An analysis of Factors Contributing to the Increase of Tobacco Consumption in Bangladesh despite Restrictive Anti-Smoking Policies

This paper examines an emerging issue rising up in a developing economy like Bangladesh “Indirect Marketing of Tobacco Productsâ€. This indirect marketing activity is currently moving under the radar of various government monitoring cells. As a result, there is an increase in the number of both underage and legal smokers in the country. The health risks due to the consumptions of the tobacco related products are now one of the widely discussed topics. Worldwide tobacco products are highly discouraged by both medical experts and governments. Governments in both developed and developing countries heavily regulated “Above the Line Marketing Activities†(ATL) utilized by the tobacco companies. Therefore, tobacco companies now employ “Below the Line Marketing Activities†to promote their products. Such activities include point of sale merchandizing, retailer advocacy and various discounting mechanisms. Tobacco companies in Bangladesh also employ such activities to advertise their brand portfolio. Although from a legal point of view, these marketing efforts are only employed to encourage the consumers to switch brands. However, the ripple effect of such marketing activities, growth of cigarette selling outlets (side effects of socio-economic condition of Bangladesh) and inefficiency in rigorous implementation of tobacco laws are encouraging underage/matured population of the country to become occasional smokers, who later on develop habitual smoking despite the restrictive anti-smoking laws. In this research, primary analysis is done through set questionnaires in the Sample Retail Universe (556 retailers randomly chosen from various parts of Bangladesh) along with “Retail Audit†data used to obtain the industry trend analysis. A strong positive correlation can be observed between the industry growth and the different parameters used in the study such as effects of Below the Line Marketing Activity, growth of cigarette selling retail universe and weak implementation anti-smoking policies by the government. The research gives us an insight into the true picture of tobacco industry’s surge with respect to the tobacco consumer behavior and the remedies needed to close the gap

Biometric security: A novel ear recognition approach using a 3D morphable ear model

Biometrics is a critical component of cybersecurity that identifies persons by verifying their behavioral and physical traits. In biometric-based authentication, each individual can be correctly recognized based on their intrinsic behavioral or physical features, such as face, fingerprint, iris, and ears. This work proposes a novel approach for human identification using 3D ear images. Usually, in conventional methods, the probe image is registered with each gallery image using computational heavy registration algorithms, making it practically infeasible due to the time-consuming recognition process. Therefore, this work proposes a recognition pipeline that reduces the one-to-one registration between probe and gallery. First, a deep learning-based algorithm is used for ear detection in 3D side face images. Second, a statistical ear model known as a 3D morphable ear model (3DMEM), was constructed to use as a feature extractor from the detected ear images. Finally, a novel recognition algorithm named you morph once (YMO) is proposed for human recognition that reduces the computational time by eliminating one-to-one registration between probe and gallery, which only calculates the distance between the parameters stored in the gallery and the probe. The experimental results show the significance of the proposed method for a real-time application

Species diversity, seasonal abundance and morphometric analysis of grasshopper (Orthoptera: Caelifera) in Rajshahi City, Bangladesh

A study from July 2016 to June 2017 was carried out to assess the species diversity, seasonal abundance and morphometric characteristics of grasshopper (Orthoptera: Caelifera) at Rajshahi city of Rajshahi District, Bangladesh. A total number of 286 individuals of grasshopper were examined during the study. Eight species of grasshopper were identified under seven genera of 2 families. The numbers of identified species were seven and one, and their percentages were calculated as 90.9% and 9.1% in families Acrididae and Tetrigidae respectively. Based on monthly occurrence, four species of grasshopper were found throughout 12 months, three were 9-11 months and one was 6-8 months. The highest species abundance of grasshoppers was recorded in the month of July to August and lowest in November to January. Among the collected species the status of Camnula pellucida was very common (VC) and rest seven species were considered as not rare (NR). The Simpson’s diversity index (1-D) for grasshopper species was 0.80. For the study of inter-specific variations, morphometric analysis of nine parameters viz. length of body, antenna, foreleg, midleg, hindleg, forewing and hindwing; width of forewing and hindwing was evaluated. The lengths or widths of these parameters were measured by ImageJ software (1.48v) and data were analyzed by GraphPad InStat 3 and MS Excel 2007. Relationship among parameters and different species were determined using repeated measures ANOVA with Tukey post-test. The variation between these species and parameters was considered highly significant (p< 0.001) and showed the dynamic speciation. Morphometric analysis of these eight species was done for the first time from this region

