–872.

Aims: In the Netherlands, general practitioners (GPs) can request radiographs. After a radiologically diagnosed fracture, patients are immediately referred to the emergency department (ED). Since 2020, the Máxima Medical Centre has implemented a new care pathway for minor trauma patients, referring them immediately to the traumatology outpatient clinic (OC) instead of the ED. We investigated whether this altered care pathway leads to a reduction in healthcare consumption and concomitant costs. Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, patients were included if a radiologist diagnosed a fracture on a radiograph requested by the GP from August to October 2019 (control group) or August to October 2020 (research group), on weekdays between 8.30 am and 4.00 pm. The study compared various outcomes between groups, including the length of the initial hospital visit, frequency of hospital visits and medical procedures, extent of imaging, and healthcare expenses. Results: A total of 634 patients were included. The results show a median reduction of 25 minutes in duration of initial hospital visits, one fewer hospital visit, overall fewer medical procedures, and a decrease in healthcare costs of €303.40 per patient in the research group compared to the control group. No difference was found in the amount of imaging. Conclusion: The implementation of the new care pathway has resulted in a substantial reduction in healthcare use and costs. Moreover, the pathway provides advantages for patients and helps prevent crowding at the ED. Hence, we recommend immediately referring all minor trauma patients to the traumatology OC instead of the ED. Cite this article: Bone Jt Open 2023;4(10):728–734.

The article provides an overview of the study of the depressive states, anxiety and copying strategies issues in the Russian modern research literature. The purpose of the work is to determine the tendency to depressive states, anxiety and copying strategies among male and female students of various universities in St. Petersburg in the amount of 101 people, 50 of them boys and 51 girls aged 17–24 years. The following research methods are used: Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale in T.I. Balashova’s adaptation, Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for identifying personal and situational anxiety in Yu.L. Khanin adaptation, The Lazarus coping test in T.L. Kryukova’s and E.V. Kuftyak’s adaptation. Statistical methods for processing empirical data include descriptive statistics by group, Mann–Whitney U test, correlation analysis, factor analysis. The authors present a general characteristic of students in terms of the studied phenomena. The researchers found differences between search for social support, flight-avoidance, positive reassessment, situational anxiety indicators in boys and girls with greater severity of average values in girls. Correlation analysis revealed both common and distinct relationships for male and female students. The following factors were identified using factor analysis: “Predictors of personal anxiety and tendency to depression,” “Constructive strategies for coping with difficult situations,” “Confrontation against situational anxiety,” characterizing features of students’ coping with depression and anxiety.

Production planning is a key element for success in building project management. Last Planner System (LPS) has emerged as an alternative proactive management method through the commitment of the different stakeholders involved in the project; however, further research is required to determine the factors that can affect the success of LPS implementation. This research aims to analyze how the implementation of LPS and the construction management experience of the project manager and the construction site foreman individually influence project management's success, getting minimum time and cost deviations. In this work, newly built single-family house projects were analyzed. Quantitative and qualitative analyses, based on the Mann–Whitney U test and qualitative comparative analysis method, respectively, were performed to constrain both the individual and combined effects of LPS, the project foreman, and the project manager in terms of cost and time deviation as measures of project management success. The results highlight that LPS implementation is significant in terms of time deviation and combined LPS implementation and the foreman's experience in construction management are sufficient to maintain time deviations below 10%. However, among the studied variables, only the foreman’s experience is a required condition to maintain cost deviations under 10%. Overall, this study may help construction organizations to improve their managerial practices at construction sites.

