Couching in Nigeria: prevalence, risk factors and visual acuity outcomes.

PURPOSE: Couching is an ancient treatment for cataract which is still practiced in some of the poorer developing countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. The purpose of this study is to describe risk factors for couching and visual acuity outcomes in a nationally representative sample of adults aged 40 years and above in Nigeria. METHODS: Probability in proportion size methods were used to identify a representative sample. Of the 15,375 adults enumerated, 13,582 were interviewed and examined. Examination included logMar acuities, slit lamp examination and dilated fundoscopy with digital fundus imaging. RESULTS: Almost half of the 583 eyes undergoing a procedure for cataract had been couched (249 eyes, 42.7%). Individuals living in rural areas (P = 0.033) and in the two underserved northern administrative zones (P = 0.33; P = 0.002) were more likely to have been couched. Visual outcomes were poor according to World Health Organization categories, with 55.8% of people and 73.1% of eyes having a presenting visual acuity of less than 3/60 and only 9.7% and 2.4% of people and eyes respectively having a good outcome (6/18 or better). None were wearing an aphakic correction, and with correction acuities improved but 42.6% of eyes were still blind (< 3/60). CONCLUSIONS: Couching is still widely practiced in Nigeria and visual outcomes are very poor. The population needs to be made aware of the risks associated with the procedure, and services for high quality, affordable cataract surgery need to be expanded, particularly in rural areas and in the north of the country

Passive low frequency RFID for non-destructive evaluation and monitoring

Ph. D ThesisDespite of immense research over the years, defect monitoring in harsh environmental conditions still presents notable challenges for Non-Destructive Testing and Evaluation (NDT&E) and Structural Health Monitoring (SHM). One of the substantial challenges is the inaccessibility to the metal surface due to the large stand-off distance caused by the insulation layer. The hidden nature of corrosion and defect under thick insulation in harsh environmental conditions may result in it being not noticed and ultimately leading to failures. Generally electromagnetic NDT&E techniques which are used in pipeline industries require the removal of the insulation layer or high powered expensive equipment. Along with these, other limitations in the existing techniques create opportunities for novel systems to solve the challenges caused by Corrosion under Insulation (CUI). Extending from Pulsed Eddy Current (PEC), this research proposes the development and use of passive Low Frequency (LF) RFID hardware system for the detection and monitoring of corrosion and cracks on both ferrous and non-ferrous materials at varying high temperature conditions. The passive, low cost essence of RFID makes it an enchanting technique for long term condition monitoring. The contribution of the research work can be summarised as follows: (1) implementation of novel LF RFID sensor systems and the rig platform, experimental studies validating the detection capabilities of corrosion progression samples using transient feature analysis with respect to permeability and electrical conductivity changes along with enhanced sensitivity demonstration using ferrite sheet attached to the tag; (2) defect detection using swept frequency method to study the multiple frequency behaviour and further temperature suppression using feature fusion technique; (3) inhomogeneity study on ferrous materials at varying temperature and demonstration of the potential of the RFID system; (4) use of RFID tag with ceramic filled Poly-tetra-fluoro-ethyulene (PTFE) substrate for larger applicability of the sensing system in the industry; (5) lift-off independent defect monitoring using passive sweep frequency RFID sensors and feature extraction and fusion for robustness improvement. This research concludes that passive LF RFID system can be used to detect corrosion and crack on both ferrous and non-ferrous materials and then the system can be used to compensate for temperature variation making it useful for a wider range of applications. However, significant challenges such as permanent deployment of the tags for long term monitoring at higher temperatures and much higher standoff distance, still require improvement for real-world applicability.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) CASE, National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL)

A minimum three-year clinical and radiological follow up of the utilisation of a Cementless Multihole Mega cups in conversion hip arthroplasty -a prospective analysis

The introduction of multihole mega cup has proposed innovative answers in the management of acetabular impediments that ensued from the use of bipolar hemiarthroplasty. This study bestows a prospective analysis of the outcome of conversion surgery from bipolar hemiarthroplasty to total hip replacement in patients with acetabular complications. Forty-two patients, 22 men and 20 women, with a mean age of 59 years (range 46-69 years) who experienced complex acetabular deficiencies following bipolar hemiarthroplasty, were converted to total hip replacement between January 2008 and June 2010. Pain was the main complaint in all cases. It was primarily confined to the groin region. Limping due to shortening of the affected limb was the second main complaint (30 cases). All cases had erosion of the acetabulum with varying degrees of protrusion. Cementless mutihole cups with augmentation by autogenous bone graft from the iliac crest and large metal heads’ sizes were used for conversion in all cases. After a minimum follow-up of 36 months, Harris hip scores (HHS) improved from a mean of 36.8 ± 6.8 (range 21-59) preoperatively to a mean of 85.9 ± 5.6 (range 71 to 94) postoperatively. Thirty six (85.7%) patients experienced no groin pain postoperatively while six patients (14.3%) described limited improvement. Postoperative complications included ; dislocation in two cases which were reduced and did not result in a poor outcome later on. No patients were lost to follow-up. Conclusion : Short-term results at minimum three years follow-up of multihole mega cup were encouraging regarding high capability of acetabular reconstruction with less morbidity of recipient site. Significant pain and functional improvement were noticeable, however further longer term studies are consequently recommended