Therapeutic Potential of IL-9 in Allergic and Autoimmune Diseases

Interleukin-9 (IL-9) is a pleiotropic cytokine produced by several immune and epithelial cells. Recently, many studies have eluded the physiological and pathological roles of IL-9 and its lineage-specific helper T cell subset (Th9). In this chapter, we will focus on the immunological role of Interleukin 9 (IL-9) in allergy and autoimmunity. We will introduce the basics of IL-9 and describe the cells involved in the secretion, signaling, and regulation of IL-9. After establishing the background, we will discuss the pathogenesis and regulation of IL-9 in allergic and autoimmune diseases. We will conclude the chapter by providing an updated therapeutics that target IL-9 and their potential uses in autoimmune and allergic diseases

Trends and clinico-epidemiological features of human rabies cases in Bangladesh 2006–2018

Vaccinating dogs against rabies is an effective means of reducing human rabies. We subjected 1327 clinically diagnosed human rabies death and mass dog vaccination (MDV) data during 2006–2018 to quantify the impacts of MDV on human rabies incidence in Bangladesh and a subset of rabies death data (422) for clinico-epidemiological analysis. A positive and increasing trend of MDV (p = 0.01 and tau = 0.71) and a negative and declining trend (p < 0.001 and tau = −0.88) of human rabies cases (Correlation coefficient: −0.82) have been observed. Among 422 deaths, the majority (78%) of the victims sought treatment from traditional healers, and 12% received post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP). The mean incubation period of rabies in cases with exposure sites on the head & neck (35 days) was shorter than the upper limb (mean = 64 days, p = 0.02) and lower limb (mean = 89 days, p < 0.01). MDV has been found to be effective for reducing human rabies cases in Bangladesh. Creating awareness among the animal bite victims to stop reliance on traditional healers rather seeking PEP, addressing the role of traditional healers through awareness education programme with respect to the treatment of dog bites, ensuring availability of PEP, and continuing to scale up MDV may help to prevent human rabies deaths

Biometric Security: A Novel Ear Recognition Approach Using a 3D Morphable Ear Model

Biometrics is a critical component of cybersecurity that identifies persons by verifying their behavioral and physical traits. In biometric-based authentication, each individual can be correctly recognized based on their intrinsic behavioral or physical features, such as face, fingerprint, iris, and ears. This work proposes a novel approach for human identification using 3D ear images. Usually, in conventional methods, the probe image is registered with each gallery image using computational heavy registration algorithms, making it practically infeasible due to the time-consuming recognition process. Therefore, this work proposes a recognition pipeline that reduces the one-to-one registration between probe and gallery. First, a deep learning-based algorithm is used for ear detection in 3D side face images. Second, a statistical ear model known as a 3D morphable ear model (3DMEM), was constructed to use as a feature extractor from the detected ear images. Finally, a novel recognition algorithm named you morph once (YMO) is proposed for human recognition that reduces the computational time by eliminating one-to-one registration between probe and gallery, which only calculates the distance between the parameters stored in the gallery and the probe. The experimental results show the significance of the proposed method for a real-time application

Device Failure During Injection Medialization Laryngoplasty.

Injection medialization laryngoplasty is a commonly performed procedure for the management of glottic insufficiency. Among complications of this procedure is device failure, for which the literature is scarce. Our goal was to determine the prevalence of needle failure during injection laryngoplasty among members of the American Bronchoesophagological Association (ABEA). A questionnaire was designed and subsequently sent to members of ABEA via electronic mail. Responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Twenty-four members (6.7%) completed the survey. Eighty three percent reported experience with needle failure; 59% of these were needle clogging, 22% needle twisting, and 19% needle tip fracture. Fifty-four percent of respondents reported needle failure during a percutaneous approach, and 48% reported using calcium hydroxyapatite during device failure. Twenty percent reported having to abort the procedure due to device failure. Twenty five percent of respondents experienced needle tip fracture that led to an airway or esophageal foreign body. Needle failure during injection laryngoplasty was reported by most respondents. Most commonly this was due to clogging or twisting which was managed by replacing the needle but in 25% of cases was due to a broken tip that results in an aerodigestive tract foreign body and aborting of the procedure in most cases. Copyright © 2022 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.</CopyrightInformation