The financial sector, which has sparked increasing organizational and scientific interest in recent years, plays a vital role in the Turkish economy. After enduring multiple economic downturns, consumers have become more cautious when considering financial investments, making it challenging for financial institutions to formulate effective marketing strategies. This study aims to shed light on investor behavior in Tukish markets. The results of two surveys are examined: the first conducted in the final quarter of 2022, and the second in the first quarter of 2023. This article delves into various variables, including stress levels, portfolio holding times, investment choices, and attention to cryptocurrency markets. The methodology employs the Mann-Whitney U test, Cronbach's Alpha, Kolmogorov-Smirnov, and Shapiro-Wilk normality tests. The findings from the two surveys are compared. Based on the analysis results, it can be inferred that respondents' investment preferences and risk tolerance have evolved over time. The results demonstrate a spectrum of portfolio diversification tendencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study seeks to conduct time series forecasting of droughts by means of the state-of-the-art XGBoost algorithm. To explore the drought variability in one of the semi-arid regions of Turkey, i.e., Denizli, the self-calibrated Palmer Drought Severity Index (sc-PDSI) values were used and projections were made for different horizons, including short-term (1-month: t + 1), mid-term (3-months: t + 3 and 6-months: t + 6), and long-term (12-months: t + 12) periods. The original sc-PDSI time series was subjected to the partial autocorrelation function to identify the input configurations and, accordingly, one- (t − 1) and two-month (t − 2) lags were used to perform the forecast of the targeted outcomes. This research further incorporated the recently introduced variational mode decomposition (VMD) for signal processing into the predictive model to enhance the accuracy. The proposed model was not only benchmarked with the standalone XGBoost but also with the model generated by its hybridization with the discrete wavelet transform (DWT). The overall results revealed that the VMD-XGBoost model outperformed its counterparts in all lead-time forecasts with NSE values of 0.9778, 0.9405, 0.8476, and 0.6681 for t + 1, t + 3, t + 6, and t + 12, respectively. Transparency of the proposed hybrid model was further ensured by the Mann–Whitney U test, highlighting the results as statistically significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Intracystic hemorrhage from lymphangiomas is a common phenomenon in lymphatic malformations (LMs); however, little is known about the associated compositional changes in the lymphatic fluid. Materials and Methods: We prospectively collected lymphatic fluid from children with LMs. Lymphatic fluid was divided depending on the bleeding status into the bleeding and nonbleeding groups. The fluid was subjected to cytological and biochemical analyses to determine protein and cytokine levels. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare the two groups. Results: There were significant differences in the levels of interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10, and glucose, and the percentage of white blood cells between the bleeding and nonbleeding groups. There was no significant difference in chlorine and protein content; white blood cell count; and IL-2, IL-4, tumor necrosis factor α, and interferon γ levels between the two groups. Conclusion: Lymphatic fluid is less stable in bleeding LMs than in non-bleeding LMs and is prone to inflammatory reactions. The inflammatory reaction in lymphatic fluid does not stimulate the cytokine storm in blood. The inflammatory reaction due to LMs does not affect the contents of protein and chlorine in lymphatic cyst fluid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improved agricultural value chains linking rural and urban areas can provide opportunities to initiate development interventions. This paper was aimed at mapping the value chain of cauliflower and tomato along with the identification of internal and external governance structures throughout the chain. Data were collected from 100 farmers and 60 traders, selected through the application of simple random and purposive sampling, respectively. Value chain mapping techniques and marketing margins were used for evaluating the economic performance of each actor. To uncover the farmers' perceptions of internal and external governance structures, the Likert scaling technique was utilized, which was checked by applying the Mann–Whitney U test. Eleven marketing channels were ascertained for cauliflower and tomato, whereas wholesalers contributed the largest share of gross (32.28% for cauliflower and 31.96% for tomato) and net (57.41% for cauliflower and 48.09% for tomato) marketing margins. The highest return on investment was obtained by Aratdars. The lowest amount of cauliflower (1.51%) and tomato (1.30%) were responsible for direct marketing. The benefit–cost ratio was found to be 1.30 and 1.25, respectively, for cauliflower and tomato. This paper revealed considerable differences among NATP and non-NATP farmers with regard to internal and external governance practices. Despite both groups reporting good internal governance practices from their own perspectives, the negative attitude of NATP and non-NATP farmers toward the existence of good external governance practices created a matter of deep concern. To ensure the farmers' benefits, good governance practices must be implemented throughout the value chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Aims: This study aimed to explore the diagnostic value of synovial fluid neutrophil extracellular traps (SF-NETs) in periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) diagnosis, and compare it with that of microbial culture, serum ESR and CRP, synovial white blood cell (WBC) count, and polymorphonuclear neutrophil percentage (PMN%). Methods: In a single health centre, patients with suspected PJI were enrolled from January 2013 to December 2021. The inclusion criteria were: 1) patients who were suspected to have PJI; 2) patients with complete medical records; and 3) patients from whom sufficient synovial fluid was obtained for microbial culture and NET test. Patients who received revision surgeries due to aseptic failure (AF) were selected as controls. Synovial fluid was collected for microbial culture and SF-WBC, SF-PNM%, and SF-NET detection. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) of synovial NET, WBC, PMN%, and area under the curve (AUC) were obtained; the diagnostic efficacies of these diagnostic indexes were calculated and compared. Results: The levels of SF-NETs in the PJI group were significantly higher than those of the AF group. The AUC of SF-NET was 0.971 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.903 to 0.996), the sensitivity was 93.48% (95% CI 82.10% to 98.63%), the specificity was 96.43% (95% CI 81.65% to 99.91%), the accuracy was 94.60% (95% CI 86.73% to 98.50%), the positive predictive value was 97.73%, and the negative predictive value was 90%. Further analysis showed that SF-NET could improve the diagnosis of culture-negative PJI, patients with PJI who received antibiotic treatment preoperatively, and fungal PJI. Conclusion: SF-NET is a novel and ideal synovial fluid biomarker for PJI diagnosis, which could improve PJI diagnosis greatly. Cite this article: Bone Joint Res 2023;12(2):113–120.

