Thoracoscopic Drainage of Para-Vertebral Abscess - Report of Two Cases

Tuberculosis of the spine is common in tropical countries like Bangladesh and it is the most common site of skeletaltuberculosis as a whole. In addition to the anti-tubercular chemotherapy, paravertebral abscess often require surgicaldecompression. Surgical intervention for the thoracic region needs formal thoracotomy which involves a very longincision over the chest. In this regards, thoracoscopic drainage would have been a good option. Two patients (one 53years old female and other 20 years old male) with para- vertebral abscess with compression and collapse of vertebralbodies resulting cord compression presented with neurological symptoms underwent video assisted thoracoscopicdrainage with biopsy from the abscess wall using a standard laparoscope (as thoracoscope) at the BangabandhuSheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), and a private hospital in Dhaka. The patients were fed on 1st post operativeday and antituberculer chemotheraphy was continued. Post-operative period was uneventful and the patients weredischarged on 8th post operative day with antituberculer chemotheraphy. There was a gradual improvement of neurologicalsymptoms of lower limbs. Till date the 1st and 2nd patient were followed-up for a period of 18 and 12 months respectively.The condition of both patients improved gradually with no neurological deficit. To the best of our knowledge, there wasno previous report of thoracoscopic drainage of para-vertebral abscess from Bangladesh. So this is the 1st report in ourcountry. Thoracoscopic drainage of para-vertebral abscess appears to be a technically feasible, patient friendly modalityof treatment for the spinal tuberculosis in experienced hand with excellent cosmetic out come.Key words: Thoracoscopic drainage; paravertebral abscessDOI: 10.3329/bsmmuj.v3i1.5513BSMMU J 2010; 3(1): 35-3

Effect of Combination of Natural Dyes and the Blocking Layer on the Performance of DSSC

Over the years, researchers have been working on replacing sensitized dye for dye sensitized solar cells (DSSC), because of its low production cost, biodegradability, and non-toxicity. However, the overall performance of natural dye-based DSSCs is low compared to the DSSCs sensitized with Ruthenium based dyes. The combination of natural dyes with an optimized choice of the extracting solvents and the proper volume ratio of mixture of the dyes, enhances inherent properties, such as absorption and adsorption of the dyes. It also allows the device to utilize photon energy more efficiently over the entire visible wavelength. As a result, DSSC sensitized with the dye mixture shows higher absorbance, and cumulative absorption properties over the whole visible region than the DSSC fabricated with individual dyes and showed higher photocurrent. Another effective way to improve cell efficiency is by using a blocking layer. The blocking layer increases the photocurrent, is mainly due to the improvement of the electron recombination at the transparent conducting oxide/electrolyte interfaces. Also, the blocking layer’s compact structure creates an effective pathway for electron transportation; thus, the device’s photocurrent increases. Additionally, a slight improvement in the open-circuit voltage and fill factor was observed, thus cell efficiency enhances significantly. By both the proper ratio of dye mixture and the blocking layer improves cell performance of DSSC and opens a new pathway for future studies

Understanding the Concept of SMEs in Driving Economic Growth and Development in Bangladesh

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) play a vital role in Bangladesh's economy and have been recognized as a significant catalyst for poverty reduction programs and economic growth. Therefore, it is essential to have a comprehensive understanding of the concept of SMEs and their role in driving economic growth and development. Consequently, this study endeavors to explore the definition of SMEs, their present status, and their contributions to the development of Bangladesh’s economy. Using a quantitative research method, the study performed a descriptive statistics analysis on data gathered from diverse sources, including academic, governmental, and private institutions, as well as pertinent literature from researchers, academics, and scholars. The study has found that the definition of SMEs in Bangladesh has undergone changes over time. The study findings also revealed that the growth of SMEs has had a significant impact on various economic indices in Bangladesh, contributing positively to the country's economic development. Hence, the findings of this study can provide valuable insights to readers seeking a comprehensive understanding of SMEs in the context of Bangladesh. Moreover, policymakers can utilize these findings to introduce well-suited policies and initiatives that will foster the future development of the SME sector

Understanding the Concept of SMEs in Driving Economic Growth and Development in Bangladesh

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) play a vital role in Bangladesh's economy and have been recognized as a significant catalyst for poverty reduction programs and economic growth. Therefore, it is essential to have a comprehensive understanding of the concept of SMEs and their role in driving economic growth and development. Consequently, this study endeavors to explore the definition of SMEs, their present status, and their contributions to the development of Bangladesh’s economy. Using a quantitative research method, the study performed a descriptive statistics analysis on data gathered from diverse sources, including academic, governmental, and private institutions, as well as pertinent literature from researchers, academics, and scholars. The study has found that the definition of SMEs in Bangladesh has undergone changes over time. The study findings also revealed that the growth of SMEs has had a significant impact on various economic indices in Bangladesh, contributing positively to the country's economic development. Hence, the findings of this study can provide valuable insights to readers seeking a comprehensive understanding of SMEs in the context of Bangladesh. Moreover, policymakers can utilize these findings to introduce well-suited policies and initiatives that will foster the future development of the SME sector

