An Assessment of Temperature and Precipitation Change Projections in Muscat, Oman from Recent Global Climate Model Simulations

Oman is vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, the most significant of which are increased temperature, less and more erratic precipitation, see level rise (SLR) and desertification. The objective of this research is to investigate the potential variation of precipitation and temperature in Muscat, the capital city of Sultanate of Oman in future. We used the MIROC general circulation model (GCM) output (maximum and minimum temperatures and precipitation) from the Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) 2.6, 4.5, 6.0 and 8.5 scenarios of the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for assessing changes in climate in the period of 2080-2099 compared to the baseline period of 1986-2005. The spatial mismatch between GCM grid scale and local scale was resolved by applying the LARS stochastic Weather Generator (WG) model. The results obtained for 4 scenarios indicate a significant warming in future, which ranges from 0.93ᴼC (minimum temperature by 1.1ᴼC and maximum temperature by 0.86ᴼC) for the lowest scenario, RCP 2.6, to 3.1ᴼC (minimum temperature by 3.2ᴼC and maximum temperature by 3.0ᴼC) for the highest one, RCP 8.5, relative to baseline level. The differences in the precipitation projections between the scenarios are much greater compared to consistent warming depicted in temperatures. The results reveal  -36.4% and -36.0% decreases in precipitation for the RCP 2.6 and RCP 4.5 scenarios, respectively, while, RCP 6.0 and RCP 8.5 scenarios predict increase in precipitation in a range from 9.6% to 12.5%, respectively during 2080-2099 compared to 1986-2005 period. These results need to be further improved by adopting more GCMs, which will provide potential changes in a consistent

Effectiveness of life review on depression among elderly: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Introduction: depression is considered one of the most common obstacles to daily life activities and quality of life in the elderly. Evidence is accumulating regarding the effectiveness of reminiscence and life review interventions in reducing depression and raising well-being in the elderly. The aim of this review was to determine the effects of life review interventions on depression outcomes among the elderly. Methods: a search of the literature was performed through 11 electronic databases to identify all randomized controlled trials studies that examine life review effects on depression among the elderly. For each study, the effect size (Cohen's d) between groups (life review vs. control) differences in depression scores for post-intervention and follow-up intervention were computed. Results: in total, 15 studies were met the inclusion criteria and was evaluated by meta-analysis. Results showed that the life review group has a large effect on reducing depression level than the control group on post-intervention and follow-up. After conducted sensitivity analysis, a moderate effect (effect size=-0.54; 95% CI=-0.71 to -0.36; p<0.05) and small effect (effect size=-0.20; 95% CI=-0.41 to -0.01; p<0.05) were found on post-intervention and follow-up, respectively. Conclusion: through this systematic review and meta-analysis, the overall results showed a moderate effect to reducing depression levels among the elderly in the life review group after carrying out post-intervention measurements, while in the follow-up the effect was small. This review indicates that life review intervention is one of the options likely to be of benefit for elderly in primary care settings, but further research can be focused on intervention and follow-up durations to obtain long-term effects

Obstructed Hemivagina and Ipsilateral Renal Anomaly (OHVIRA) Syndrome

Obstructed hemivagina and ipsilateral renal anomaly (OHVIRA) syndrome is a rare congenital abnormality of the female urogenital tract. We reported OHVIRA syndrome in a 15-year-old girl, who was referred to King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, due to hematocolpos and an imperforate hymen. The patient was diagnosed as having an absent right kidney since childhood. She presented with progressive development of lower abdominal discomfort and an abdominopelvic mass. She had no history of urinary complaints. Here, we describe our findings from the abdominal ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging

Effects of life-story review on quality of life, depression, and life satisfaction in older adults in Oman: a randomized controlled study