Many measures have been imposed by governments around the world to limit the spread of COVID-19. Iraqi authorities adopted a continuous cycles of reinforcement and relaxation in the measures, thus travel behaviors are significantly affected as a result of these measures. This study focuses on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on travel pattern in Al-Qadisiyah governorate, Iraq, during three different phases, one phase before pandemic and two phases during the pandemic to study the impact of the variation in imposed measures. Data were collected through a qualitative interviews and online questionnaire surveys that included questions on primary purpose of trip, mode choice of transport, frequency of trips before and during pandemic (including two phases). Descriptive analysis and inferential statistical analysis (especially nonparametric tests) were conducted to analyze the collected data. Results show a significant shifting from work/studying trips to shopping and others trips purposes during the first phase, where distance education and teleworking were imposed. In the second phase, the recommendation for work and study from home were lifted thus the primary trips for work or study purposes have resumed somewhat like their previous pace but with less frequent than its usual in pre-pandemic. A significant reduction in public transport and car-sharing usage was observed during first phase-COVID-19 compared to pre-COVID-19 and second phase-COVID-19. People gave the pandemicrelated factors a higher priority than general factors when selecting a transport mode during the pandemic. However, they put less priority for such factors during second phase of COVID-19 as compared to first phase, due to relaxation in the imposed measures. Changes in travel behavior during a pandemic have an impact on travel demand and favorable transport modes, thus understanding this behavior can help in transportation planning, and decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory has gained significant popularity since its launch around 40 years ago. Many cross-cultural literatures rested on this theory. However, along with the development of social research, this theory has been a target for criticisms about its methodology, nature, size, inconsistency, and outdated data. Therefore, this study aims to test the consistency of the cultural dimension’s theory, especially Hofstede’s national culture score. Quantitative content analysis was employed in 600 contents posted on Facebook accounts of several universities in Australia and Indonesia to see the polarization of the cultural dimensions, which were compared with Hofstede’s score. The Mann-Whitney U-test was also carried out to see the significance of polarization in each dimension. The results of this study confirmed the inconsistency of Hofstede’s cultural dimension score in one of six main findings. The implications of the findings are also discussed in relation to several criticisms of this theory.

Aims: Preprint servers allow authors to publish full-text manuscripts or interim findings prior to undergoing peer review. Several preprint servers have extended their services to biological sciences, clinical research, and medicine. The purpose of this study was to systematically identify and analyze all articles related to Trauma & Orthopaedic (T&O) surgery published in five medical preprint servers, and to investigate the factors that influence the subsequent rate of publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Methods: All preprints covering T&O surgery were systematically searched in five medical preprint servers (medRxiv, OSF Preprints, Preprints.org, PeerJ, and Research Square) and subsequently identified after a minimum of 12 months by searching for the title, keywords, and corresponding author in Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, Embase, Cochrane, and the Web of Science. Subsequent publication of a work was defined as publication in a peer-reviewed indexed journal. The rate of publication and time to peer-reviewed publication were assessed. Differences in definitive publication rates of preprints according to geographical origin and level of evidence were analyzed. Results: The number of preprints increased from 2014 to 2020 (p < 0.001). A total of 38.6% of the identified preprints (n = 331) were published in a peer-reviewed indexed journal after a mean time of 8.7 months (SD 5.4 (1 to 27)). The highest proportion of missing subsequent publications was in the preprints originating from Africa, Asia/Middle East, and South America, or in those that covered clinical research with a lower level of evidence (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Preprints are being published in increasing numbers in T&O surgery. Depending on the geographical origin and level of evidence, almost two-thirds of preprints are not subsequently published in a peer-reviewed indexed journal after one year. This raises major concerns regarding the dissemination and persistence of potentially wrong scientific work that bypasses peer review, and the orthopaedic community should discuss appropriate preventive measures. Cite this article: Bone Jt Open 2022;3(7):582–588.

