The Extent of Comprehension and Knowledge with Respect to Digital Citizenship Among Middle Eastern and US students at UNC

Digital technologies have revolutionized the way people acquire information and gain new knowledge. With a click or touch on the screen, anybody who is online can sail in the digital world and accomplish many things.  As such, the optimal use of information and communication technology involves user comprehension, knowledge, and awareness of positive digital citizenship.  The purpose of this study was to examine the scope of knowledge and understanding about digital citizenship among Middle Eastern and US students at the University of Northern Colorado. It also examines the difference among Middle Eastern and US students at the University of Northern Colorado in three categories: respect, education and protection. The study was based on a questionnaire that was distributed to 51 students at the University of Northern Colorado. The result reveals that there was not a significant difference between Middle Eastern and US students at the University of Northern Colorado in term of digital citizenship awareness. This study recommends examining other variables that may affect on digital citizenship. Keywords: Digital citizenship, awareness, respect, educate, protect, Middle East.

The Impact of Contrast Media on Image Quality in MRI: Simple Review Article

Contrast media (CM) are employed in imaging modalities to amplify the distinctions between bodily tissues in pictures. An optimal contrast agent should attain a remarkably high level of concentration in the tissues while avoiding any detrimental consequences. Regrettably, doing this has thus far proven unattainable, and all current CM options have negative consequences. The growing utilization of CM is expected to result in various challenges, such as ensuring compliance and appropriateness of CM usage, selecting the most suitable contrast agent, addressing off-label use, assessing specific patient populations, and possessing the necessary skills to handle emergency situations that may arise after CM administration. An even more significant and potentially crucial matter is the issue of informed consent. This entails the responsibility to provide patients awaiting the administration of CM with detailed information about the procedure itself, any alternative procedures available, the extent of the risks associated with using CM, and the risks associated with refusing the procedure. This review mainly discusses image quality in MRI, MRI contrast agents complexes, and effect on image

INFLUENCE OF MICRODAMAGE HEALING ON STRESS AND DISPLACEMENT FIELDS NEAR A CRACK TIP

Asphalt is one of the most common materials in pavement construction in the world. The United States has more than 4.3 million kilometers of roads and highways, with 94 percent of those being flexible pavement according to the National Asphalt Pavement Association. Moreover, the asphalt mixture is a complex material which is a blend of asphalt binder, aggregate, and air voids. The properties of these components have a major impact on the overall performance of the asphalt mixture. Furthermore, asphalt concrete pavement is affected by traffic loading, temperature, moisture, and aging. Pavement deteriorates under the abovementioned conditions; for example, cracking, raveling, and potholes can develop impacting pavement serviceability. Past studies have demonstrated that various asphalt mixtures have the ability to heal with time. Healing can counteract deterioration on asphalt pavements performance. Numerous researchers have proposed several models for predicting healing of microdamage in different materials. However, most of those models were developed to predict the responses under specific states, and consequently, usually do not represent the behavior of material accurately. The main purpose of this research is to study the influence of microdamage healing on stress intensity factor (SIF), displacement, and stress fields near a crack tip in the materials that have the ability to heal. The microdamage healing model that is used in this study considers the effects of both instantaneous healing and time-dependent bonding strength. The results indicate that an increase in the value of bonding strength and the length of the healing process zone lead to a reduction in both stress and displacement fields near the crack tip

تأثير جائحة كورونا على العملية التعليمية من وجهة نظر طلبة التعليم العام في المملكة العربية السعودية.

