Capturing cultural glossaries: case-study II

This case-study attempts to present a brief glossary of Northern Sotho medical terms. It is a follow-up of a similar case-study (Madiba, Mphahlele and Kganyago 2003), which was an attempt to capture and present Northern Sotho cooking terms. Case-study I consists of the names for utensils, ingredients and the processes involved in the preparation of cultural dishes. With both these case-studies, the intention has been to use the opportunities availing themselves for the pres-ervation and valorisation of Northern Sotho, including the extension of its corpora to support national dictionary-making processes. The case-study methodology has been very useful for the purposes of this project and the context within which it was undertaken. It aims to provide a model for the collection and presentation of authentic Northern Sotho terminology which otherwise would hardly have been accessible. Keywords: cultural glossary, indigenous knowledge systems, corpus, outcomes-based education, assessment criteria, traditional medical terms, communicative approach, structural approach, metonymy, hands-on activities, task-based learnin

Buccal corridor changes in orthodontically treated extraction and non-extraction Class 1 patients

Patients seek orthodontic treatment mainly to improve their facial aesthetics and obtain an acceptable smile. It is purported that orthodontic extraction treatment may result in narrow buccal corridors which in turn may lead to unaesthetic smile. To determine if the dimensions of the buccal corridors are influenced by extraction or non-extraction treatment in Class 1 patients. Retrospective record-based study conducted between 2012 and 2017 at University of Pretoria Orthodontic department. Smile pictures of pre- and post-treatment Class 1 patients treated with or without premolar extractions were matched. Buccal corridors between the two groups were measured by measurement of visible maxillary dentition and oral aperture dimensions. Data analysis included frequencies and correlations using chi-square test, with a significance level set at p<0.05. Seventy-one patient records met the selection criteria with the majority being females (70%). The age range was between 10 and 37 with a mean of 17.5 years. Thirty-five patients were treated with extractions and thirty-six patients with non-extraction treatment. There was a significant difference in the visible maxillary dentition pre and post treatment with extraction patients showing a 6 to 6 and non-extraction showing 5 to 5 dentition post treatment (p<0.05). There were no differences in the ratios of the visible maxillary dentition and oral aperture in both groups pre and post treatment (p> 0.05). Orthodontic treatment of Class 1 cases with premolar extraction did not lead to deleterious changes in the buccal corridors

Incisional Hernia: Experience in a single surgical unit

Background: Incisional hernias are a common problem in general surgery and they have a varied aetiology. The aim of this study was to document a single unit experience with the management of incisional hernias at King Edward VIII Hospital, Durban, South Arica.Patients and Methods: This was a prospective audit of incisional hernias in a single surgical unit from January 2001 to May 2004. All patients underwent open repair. Clinical data and intra-operative findings were documented.Results: A total number of 77 patients were seen of which 70 were female. Fifty three (68.8%) and 24 (31.2%) of patients underwent elective and emergency surgery respectively. A total of 56 patients had previously undergone gynaecological surgery compared to 21 who had undergone general surgery. There was a documented history of previous sepsis in 4 (7%) of patients. There was 1 sheath defect in 36 patients, 2 defects in 9 patients, 3 defects in 10 patients, 4 or more defects in 9 cases. In 55 patients the original suture could not be identified. Gangrenous bowel was present in 3 patients. Only 3 (3.9%) of the patients had a mesh repair. The rest (96.1%) underwent tissue repair. Morbidity rate was 17% and there were no deaths. Five patients needed management in the ICU. Hospital stay was 8 + 11 yearsConclusion: Most incisional hernias followed gynaecological surgery. There was no evidence of a nonabsorbable suture having been used at the original operation in over half of the patients. We recommend that meticulous technique is essential in closing the abdominal incision

Frozen sections in head and neck surgery and the impact of intraoperative analysis on final resection margins: An institutional study

Frozen section (FS) analysis is an indispensable tool for intraoperative patient management.To assess the utilisation of head and neck FS analysis, with a particular focus on the concordance rate between the intraoperative FS margin analysis and the final FFPE results. Additionally, to determine whether FS analysis had any impact on intraoperative patient management.Lastly, to determine the impact of the FS analysis on the final margin status of resection specimens. Histopathology reports from January 2015 to December 2018 were reviewed at Pretoria Oral and Dental Hospital to analyse all FS requests involving the head and neck region. Captured data was analysed to determine the concordance rate, discordance rate, and FS deferral rates, with correlations performed using the Chi-square test. Eighty-two frozen section cases were reviewed with a total of 312 FS tissue sections performed. The majority (73%) of the FS requests were from the Maxillofacial and Oral Surgery (MFOS) department for the assessment of surgical margins. The FS-FFPE concordance and discordance rates were at 97.5% and 2.4% respectively, with a deferral rate of 1.2%. Additional surgical margins were only received in 16 of the 26 cases with positive margins on intraoperative FS analysis. There was no statistically significant correlation between intraoperative FS positive margin status and advanced pathological T staging. The concordance rate between intraoperative FS margin analysis and final FFPE results were within an acceptable range. In a significant number of cases, the intraoperative FS margin analysis did not influence further surgical management