Aims: The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a correlation between the grade of humeral osteoarthritis (OA) and the severity of glenoid morphology according to Walch. We hypothesized that there would be a correlation. Methods: Overal, 143 shoulders in 135 patients (73 females, 62 males) undergoing shoulder arthroplasty surgery for primary glenohumeral OA were included consecutively. Mean age was 69.3 years (47 to 85). Humeral head (HH), osteophyte length (OL), and morphology (transverse decentering of the apex, transverse, or coronal asphericity) on radiographs were correlated to the glenoid morphology according to Walch (A1, A2, B1, B2, B3), glenoid retroversion, and humeral subluxation on CT images. Results: Increased humeral OL correlated with a higher grade of glenoid morphology (A1-A2-B1-B2-B3) according to Walch (r = 0.672; p < 0.0001). It also correlated with glenoid retroversion (r = 0.707; p < 0.0001), and posterior humeral subluxation (r = 0.452; p < 0.0001). A higher humeral OL (odds ratio (OR) 1.17; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.03 to 1.32; p = 0.013), posterior humeral subluxation (OR 1.11; 95% CI 1.01 to 1.22; p = 0.031), and glenoid retroversion (OR 1.48; 95% CI 1.30 to 1.68; p < 0.001) were independent factors for a higher glenoid morphology. More specifically, a humeral OL of ≥ 13 mm was indicative of eccentric glenoid types B2 and B3 (OR 14.20; 95% CI 5.96 to 33.85). Presence of an aspherical HH in the coronal plane was suggestive of glenoid types B2 and B3 (OR 3.34; 95% CI 1.67 to 6.68). Conclusion: The criteria of humeral OL and HH morphology are associated with increasing glenoid retroversion, posterior humeral subluxation, and eccentric glenoid wear. Therefore, humeral radiological parameters might hint at the morphology on the glenoid side. Cite this article: Bone Jt Open 2022;3(6):463–469.

With the increasing availability of low head dam inventories for the United States, the next challenge is discovering how to determine what dams pose the greatest risk to public safety, preferably before a death occurs. Submerged hydraulic jumps create the dangerous current that drowns roughly 50 recreationists each year, and high tailwater is a key element in its formation. Using a simplified approach based on the Manning equation, flat downstream slopes can be a predictor of high tailwater. Stream slopes at low head dams in Colorado, Idaho, Indiana, Maryland, New Mexico, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania were collected from the NHDPlus HR, and dams with recorded fatalities were compared to stream slopes at low head dams with no recorded fatalities. Using the Mann–Whitney U test, there was not enough evidence to reject the null hypothesis that there is no statistically significant difference between the two populations. Until more fatality data are compiled and more low head dam locations are verified, individual testing of dams is recommended to establish each respective flow range that is likely to pose a risk to public safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forest infrastructure is an important material basis for healthy forests. According to public goods theory, most forest infrastructures are quasi-public goods, with demand exceeding supply, more than one supplier, unclear responsibilities between suppliers, and a resultant free-rider problem. This study explored ways to improve the supply of goods for forest infrastructure when the government—as leader—cooperates with foresters—as followers. Experimental economics were used to explain the factors that influence the behaviour of forest infrastructure quasi-public goods suppliers; to design twelve policy scenarios by communication, information feedback, rewards and punishments, and leadership styles; and to simulate the changes in foresters' supply behaviour in different scenarios to analyse which policies were conducive to improving the supply of quasi-public forest infrastructures. The results were as follows: communication, rewards and punishments, information feedback, and leadership style reduce foresters' free-riding behaviour; communication, rewards, and punishment increase supply, and, furthermore, the supply of the scenario with rewards and punishment is 1.792–4.616 times that of the situation without rewards and punishment; without the constraints of rewards and punishment, only feedback information reduces the supply; and the p values of the Mann–Whitney U test for the influence of leadership style on the supply level of forest infrastructure were all greater than 0.05, which indicates that no significant difference exists between leading by words and leading by example in supply improvement. When foresters are able to communicate with each other, reward and punishment exist, and information feedback is provided; hence, the supply of foresters is higher regardless of whether the government leads by words or by example. This study provided policy suggestions on how to improve the supply of quasi-public goods for forestry infrastructure, namely, that the organizer should organize foresters to fully negotiate before raising funds for infrastructure construction; publish, when appropriate, the supply and income of foresters; and formulate appropriate reward and punishment measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Obligatory requirements have been prescribed in the social, environmental, and governance domains, to ensure that corporate behaviour is not harmful to the societies in which they operate. Consequently, both corporate social responsibility (CSR) and CSR reporting have attracted the growing attention of researchers, as evidenced by increased publications and media attention. However, no specific study has been conducted that evaluates CSR disclosures by pharma companies in Gujarat; and it is not known whether the CSR disclosures by pharma companies are affected by parameters such as revenue, assets turnover, CSR committee size, CSR head, price earnings ratio, and so on. The present paper fills this research gap. The present paper studies the CSR reporting practices of the pharma companies based in Gujarat and ranks them based on their reporting and disclosure practices. Mann-Whitney U test results find that there is no significant difference in CSR disclosures of the sample companies based on identified variables, except the price earnings ratio (PER). Further, the CSR disclosure by pharma companies is still in its infancy and lacks the rigour and quality that it should possess, despite the growing expenditure on CSR activities as mandated by the Companies Act, 2013. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the prominent types of calendar anomalies includes holiday effects, where stocks show abnormally higher mean returns on the days prior to holidays in comparison to other trading days. The current study investigates the existence of holiday effects in the stock exchanges of the Gulf Co-operation Council, namely, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates for the period between January 2009 and December 2020. The national holidays that are considered for the study are New Year's Day, Mawlid al-Nabi (Prophet birthday), Eid-Al-Isra Wal Miraj, Eid-Al-Fitr, National Day, Hegire Day (Islamic New Year), and Christmas Day. The study employs descriptive statistics and the non-parametric Mann–Whitney U test. The findings of the study disclosed the significant pre-holiday mean returns for ADSMI, BHSEASI, DFMGI, MSM30, TASI and FTDKUW, whereas significant post-holiday mean returns were found only in MSM30 and TASI. The study provided evidence for the presence of a calendar anomaly like holiday effects in the major indices of the Gulf Co-operation Council and proved the market was not in an efficient form during the study period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The malaria risk analysis of multiple populations is crucial and of great importance whilst compressing limitations. However, the exponential growth in diversity and accumulation of genetic variation data obtained from malaria-infected patients through Genome-Wide Association Studies opens up unprecedented opportunities to explore the significant differences between genetic markers (risk factors), particularly in the resistance or susceptibility of populations to malaria risk. Thus, this study proposes using statistical tests to analyse large-scale genetic variation data, comprising 20,854 samples from 11 populations within three continents: Africa, Oceania, and Asia. Methods Even though statistical tests have been utilized to conduct case–control studies since the 1950s to link risk factors to a particular disease, several challenges faced, including the choice of data (ordinal vs. non-ordinal) and test (parametric vs. non-parametric). This study overcomes these challenges by adopting the Mann–Whitney U test to analyse large-scale genetic variation data; to explore the statistical significance of markers between populations; and to further identify the highly differentiated markers. Results The findings of this study revealed a significant difference in the genetic markers between populations (p