Pengalaman Menjadi Pemain Wayang Orang Ngesti Pandowo

Budaya pewayangan merupakan bentuk kesenian tradisional yang amat mengakar pada masyarakat Indonesia. Penanaman nilai-nilai budaya disebut dengan internalisasi, yaitu proses menanamkan dan menumbuhkembangkan suatu nilai atau budaya menjadi bagian diri orang yang bersangkutan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menemukan gambaran mengenai pengalaman pemain wayang orang dalam menjalankan tugasnya yaitu berperan menjadi tokoh dalam cerita wayang. Penelitian menggunakan pendekatan Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), pendekatan IPA dipilih karena memiliki prosedur analisis data yang terperinci. Prosedur tersebut bertitik fokus pada eksplorasi pengalaman yang diperoleh subjek melalui kehidupan pribadi dan sosialnya. Dari eksplorasi pengalaman subjek terhadap kehidupan, akan memunculkan makna dalam peristiwa unik yang dirasakan oleh subjek. Hasil yang diperoleh dari penelitian ini adalah latar belakang ketiga subjek dalam pengambilan keputusan menjadi pemain wayang orang karena mencintai kesenian wayang, dan keinginan untuk berkarya. Pencapaian dalam berkesenian wayang adalah ketika mampu menghayati perannya sehingga mampu menggambarkan tokoh yang diperankannya diatas panggung. Nilai-nilai yang terkandung dalam seni wayang diterapkan untuk menjalani kehidupan sesuai dengan nilai-nilai positif dalam wayang. Upaya dalam mencapai pengalaman berperan dilakukan melalui nilai berkarya, nilai penghayatan dan nilai bersikap

Efektivitas Komunikasi Interpersonal Orang Tua-anak Dengan Intensi Merokok

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui hubungan antara efektivitas komunikasi orang tua-anak dengan intensi merokok pada siswa SMK “X” Semarang dan mengetahui sumbangan efektif variabel efektivitas komunikasi interpersonal orang tua-anak terhadap intensi merokok.Populasi penelitian ini adalah siswa laki-laki SMK “X” Semarang dengan sampel penelitian sebanyak 162 siswa. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah metode penelitian kuantitatif dengan teknik pengambilan sampel secara cluster random sampling. Pengambilan data menggunakan dua skala psikologi, yaitu Skala Intensi Merokok dan Skala Efektivitas Komunikasi Interpersonal Orang Tua-Anak. Metode analisis data yang digunakan adalah analisis regresi sederhana. Hasil analisis data menunjukkan nilai rxy = -0,394 dengan nilai p = 0,000 (p &lt; 0,01). Artinya terdapat hubungan negatif antara efektivitas komunikasi interpersonal orang tua-anak dengan intensi merokok pada siswa laki-laki SMK “X” Semarang. Sumbangan efektif variabel efektivitas komunikasi interpersonal orang tua-anak adalah sebesar 15,6%. Hasil tersebut menunjukkan bahwa intensi merokok 15,6 % ditentukan oleh efektivitas komunikasi interpersonal orang tua-anak. Sedangkan 84,4% dijelaskan oleh faktor-faktor lain

Estudios ultraestructurales de las variaciones morfológicas de la superficie y envolturas del huevo de pez-gato africano Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) antes y después de la fertilización, con una discusión de los mecanismos de fertilización