Synthesis, characterization and ab initio study of WO3 nanocubes with peculiar electrochemical properties

Simple sol–gel method has been exploited to deposit Sn-doped TiO2 thin flms on glass substrates. The resultant coatings were characterized by X-ray difraction (XRD), UV–visible techniques (UV–Vis), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and photoluminescence analysis (PL). The XRD pattern reveals an increase in crystallite size of the prepared samples with the increasing doping concentration. A decrease in doping concentrating resulted in the decrease in bandgap values. The diferent chemical bonds on these flms were identifed from their FTIR spectra. The photoluminescence analysis shows an increase in the emission peak intensity with increasing dopant concentration, and this can be attributed to the efect created due to surface states. The prepared samples were tested as antibacterial agent toward both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria like S.aureus (Staphylococcus aureus) and E.coli (Escherichia coli), respectively. The size of the inhibition zones indicates that the sample shows maximum inhibitory property toward E.coli when compared to S.aureus

Remarkable thermal conductivity enhancement in Ag—decorated graphene nanocomposites based nanofluid by laser liquid solid interaction in ethylene glycol

We report on the synthesis and enhanced thermal conductivity of stable Ag-decorated 2-D graphene nanocomposite in ethylene glycol based nanofluid by laser liquid solid interaction. A surfactant free nanofluid of Ag nanoparticles anchored onto the 2-D graphene sheets were synthesized using a two-step laser liquid solid interaction approach. In order to understand a pulsed Nd:YAG laser at the fundamental frequency (λ = 1,064 nm) to ablate Ag and graphite composite target submerged in ethylene glycol (EG) to form AgNPs decorated 2-D GNs-EG based nanofluid. From a heat transfer point of view, it was observed that the thermal conductivity of this stable Ag-graphene/EG is significantly enhanced by a factor of about 32.3%; this is highest reported value for a graphene based nanofluid

A systematic review of online resources to support patient decision-making for full-thickness rectal prolapse surgery

BACKGROUND: The internet is becoming an increasingly popular resource to support patient decision-making outside of the clinical encounter. The quality of online health information is variable and largely unregulated. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of online resources to support patient decision-making for full-thickness rectal prolapse surgery. METHODS: This systematic review was registered on the PROSPERO database (CRD42017058319). Searches were performed on Google and specialist decision aid repositories using a pre-defined search strategy. Sources were analysed according to three measures: (1) their readability using the Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease score, (2) DISCERN score and (3) International Patient Decision Aids Standards (IPDAS) minimum standards criteria score (IPDASi, v4.0). RESULTS: Overall, 95 sources were from Google and the specialist decision aid repositories. There were 53 duplicates removed, and 18 sources did not meet the pre-defined eligibility criteria, leaving 24 sources included in the full-text analysis. The mean Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease score was higher than recommended for patient education materials (48.8 ± 15.6, range 25.2-85.3). Overall quality of sources supporting patient decision-making for full-thickness rectal prolapse surgery was poor (median DISCERN score 1/5 ± 1.18, range 1-5). No sources met minimum decision-making standards (median IPDASi score 5/12 ± 2.01, range 1-8). CONCLUSIONS: Currently, easily accessible online health information to support patient decision-making for rectal surgery is of poor quality, difficult to read and does not support shared decision-making. It is recommended that professional bodies and medical professionals seek to develop decision aids to support decision-making for full-thickness rectal prolapse surgery

Competitive growth texture of pulse laser deposited VO2 nanostructures on a glass substrate

We report on the crystal structure and morphology of vanadium dioxide (VO2) nanostructures synthesized by pulsed laser deposition on soda-lime glass substrates. The VO2 nanostructures exhibit sharp a-axis diffraction peaks, characteristic of the VO2 monoclinic phase, which implies that highly a-axis textured VO2 was formed. A detailed description of the growth mechanisms and the substrate–film interaction is given, and the characteristics of the electronic transition and hysteresis of the phase transition are described in terms of the morphology and grain boundary structure. The sharpness of the transition and the hysteresis upon heating and cooling are found to be strong functions of the crystal structure and microstructure (grain size and shape).UNESCO-UNISA Africa Chair in Nanosciences-Nanotechnology, INRS (Canada), the ICTP-Trieste and the NANOAFNET.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/actamathb2014ai201

Commodification of transformation discourses and post-apartheid institutional identities at three South African universities

Using mission statements from the UCT, UWC and Stellenbosch University (South Africa), we explore how the three universities have rematerialised prior discourses to rebrand their identities as dictated by contemporary national and global aspirations. We reveal how the universities have recontextualised the experiences and discourses of liberation struggle and the new government's post-apartheid social transformation discourses to construct distinctive identities that are locally relevant and globally aspiring. This has led to the semiotic refiguring of universities from spatial edifices of racially based unequal education, to equal opportunity institutions of higher learning, and to the blurring of historical boundaries between these universities. We conclude that the universities have reconstructed distinct and recognisable identities which speak to a segregated past, but with a post-apartheid voice of equity and redress.IS