• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.49-59
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• 2023

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) involves multi-factorial conditions linked to an elevated risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease. Pre-metabolic syndrome (pre-MetS) possesses two MetS components but does not meet the MetS diagnostic criteria. Although cardiac autonomic derangements are evident in MetS, there is little information on their status in pre-MetS subjects. In this study, we sought to examine cardiac autonomic functions in pre-MetS and to determine which MetS component is more responsible for impaired cardiac autonomic functions. A total of 182 subjects were recruited and divided into healthy controls (n=89) and pre-MetS subjects (n=93) based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. We performed biochemical profiles on fasting blood samples to detect pre-MetS. Using standardized protocols, we evaluated anthropometric data, body composition, baroreflex sensitivity (BRS), heart rate variability (HRV), and autonomic function tests (AFTs). We further examined these parameters in pre-MetS subjects for each MetS component. Compared to healthy controls, we observed a significant cardiac autonomic dysfunction (CAD) through reduced BRS, lower overall HRV, and altered AFT parameters in pre-MetS subjects, accompanied by markedly varied anthropometric, clinical and biochemical parameters. Furthermore, all examined BRS, HRV, and AFT parameters exhibited an abnormal trend and significant correlation toward hyperglycemia. This study demonstrates CAD in pre-MetS subjects with reduced BRS, lower overall HRV, and altered AFT parameters. Hyperglycemia was considered an independent determinant of alterations in all the examined BRS, HRV, and AFT parameters. Thus, hyperglycemia may contribute to CAD in pre-MetS subjects before progressing to MetS.

• Annals of Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.350-365
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• 2023

Backgrounds/Aims: Extra hepatic portal venous obstruction (EHPVO) is the most common cause of portal hypertension in Indian children. While endoscopy is the primary modality of management, a subset of patients require surgery. This study aims to report the short- and long-term outcomes of EHPVO patients managed surgically. Methods: All the patients with EHPVO who underwent surgery between August 2007 and December 2021 were retrospectively reviewed. Postoperative complications were classified after Clavien-Dindo. Binary logistic regression in Wald methodology was used to determine the predictive factors responsible for unfavourable outcome. Results: Total of 202 patients with EHPVO were operated. Mean age of patients was 20.30 ± 9.96 years, and duration of illness, 90.05 ± 75.13 months. Most common indication for surgery was portal biliopathy (n = 59, 29.2%), followed by bleeding (n = 50, 24.8%). Total of 166 patients (82.2%) had shunt procedure. Splenectomy with esophagogastric devascularization was the second most common surgery (n = 20, 9.9%). Nine major postoperative complications (Clavien-Dindo > 3) were observed in 8 patients (4.0%), including 1 (0.5%) operative death. After a median follow-up of 56 months (15-156 months), 166 patients (82.2%) had favourable outcome. In multivariate analysis, associated splenic artery aneurysm (p = 0.007), isolated gastric varices (p = 0.004), preoperative endoscopic retrograde cholangiography and stenting (p = 0.015), and shunt occlusion (p < 0.001) were independent predictors of unfavourable long-term outcome. Conclusions: Surgery in EHPVO is safe, affords excellent short- and long-term outcome in patients with symptomatic EHPVO, and may be considered for secondary prophylaxis.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.12
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• pp.4759-4763
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• 2014

Radiation therapy in ovarian cancers has been considered an outdated concept for many years, mainly due to its toxicity and failure to show benefit in terms of survival. Chemotherapy has been extensively used after surgery for these cancers and it has almost replaced radiation therapy as an adjuvant treatment. Nevertheless, failures in ovarian cancers continue to occur even with the use of newer and effective chemotherapy regimens. About 70% patients demonstrate recurrence in the abdomen or pelvis after first line chemotherapy in ovarian cancers. With advances in technology and sophistication of radiation techniques, along with the molecular and biological knowledge of distinct histological subtypes, there is a need to redefine the role of radiation therapy. This review article focuses on the literature on use of radiation in ovarian cancers and its rationale and indications in the present day. For this, a literature pub med/medline search was performed from January 1975 to March 2014 to redefine the role of radiotherapy in ovarian cancers.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.79 no.3
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• pp.153-157
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• 2016

Background: Vitamin D is known to have diverse effects on various systems in the body. There is evidence to suggest that a link exists between the serum vitamin D status and tuberculosis. The present study was designed to assess the alterations in serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in newly diagnosed sputum acid fast bacilli (AFB) positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients and to study the association, if any, between serum vitamin D levels and different levels of sputum smear positivity. Methods: Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were estimated in 65 sputum AFB positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients and 65 age and gender-matched healthy controls. Results: The levels of serum 25 hydroxy-vitamin D in tuberculosis patients were not statistically different from the levels of serum 25 hydroxy-vitamin D in healthy controls. However, among patients with pulmonary tuberculosis, there was a significant negative correlation between the levels of serum 25 hydroxy-vitamin D and levels of sputum positivity. Conclusion: Serum vitamin D levels negatively correlates with bacterial load in patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis.