This study aimed to explore the impact of Covid 19 pandemic on the educational process in public education schools in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through three main aspects: The first aspect: the availability of distance learning resources and facilities for public education students during this pandemic, the second aspect: the capabilities and of public education students to use distance learning resources during the Corona pandemic, the third aspect: the extent to which the practice of educational activities has been affected by distance learning during the Corona pandemic. The study used quantitative methodology and the descriptive survey approach in order to explore theses aspects. This approach depends entirely on distributing the questionnaires electronically to the participants. A questionnaire tool was used in order to collect the study data. The results of this study yielded several results: Regarding the availability of learning resources for students during this pandemic, it was found that they are generally available to all students. As for the capabilities and abilities of general education students to use learning resources, it is clear that most students were able to use these resources effectively. Finally, regarding the extent of how the educational activities affected during this pandemic, the results showed that they were not affected in general and that there was a positive impact on educational activities during distance learning, however, this positive impact not as expected.هدفتْ هذه الدراسةُ لمعرفة مدى اثر جائحة كورونا على العملية التعليمية في مدارس التعليم العام في المملكة العربية السعودية من خلال ثلاث محاور رئيسية المحور الاول: مدى توفر مصادر ومرافق التعلم عن بعد لطلبة التعليم العام اثناء هذة الجائحة، المحور الثاني: إمكانيات وقدرات طلبة التعليم العام على استخدام مصادر التعلم عن بعد خلال جائحة كورونا، المحور الثالث: مدى تأثر ممارسة الأنشطة التعليمية في التعلم عن بعد خلال جائحة كورونا. واستخدمتِ الدراسة المنهجية الكمية و المنهج الوصفي المسحي, والذي يعتمد بشكل كلي على توزيع الاستبيانات الكترونيا على المشاركين. وتم استخدامُ إداة الاستبيان لجمع بيانات هذه الدراسة. وأسفرتِ النتائج عن هذه الدراسة الى نتائج عدة: بالنسبة لتوفر مصادر التعلم للطلبة خلال هذة الجائحة تبين انها متوفرة بشكل عام لجميع الطلبة. واما فيما يتعلق  إمكانيات وقدرات طلبة التعليم العام على استخدام مصادر التعلم فيتضح ان معظم الطلبة قادرون على استخدام هذة المصادر وبفاعلية. اخيرا فيما يتعلق بمدى تاثر الانشطة التعليمية خلال هذه الجائحة فتبين من النتائج  انها لم تتاثر بشكل عام ووجود اثر ايجابي على الانشطة التعليمية خلال التعلم عن بعد ولكن بنسبة ضئيلة.     &nbsp

A randomized clinical trial compared the effect of intra-alveolar 0.2 % Chlorohexidine bio-adhesive gel versus 0.12% Chlorohexidine rinse in reducing alveolar osteitis following molar teeth extractions

Objectives: To evaluate socket healing, incidence of acute alveolar ostieitis (AO) and associated pain following single molar tooth extraction in patients who receive intra-alveolar 0.2% chlorhexidine (CHX) gel, and those who rinsed with 0.12 % CHX rinse. Study Design: A prospective randomized clinical trial was conducted on two parallel groups of patients. Group1 (141 patients): Rinsed with 0.12 % CHX rinse from the second postoperative day, two times daily for a week. Group2 (160 patients): Who had direct intra-alveolar application of 0.2% CHX gel and day 3 post-operatively. The socket was evaluated 3 and 7 day postoperatively for the presence of AO by checking probing tenderness in the socket, empty socket, food debris, halitosis and pain assessment by VAS. Results: Forty-eight AO cases were diagnosed out of 301 extractions (15.9%). In Group1, 25 cases were found (17.7%) while 23 cases were found in Group2 (14.4%). The difference was not statistically significant ( p =0.428). Presence of empty socket and food debris in Group1 were higher than in Group2 but the difference was not sta - tistically significant ( p = 0.390 & p = 0.415). Occurrence of halitosis in Group2 was more than Group1, but the difference was not significant ( p = 0.440). Statistical significance was found between AO in extraction done by root separation (29%) and those routinely extracted (12.3 %) ( p =0.001). Conclusions: Postoperative evaluation of molar extraction sockets that received direct intra-alveolar application of 0.2% CHX gel showed insignificant less occurrence of AO when compared with 0.12 % CHX rins

Acute Appendicitis among Saudi and Non-Saudi Patients: A Cross-Sectional Based Study

Objective: We conduct this study to discuss the differences between Saudi and non- Saudi patients with acute appendicitis.Background: Acute appendicitis is one of emergency surgeries in developing and developed countries. Its symptoms are vomiting, lower abdominal pain and decreased appetite. Appendicitis needs urgent surgical prouder to avoid its perforation and associated complications which may lead to death. Method: We conduct cross-sectional based study in one of khamis Mushayt, Saudi Araba. 136 patients diagnosed with acute appendicitis were included and their medical records were reviewed after getting their informed consent.Results: We included 136 patients, 90 were non-Saudi and 46 were Saudi. There were no statistically differences in their diagnosis but the distribution of the diagnosis was different.Conclusion: Acute appendicitis was more prevalent among non-Saudi patients, the diagnosis between both was with no significant differences. Keywords: acute appendicitis, Saudi, non-Saudi, diagnosis, cross-sectional, Saudi Arabia and khamis Mushayt

Assessment of Knowledge Among the Physicians Regarding Dental Screening Prior to Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy

Objective: To evaluate the physicians\u27 knowledge regarding the referral for dental screening prior to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Material and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study using simple random sampling among 468 physicians from various specialties with diverse experience levels from different regions in Saudi Arabia. A self-reporting questionnaire was distributed among the physicians, which consisted of questions assessing the physicians\u27 knowledge about oral health and complications in patients prior to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Statistical analysis was done after the data was collected employing SPSS, and p<0.05 was taken as significant. Results: Residents were more as expected (39.3%), followed by specialists (2.31%). The majority had a practice experience for more than five years (67.8%). The scores for the knowledge assessment showed that 51.3%, nearly half of the participants, had lower scores. The scores were statistically significant (p<0.05). Conclusion: General physicians and specialists should be aware of the dental complications and associated diseases in patients with malignancies and those undergoing chemo and radiotherapy. It is proposed that more awareness should be raised among physicians to rectify this lapse