Indigenous breeds of cattle play a significant role in the livelihood of resource poor farmers in rural areas of India. Nattukuttai cattle are short and stout cattle reared under zero input system in North Eastern agro-climatic zone of Tamil Nadu. A qualitative tool consisting of four projective techniques, viz. Sentence completion test, Verbal projection test, Story completion test and Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) to measure the attitude of the farmers towards the conservation of Nattukuttai cattle was developed and standardized as per the standard protocol. The study was carried out for a period of one year 2021-22 in the selected districts of North Eastern agro-climatic zone of Tamil Nadu. Nearly two third of the respondents had favourable to most favourable attitude towards the conservation of Nattukuttai cattle breed. This study discusses the methodology of developing projective tools and their importance in measuring the attitude of farmers towards conservation of Nattukuttai cattle.

The processes of using communication tools by individuals and societies may differ due to culture or spoken language. However, learning about reactions to similar content may offer important ideas for different mediums. The purpose of this study is to provide an understanding of how similar content can create an environment for the interaction of users watching in different languages. Therefore, the study focused on traffic accident-oriented videos that can be assumed to have similar responses globally. For the sample groups, the top 50 traffic accident channels with the most subscribers and 30 Turkish traffic accident channels were selected from YouTube. The channels and the videos were tested separately through two different sets of hypotheses. For the first hypothesis group, the comments and like rates of all channels were calculated; then, these rates were weighted by views to get channel ratios. For the second hypothesis group, the videos of the first 4 channels among the top 50 channels were selected in order to compare closely with the video counts of Turkish channels. Outliers of all data were calculated using the box-plot method. After the exclusion of outliers, Shapiro-Wilk and Kolmogorov-Smirnov normality tests were performed for channels and videos. Then, Welch's T-Test was applied for channels (n1=47 and n2=28; p=0,041) and Mann-Whitney U Test (n3=586 and n4=579; p=0,00001) was applied for videos. Results showed that channels and videos had different averages. It was concluded that viewers of Turkish content tend to leave comments while leaving likes, compared to other groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]