• Anatomy and Cell Biology
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.32-38
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• 2023

The Galenic venous system plays a vital role in the drainage of blood from deeper parts of the brain. This venous system is contributed by many major veins. These veins are located closer to the pineal gland making the surgical approach in this region difficult. Any accidental injury or occlusion of the vein of Galen could lead to devasting results. Thus, studying the dimensions of the vein of Galen is more important. Hence, we aimed to evaluate the morphometry and trajectory to the vein of Galen. About 100 computed tomographic venography records were evaluated and the length, diameter of vein of Galen, angle between straight sinus and vein of Galen and distance from internal occipital protuberance and roof of fourth ventricle to vein of Galen were studied. The mean length and diameter of vein of Galen were 9.8±2.7 and 4.08±1.04 respectively. The mean angle between straight sinus and vein of Galen was 64.2°. The mean distance between external occipital protuberance and roof of fourth ventricle to vein of Galen were 52±6.9 and 33.3±4.5 respectively. No significant morphometric differences were observed between the age groups as well as between the sexs. The results obtained from this study may be helpful for the neurosurgeons in better understanding of the anatomy of the Galenic venous system and to adopt a safe surgical approach to improve the efficacy of the surgeries of the pineal gland and also in the region of vein of Galen.

• Clinics in Shoulder and Elbow
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.72-78
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• 2024

Background: Clinical outcomes after fixation of distal humerus intraarticular fractures are directly related to the quality of reduction. The use of three-dimensional (3D)-printed fracture models can benefit preoperative planning to ensure good reduction. This review aims to determine if surgery performed with 3D printing assistance are faster and result in fewer complications and improved clinical outcomes than conventional methods. We also outline the benefits and drawbacks of this novel technique in surgical management of distal humerus fractures. Methods: A systematic literature search was carried out in various electronic databases. Search results were screened based on title and abstract. Data from eligible studies were extracted into spreadsheets. Meta-analysis was performed using appropriate computer software. Results: Three randomized controlled trials with 144 cases were included in the final analysis. The 3D-printed group had significantly shorter mean operating time (mean difference, 16.25 minutes; 95% confidence interval [CI], 12.74-19.76 minutes; P<0.001) and mean intraoperative blood loss (30.40 mL; 95% CI, 10.45-60.36 mL; P=0.005) compared with the conventional group. The 3D-printed group also tended to have fewer complications and a better likelihood of good or excellent outcomes as per the Mayo elbow performance score, but this did not reach statistical significance. Conclusions: Three-dimensional-printing-assisted surgery in distal humerus fractures has several benefits in reduced operating time and lower blood loss, indirectly decreasing other complications such as infection and anemia-related issues. Future good-quality studies are required to conclusively demonstrate the benefits of 3D printing in improving clinical outcomes.

• International Journal of Knowledge Content Development & Technology
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.59-76
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• 2024

The prominent role accorded to social media in the academic community for research, teaching and learning revolves around its significance among users. Social media offers a platform for individuals to engage with and share perceptions relating to different disciplines. This current research was conducted to investigate the level of awareness and frequency of social media technology use among postgraduate students of Library and Information Science in Nigerian universities. The descriptive survey design was used for the study. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data from 919 library and information science (LIS) postgraduate students in the universities. In all, 742 copies out of the 919 distributed were returned and found usable, thereby making the return rate to be 81%. Data collected were analysed using mean and standard deviation. The study revealed that the LIS postgraduate students frequently use social media such as Wikipedia (x=3.94>3.50), Instagram (x=3.86>3.50), Facebook (x=3.85>3.50), Zoom ($\overline{x}$=3.78>3.50), LinkedIn (x=3.69>3.50), YouTube ($\overline{x}$=3.54>3.50), Twitter (x=3.52>3.50). The study established that students use social media tools for their personal, professional and research activities. The study also found that the level of awareness and use of social media by the students was high. The study recommended that the use of social media should be incorporated into the LIS curriculum including training sessions for the students on how to use the media effectively.

• Industrial Engineering and Management Systems
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.239-250
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• 2016

This study is to prepare curriculum in South Korea to train outstanding individual in the fields of Health Care Management for the global age, hospitals' administration managers, professors and students were targeted to carry out the survey and the collected questionnaires were processed with SPSS Ver. 21.0 statistic package, based on this the suitability of the current Health Care Management curriculum and postgraduate curriculum was inspected and improvement plan was deducted, and also through comparative analysis of the Health Care Management curriculum for undergraduate and postgraduate in the United Kingdom and United States, optimum improvement suggestions were made. Based on the research result, the priority to improve and consolidate from undergraduate curriculum was the strengthening of the working-level education, the most needed ability in the future is global negotiation and dispute/conflict adjustment which needs supplementation. Also, after analyzing the undergraduate curriculum of the United States and United Kingdom, it is needed that the development of the capacity to lead organizations for healthcare and subjects for the establishment of health policy should be reflected.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.215-220
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• 2018

Meralgia paresthetica (MP) is a sensory mononeuropathy, caused by compression of the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve (LFCN) of thigh. Patients refractory to conservative management are treated with various interventional procedures. We report the first use of extended duration (8 minutes) pulsed radiofrequency of the LFCN in a case series of five patients with refractory MP. Four patients had follow up for 1-2 years, and one had 6 months follow up. All patients reported remarkable and long lasting symptom relief and an increase in daily life activities. Three patients came off medications and two patients required minimal doses of neuropathic medications. No complications were observed.

• JSTS:Journal of Semiconductor Technology and Science
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.130-133
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• 2010

This paper presents a study of the influence of variation of counter doping thickness on short channel effect in symmetric double-gate (DG) nano MOSFETs. Short channel effects are estimated from the computed values of current-voltage (I-V) characteristics. Two dimensional Quantum transport equations and Poisson equations are used to compute DG MOSFET characteristics. We found that the transconductance ($g_m$) and the drain conductance ($g_d$) increase with an increase in p-type counter-doping thickness ($T_c$). Very high value of transconductance ($g_m=38\;mS/{\mu}m$) is observed at 2.2 nm channel thickness. We have established that the threshold voltage of DG MOSFETs can be tuned by selecting the thickness of counter-doping in such device.