Patient perception and attitudes toward magnetic resonance imaging safety

BackgroundMagnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners use strong, static and fast magnetic fields to form images. Due to rapid developments in MRI technology, several accidents have been recorded in hospitals worldwide as a result of insufficient knowledge about the dangers of MRI on the part of the patient or a failure to follow safety guidelines. This study evaluates patients’ perception and attitudes about MRI safety.AimsThis is a cross sectional study to evaluate the perception and attitudes of patients regarding MRI safety procedures.MethodsA 21 items questionnaire was collected from 119 patients in the MRI waiting area before the commencement of examination. Data were analysed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software (version 22.0, IBM Corp, Armonk, New York). The odds (OR) and 95 per cent confidence interval (CI) were used for analysis, the level of significance was set at p=0.05 using Chi-Square test to evaluate the relationship among the variables in the questionnaire.ResultsThe responses were collected from the patients and their relatives (46 male (38.6 per cent) and 73 female (61.4 per cent)). Approximately 71 per cent of the participants have already read or heard about MRI and the related safety aspects. 76 per cent of overall participants stated that they are aware of the need for preparation before an MRI exam with more awareness of MRI safety issues among younger patients (88 per cent). In this instance, females showed a higher level of knowledge (26 per cent) compared to males (11 per cent) with p=0.035.ConclusionPatients reported insufficient information about MRI safety which may increase the potential for accidents

The impact of qat (Catha edulis Forsk) chewing frequency on status of chronic periodontitis

Background: Chronic periodontitis occurs due to the reaction between bacterial components of dental plaque and the humoral and cellular host immune productions, such as cytokines and inflammatory mediators. Aim: The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of qat (Catha edulis Forsk) chewing frequency on the status of chronic periodontitis. Materials and Methods: A total of 30 patients with chronic periodontitis were selected for this study and they were divided on the basis of qat chewing habits frequency into three equal groups, i.e., non qat chewing group (control group), qat chewing once daily and qat chewing twice daily. Plaque index (PLI), gingival index (GI), and Clinical attachment loss (CAL) were recorded. Gingival biopsies were obtained from selected site for assessing histopathological changes. The data were collect and analyzed by ANOVA test. Results: There were significant differences in PLI, GI, and CAL between qat chewing patients groups compared to non qat chewing patients group (control group). Histopathological study showed increased inflammatory cells in qat chewing patients groups compared to non chewing patients group. Conclusion: There was increased severity of chronic periodontitis with increased frequency of qat chewing habit daily there is a significance differences in clinical and histopathological findings between the patients in Group II and Group III (study groups) compared to Group I (control group). Clinical Significance: The current study reveal that the severity of chronic periodontitis may be increased with increased qat chewing frequency due to its traumatic effect on periodontal tissues

Impact of tobacco smoking on oral microbiota – a case-control study.

Oral microbiota is a vital part of human microbiota, including bacterial, protozoa, viral and fungal species. Beneficial microbes form biofilms to form a first-line defense against harmful microorganisms. Tobacco smoking is considered a major environmental factor affecting the orodental microbiota. Smokers harbor more pathogenic microbes than non-smokers. In fact, cigarette smoking exposes the oral cavity to a large number of toxicants, perturbing the oral microbial ecology through various mechanisms. In Saudi Arabia, research on the impact of tobacco smoking on oral microbiota is still lacking. Therefore, this case-control study is an important addition to the literature in terms of tobacco use and its effects on oral microbiota and oral hygiene. 130 men were recruited for this study, including 65 smokers and 65 non-smokers. The following parameters were recorded for all 130 participants – age, weight, height and education. The aim of this study was to investigate and compare the effect of tobacco smoking on the oral microbiome of smokers and non-smokers. The majority of the smokers were young adults between the ages of 21 and 30 inclusive (n=27). The results show that excessive microorganism growth was seen in smokers to a greater degree than non-smokers (38.5% of smokers vs. 8.8% of non-smokers). Not surprisingly, a significant majority (85.3%) of non-smokers had moderate microorganism growth compared to only 53.8% of smokers. cigarette smoking facilitates excessive growth of oral microorganisms, predisposing smokers to various periodontal diseases. In fact, smoking perturbs the balance of oral microbiota, producing a viable environment for microbes to cause diseases. Further large scale prospective studies are required to determine the exact mechanism that causes tobacco to affect oral microbiota