Abstract Background There is a need for healthcare providers to develop life-story review interventions to enhance the mental well-being and quality of life of older adults. The primary aim of this study is to examine the effects of telling their life stories and creating a life-story book intervention on QoL, depressive symptoms, and life satisfaction in a group of older adults in Oman. Methods A repeated-measures randomized controlled design was conducted in Oman. A total of 75 older adults (response rate = 40.1%) were randomly assigned to the intervention (n = 38) or control (n = 37) groups. Demographic data were collected as the baseline. Depression, life satisfaction, and quality of life scores were collected from each participant at weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, and 8. Results Their average age is 67.3 ± 5.5 years (range 60–82 years). There are more women (n = 50, 66.7%) than men. Over the 8 weeks, the intervention group exhibited a notable decrease in depression (intervention: 2.5 ± 1.2 vs. control: 5.3 ± 2.1, p < .001) but an increase in life satisfaction (24.6 ± 3.1 vs. 21.9 ± 6.1, p < .001) and quality of life (physical: 76.2 ± 12.7 vs. 53.6 ± 15.5, p < .001; psychological: 76.4 ± 12.1 vs. 59.9 ± 21.5, p < .001; Social relation: 78.3 ± 11.7 vs. 61.8 ± 16.6, p < .001; environment: 70.8 ± 10.2 vs. 58.6 ± 16.1, p < .001) compared to the control group. Conclusion The life-story review intervention proved effective in diminishing depression and boosting life satisfaction and quality of life among the older sample within the 8-week study. Healthcare providers can apply such interventions to improve older adults’ mental health and well-being

Differential Expression of Oman’s Wild Lavender, Lavandula subnuda for Chemical Composition towards Medicinal and Aromatic Application

Plants have been used directly or indirectly as medicines for over 5000 years as a source of antibiotics, antineoplastics, analgesics, and cardio-protective, among others. Approximately 70–90% of the population in developing countries continue to use ancient medicines based on plant extracts for treatment. Recently, the isolation and identification of biologically active compounds and molecules from nature have led to the discovery of new therapeutics, prompting the improvement of the health and pharmaceutical sectors. Phytochemicals revolve around the pharmaceutical industry's research and development (R&D) sector as a source of new molecules leading to the development of new novel drugs. Given the above, the present investigation addresses the differential nature of wild lavender (Lavandula subnuda Benth) plants of diverse locations in Oman with respect to their chemical composition of the essential oil in addition to morphological characters and chlorophyll contents of leaves to explore the possibility of isolating its prime chemical compounds on a commercial scale in perfumery industry. There are no previous studies so far who have reported on essential oil recovery and chemical composition exclusively in respect of Lavandula subnuda. Composite samples of ten randomly selected plants were collected from wadi habitats of four diversified locations. Edaphic features of managed sites were recorded, and their soil chemical contents were determined following instructions using S1 Titan/Tracer 5/CTX equipment of Bruker developed based on energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF). Morphological traits were measured using a ruler, and chlorophyll contents were recorded using the atLEAF CHL Plus chlorophyll meter as atLEAF values. The essential oil was extracted using ETHO X's advanced microwave extraction system and analyzed for chemical compounds using GC-MS analysis on Shimadzu GC-2010 Plus gas chromatograph. The experimental data were analyzed statistically, wherever required, by applying basic statistics of the EXCEL -16 version. The results indicated that in general, the Lavandula subnuda plants of locations of high altitudes had higher expressivity in all the morphological traits and chlorophyll contents than those of low altitudes. The essential oil recovery, however, was found to be higher from the plant samples of lower altitudes (0.70 to 0.79% (w/w)) than from those of higher mountains/ altitudes (0.15 to 0.18% (w/w)). The pattern of values of commonly occurring chemical contents of essential oils was different. Each essential oil's top ten chemical compounds contributed about 80% of the total in four locations. Of the ten top chemical compounds, eight compounds, namely D-Germacrene (42.67%) from Wadi Al-Khod, Estragole (32%) and Linalool (23.89%) from Wadi Halban), trans-Borneol (23.46%) and 4-Terpineol (18.73%) from Wadi Najd Al-Waqba and Kessane (18.60%), beta-cis-Caryophyllene (13.68%) and beta-Elemene (10.618%) from Wadi Al-Hayul, were found highest in quantity and had huge potential for further application. It is concluded that there exists a higher possibility of adapting Good Agriculture Practice (GAP) to produce the highest herbage yield of vegetative parts of Lavandula subnuda plants based on morphological features under wild conditions to extract these compounds on a commercial scale in both the pharmaceutical and perfumery industries.Keywords: Morphology, Chlorophyll, Chemical compounds, Differential Expression, Lavandula subnuda,, Lamiacea

Differential Expression of Oman’s Wild Lavender, Lavandula subnuda for Chemical Composition towards Medicinal and Aromatic Application