Ion-acoustic higher order non-linear structures in quantum dusty plasma

The prominent features of higher order nonlinear ion-acoustic waves involving quantum corrections in an unmagnetized quantum dusty plasma are revisited with the theoretical framework of Hossain et al. [1]. The fluid model is demonstrated here by its constituent inertial ions, Fermi electrons with quantum effect, and immovable dust grain with negative charge. We have used the ideology of Gardner equation. The well-known RPM method is employed to derive the equation. Indeed, the basic features of quantum dust ion-acoustic Gardner solitons (GSs) are pronounced here. GSs are shown to exist for the value of dust to ion ratio around 2/3 which is valid for space plasma [2], and are different from those of K-dV (Korteweg-de Vries) solitons, which do not exist for the value around 2/3. The implications of our results are suitable for cosmological and astrophysical environments

Leadership in SMEs: A Review of Different Leadership Styles and their Relevance to SME Management

This review study was motivated by the premise that the relevance of leadership concepts to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) is a key factor to effective management. Because the use of an appropriate leadership style enables the SME management to move forward and to be successful in achieving organizational goals. This academic evaluation examines the concepts of leadership, leadership styles and their relevance towards the improvement of SME management. It begins with a concise overview of the meaning and concept of leadership and then follows with an examination of different leadership styles usually relevant to SME management. This study followed a qualitative research approach where secondary research data from previously published research articles, books, journals, conference papers, reports, and dissertations was integrated and interpreted. Based on the existing reliable literature, this review study validates that the identification and application of the most appropriate leadership style or the combination of leadership styles is highly important in achieving the common goal, which ultimately results in the SME's overall success

Improvement of Efficiency of Dye Sensitized Solar Cells by Incorporating Carbon Nanotubes

Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have aroused intense attention over the past three decades owing to their low cost, inexpensive raw materials, simple fabrication process, and employment of eco-friendly materials. Recently, to take advantage of their lower electrical resistance, excellent electrocatalytic operation, mechanical integrity, low cost, and flexibility, carbon nanotubes CNTs have been incorporated into DSSCs with a view to improve the efficiency further. CNT can be used in the anode, electrolyte, and counter electrode. The incorporation of CNTs into the anode’s semiconductor material decreases the host material’s resistance and increases thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, mechanical strength, and durability. CNTs in ionic liquids have been investigated as a potential alternative for traditional liquid electrolytes for DSSC application because of low viscosity, low vapor pressure, high diffusion coefficient, high electrochemical, and thermal stability. CNT based counter electrode has attracted considerable interest because of its fast electron transfer kinetics and large surface area. This book chapter provides an insight into the fabrication of DSSCs by incorporating CNT and its effects on cell conversion efficiencies

Robust Significance Analysis of Microarrays by Minimum β-Divergence Method

Identification of differentially expressed (DE) genes with two or more conditions is an important task for discovery of few biomarker genes. Significance Analysis of Microarrays (SAM) is a popular statistical approach for identification of DE genes for both small- and large-sample cases. However, it is sensitive to outlying gene expressions and produces low power in presence of outliers. Therefore, in this paper, an attempt is made to robustify the SAM approach using the minimum β-divergence estimators instead of the maximum likelihood estimators of the parameters. We demonstrated the performance of the proposed method in a comparison of some other popular statistical methods such as ANOVA, SAM, LIMMA, KW, EBarrays, GaGa, and BRIDGE using both simulated and real gene expression datasets. We observe that all methods show good and almost equal performance in absence of outliers for the large-sample cases, while in the small-sample cases only three methods (SAM, LIMMA, and proposed) show almost equal and better performance than others with two or more conditions. However, in the presence of outliers, on an average, only the proposed method performs better than others for both small- and large-sample cases with each condition

Effect of gamma (γ-) radiation on the opto-structural and morphological properties of green synthesized BaO nanoparticles using Moringa Oleifera leaves

In this current assessment, BaO synthesized from Moringa Oleifera leaves were irradiated using 0–75 kGy gamma radiation and investigated its physical impacts. The x-ray diffraction (XRD) data demonstrated the synthesis of tetragonal BaO, and no phase deviation was observed after irradiation. As doses are increased, the overall crystallite size were decreased due to an increase in defects and disorders. The tetragonal BaO was evident in Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra prior to and following irradiation, while peak intensities and wavenumbers varied considerably. The as-prepared BaO showed a spherical shape morphology, and Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) indicated no vital deviations in it after irradiation. As irradiation shifts from 0 to 75 kGy, optical bandgap was increased from 4.55 to 4.93 eV, evaluated using Kubelka-Munk (K-M) equation from UV–vis–NIR spectrophotometer. Opto-electronic and photonic devices have challenges in extreme radiation conditions, such as space and nuclear environments. So, these assessments suggested that BaO can withstand high levels of gamma photon and could be a good option for photonic and optoelectronic instruments in an extreme gamma-ray exposed conditions