Much of the existing knowledge of the mechanisms involved in teleost fertilisation is based on a few small model species that have no commercial value. Research is therefore urgently required to address mechanisms involved in fertilisation in species of great commercial value. In this study, the ultrastructural morphological variations in the surface of the egg of Clarias gariepinus were recorded before and after fertilisation by using electron microscopy. The outer surface of the unfertilised egg was smooth, whereas the fertilised egg acquired a network of projections on the vegetal hemisphere. Moreover, different patterns of ornamentation on the egg surface were evident. This pattern of ornamentation varied with the progress of embryonic development. The micropyle of the C. gariepinus egg consisted of a funnel-shaped vestibule, from the bottom of which a cylindrical micropylar canal extended. The micropylar canal decreased in diameter after completion of fertilisation, forming a micropylar disc. The sperm behaviour on the egg surface was oriented towards any depression on the chorion surface. The chorion of ovulated eggs consisted of one layer. After fertilisation the chorion was differentiated into three layers: the double-layered coat, the zona radiata externa and the zona radiata interna. Four protein subunits of the chorion of C. gariepinus were identified by SDS-PAGE. IR-spectra obtained from C. gariepinus chorion revealed that the vibration of chorion proteins exhibited different weak activities in the IR-spectra with minor difference between pre- and post-fertilisation chorion proteins.Gran parte del conocimiento existente sobre los mecanismos de fertilizaci&oacute;n en tele&oacute;steos se basa en unas pocas especies modelo, que no tienen valor comercial. Por ello, se requiere investigaci&oacute;n dirigida a conocer los mecanismos involucrados en la fertilizaci&oacute;n de especies de gran valor comercial. En el presente estudio, mediante el uso del Microscopio Electr&oacute;nico, se obtuvieron imagines de las variaciones en la morfolog&iacute;a ultraestructural de la superficie de los huevos de Clarias gariepinus antes y despu&eacute;s de la fertilizaci&oacute;n. La superficie externa de los huevos infertilizados era lisa, mientras que la de los huevos fertilizados adquir&iacute;a una red de proyecciones en el hemisferio vegetativo. Adem&aacute;s, fueron evidentes diferentes patrones de ornamentaci&oacute;n de la superficie del huevo. Este patr&oacute;n de ornamentaci&oacute;n vari&oacute; a lo largo del desarrollo embrionario. El micropilo de los huevos de C. gariepinus consisti&oacute; en un vest&iacute;bulo con forma de embudo desde la base del cual se extend&iacute;a un canal micropilar cil&iacute;ndrico. El di&aacute;metro de dicho canal disminu&iacute;a tras la finalizaci&oacute;n de la fertilizaci&oacute;n, form&aacute;ndose el disco micropilar. El comportamiento del esperma en la superficie de los huevos se orientaba hacia cualquier depresi&oacute;n de la superficie del corion. El corion de los ovocitos consisti&oacute; en una sola capa. Tras la fertilizaci&oacute;n, el corion se diferenci&oacute; en tres capas: la capa double-acodada, la zona radiada externa and y la zona radiada interna. Mediante SDS-PAGE se identificaron cuatro subunidades de prote&iacute;nas en el corion de los huevos de C. gariepinus. Los espectros IR obtenidos del corion revelaron que la vibraci&oacute;n de las prote&iacute;nas del corion exhib&iacute;a diversas d&eacute;biles actividades en el espectro IR con menores diferencias entre pre- y post-fertilizaci&oacute;n prote&iacute;nas del corion

Effectiveness of Phonological Awareness Skills Training in Improving Decoding Skills of Children with Reading Disabilities

The study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of a phonological awareness skills training program in improving decoding skills of third grade students with reading disabilities. The initial sample included 40 students enrolled in the learning disabilities program in elementary schools in Oman. They were assessed for diagnosing those who have reading disabilities through adopting the procedures of the IQ-achievement discrepancy model. The Raven’s Matrices and a reading achievement test were administered to students. Then, 14 students among those diagnosed with reading disabilities were randomly distributed to an experimental and a control group. Participants in the experimental group received training in phonological awareness for 10 weeks whereas the control group participants did not. The participants of both groups were administered two tests in phonological awareness (PA) and decoding skills (DS) pre and post the training. Results of the study indicated that there were statistically significant differences between the experimental and control groups on the sub-tests of the PA and DS tests except for fluency in reading passages. However, a comparison of the pre and post scores of the experimental groups showed that they obtained significant gains in all sub scores following the training

E-Commerce - Customer Experience and Relationship

Modern World has witnessed tremendous growth of e-commerce industry in term of volume of business and its acceptance among the customers. It has really posed a question on traditional commerce module so as many of them has associated or converted themselves into e-commerce. The question remains whether all of India has been included in it or only urban population is availing the facilities available via e-commerce; and secondly are the online customers fully satisfied and do not expect anything else save what is offered right now ? In this research we have tried to find out answer to these questions so as the customer can share their experiences and perceptions towards the e-commerce business module and how the relationship could be better by identifying areas of improvement and inclusion for the e-commerce industry to make the relationship fruitful

Pendekatan Service Oriented Architecture (Soa) Untuk Merespon Perubahan User Requirement Aplikasi E-government

Pendefinisian user requirement yang tidak komprehensif kadangkala menyebabkan pengembangan sistem informasi menjadi lama, over budget dan tidak dapat beradaptasi dengan Perubahan regulasi. Selain itu, adanya anggapan bahwa tidak adanya Perubahan regulasi dalam memberikan layanan kepada masyarakat. Hal ini disebabkan karena menganggap kondisi environment selalu berjalan normal. Pada Kenyataanya, pengembangan sistem informasi memerlukan perhatian khusus untuk antisipasi terhadap kondisi environment yang tidak dapat diprediksi Perubahannya. Penelitian ini diharapkan dapat memberikan kontribusi dalam hal pengembangan sistem berbasis Service Oriented Analysis &amp; Design dengan pendekatan SOA untuk mengakomodir Perubahan user requirement agar dapat dijadikan referensi untuk melakukan penelitian lanjutan