Plants have been used directly or indirectly as medicines for over 5000 years as a source of antibiotics, antineoplastics, analgesics, and cardio-protective, among others. Approximately 70–90% of the population in developing countries continue to use ancient medicines based on plant extracts for treatment. Recently, the isolation and identification of biologically active compounds and molecules from nature have led to the discovery of new therapeutics, prompting the improvement of the health and pharmaceutical sectors. Phytochemicals revolve around the pharmaceutical industry's research and development (R&D) sector as a source of new molecules leading to the development of new novel drugs. Given the above, the present investigation addresses the differential nature of wild lavender (Lavandula subnuda Benth) plants of diverse locations in Oman with respect to their chemical composition of the essential oil in addition to morphological characters and chlorophyll contents of leaves to explore the possibility of isolating its prime chemical compounds on a commercial scale in perfumery industry. There are no previous studies so far who have reported on essential oil recovery and chemical composition exclusively in respect of Lavandula subnuda. Composite samples of ten randomly selected plants were collected from wadi habitats of four diversified locations. Edaphic features of managed sites were recorded, and their soil chemical contents were determined following instructions using S1 Titan/Tracer 5/CTX equipment of Bruker developed based on energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF). Morphological traits were measured using a ruler, and chlorophyll contents were recorded using the atLEAF CHL Plus chlorophyll meter as atLEAF values. The essential oil was extracted using ETHO X's advanced microwave extraction system and analyzed for chemical compounds using GC-MS analysis on Shimadzu GC-2010 Plus gas chromatograph. The experimental data were analyzed statistically, wherever required, by applying basic statistics of the EXCEL -16 version. The results indicated that in general, the Lavandula subnuda plants of locations of high altitudes had higher expressivity in all the morphological traits and chlorophyll contents than those of low altitudes. The essential oil recovery, however, was found to be higher from the plant samples of lower altitudes (0.70 to 0.79% (w/w)) than from those of higher mountains/ altitudes (0.15 to 0.18% (w/w)). The pattern of values of commonly occurring chemical contents of essential oils was different. Each essential oil's top ten chemical compounds contributed about 80% of the total in four locations. Of the ten top chemical compounds, eight compounds, namely D-Germacrene (42.67%) from Wadi Al-Khod, Estragole (32%) and Linalool (23.89%) from Wadi Halban), trans-Borneol (23.46%) and 4-Terpineol (18.73%) from Wadi Najd Al-Waqba and Kessane (18.60%), beta-cis-Caryophyllene (13.68%) and beta-Elemene (10.618%) from Wadi Al-Hayul, were found highest in quantity and had huge potential for further application. It is concluded that there exists a higher possibility of adapting Good Agriculture Practice (GAP) to produce the highest herbage yield of vegetative parts of Lavandula subnuda plants based on morphological features under wild conditions to extract these compounds on a commercial scale in both the pharmaceutical and perfumery industries.Keywords: Morphology, Chlorophyll, Chemical compounds, Differential Expression, Lavandula subnuda,, Lamiacea

SARS-CoV-2 vaccination modelling for safe surgery to save lives: data from an international prospective cohort study

Background: Preoperative SARS-CoV-2 vaccination could support safer elective surgery. Vaccine numbers are limited so this study aimed to inform their prioritization by modelling. Methods: The primary outcome was the number needed to vaccinate (NNV) to prevent one COVID-19-related death in 1 year. NNVs were based on postoperative SARS-CoV-2 rates and mortality in an international cohort study (surgical patients), and community SARS-CoV-2 incidence and case fatality data (general population). NNV estimates were stratified by age (18-49, 50-69, 70 or more years) and type of surgery. Best- and worst-case scenarios were used to describe uncertainty. Results: NNVs were more favourable in surgical patients than the general population. The most favourable NNVs were in patients aged 70 years or more needing cancer surgery (351; best case 196, worst case 816) or non-cancer surgery (733; best case 407, worst case 1664). Both exceeded the NNV in the general population (1840; best case 1196, worst case 3066). NNVs for surgical patients remained favourable at a range of SARS-CoV-2 incidence rates in sensitivity analysis modelling. Globally, prioritizing preoperative vaccination of patients needing elective surgery ahead of the general population could prevent an additional 58 687 (best case 115 007, worst case 20 177) COVID-19-related deaths in 1 year. Conclusion: As global roll out of SARS-CoV-2 vaccination proceeds, patients needing elective surgery should be prioritized ahead of the general population