An Unusual Case of Gallbladder Carcinoma with Pseudopancreatic Cyst

Generally, carcinoma of the gallbladder is an extremely unusual neoplasm, however, high incidence rates have been reported in certain parts of the world. The role of certain factors such as genetic susceptibility, lifestyle and infections of gallbladder in causing carcinogenesis is still not clearly understood. Due to its early vague symptoms and lack of serosa in the gallbladder to slow its spread, gallbladder carcinoma typically presents at an advanced stage with a five-year survival rate of less than 5%. Pseudopancreatic cyst is an uncommon but not a rare complication of acute pancreatitis and injury to the pancreas. However, it rarely presents with carcinoma of gallbladder. We present here an unusual case of gallbladder carcinoma with pseudopancreatic cyst in a 58-year old male

Genre Analysis of Acknowledgement Texts by Pakistani Master Level Theses Writers

oai:ojs2.linguisticforum.com:article/1This study aims to investigate the lexical, structural and cultural elements in acknowledgement texts written by Pakistani candidates of master of philosophy degrees (18 years of education). For this purpose, a corpus of 100 acknowledgement texts has been developed and analyzed with the help of AntConc 3.4.4.0. Results reveal that Pakistani master level acknowledgement writers use gratitude markers extravagantly to thank their contributors and use high sounding adjectives exaggeratedly to increase the effect of thankfulness and glorify the acknowledged persons. Acknowledgement texts are a blend of different patterns which are the example of their own. Study concludes that Pakistani acknowledgement texts are affected by cultural, social and personal elements with the help of which Pakistani acknowledgers pay gratitude directly, emotionally and warmly using direct, emotional and rhetorical language

Inclinations of Global Research on Saffron as Represented by Science Citation Index-Expanded

Using the Science Citation Index-Expanded of the Web of Science Core Collection, we analyzed global saffron research literature published between 1991 and 2017. The variables examined were research performance of nations, institutions, and authors. The study noted that the distribution of author keywords, citations, and publication patterns of saffron related articles to ascertain the research inclinations. The highly cited articles and author keyword analysis showed that the chemical and biochemical qualities of saffron were of key interest for the researchers

RADIOLOGICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL CORRELATION OF LUNG NODULES IN A BACKGROUND OF METASTATIC DISEASE

Background: Computed tomography (CT) imaging has improved the chances of detecting small indeterminate (<1 cm) lung nodules. The determination of the underlying malignant or benign nature of a lung nodule poses a great diagnostic challenge and depends on a number of factors, including the radiographic appearance of nodule, the presence of non-pulmonary metastases, characteristics of growth and histological criteria. Methods: The medical records of 89 patients admitted to our specialist cancer centre between 2008 and 2013 were reviewed. Patients of all age groups and tumour category were included in the study. Clinical data of these patients were collected and the following parameters were analysed: Radiographic diagnosis, location, size, laterality and number of nodules and histological impression. The radiological findings were then correlated with histopathological findings. The nodules were sub-classified into groups on the basis of size (A = 0–0.5 cm; B = 0.5–0.9 cm; C = 1.0–1.5 cm and D = >1.5 cm). Results: CT scan reports of 89 patients with lung nodules were reviewed. On radiology, 73/89 (82%) were reported to be malignant nodule. Histopathological review of the biopsies of these 89 nodules confirmed malignancy in 50/89 (56.2%) patients. CT scan was found to be highly sensitive (94%, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 83.43–98.68%) but with a very low specificity (33.3%, 95% CI: 19.10–50.22%). CT scan was found to have a higher negative predictive value (81.2%, 95% CI: 54.34–95.73%) and a lower positive predictive value 64.4% (95% CI: 52.31–75.25%) when correlated with histopathological findings. Pathology of these nodules included metastatic sarcoma (27/89; 30.3%) and carcinoma (18/89; 20.2%). The frequency of the biopsy-proven malignant nodules on the right side was 26/45 (57.8%) and on the left side was 24/44 (54.5%) (P = 0.832). Malignant nodules were more frequent in lower lobes (28/43, 65.1%) than in upper lobes (14/32, 43.8%). These two sites combined accounted for 84% of all malignant nodules. There was a significant correlation between nodule size and likelihood of underlying malignancy. The overall prevalence of malignancy in the larger nodules (C and D) was much higher (23/30 and 76.7%) compared to the smaller sized (A and B) nodules (27/58 and 46.8%), P < 0.05.Conclusion: CT scan is a useful tool in the initial clinical assessment of indeterminate lung nodules with high sensitivity (94%) and a high negative predictive value (81.2%).Key words: Computed tomography, fibrosis, indeterminate lung nodule, infection, lung nodule, malignancy, metastase

Non-Local Deformation of a Supersymmetric Field Theory

In this paper, we will analyse a supersymmetric field theory deformed by generalized uncertainty principle and Lifshitz scaling. It will be observed that this deformed supersymmetric field theory contains non-local fractional derivative terms. In order to construct such deformed N=1 supersymmetric theory, a harmonic extension of functions will be used. However, the supersymmetry will be only preserved for a free theory and will be broken by the inclusion of interaction terms.Comment: 12 pages, pulished versio

Association of Clinicopathological features of Cholecystitis with Helicobacter Pylori Infection in Gall bladders

Background: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) have been associated with gastritis, but its presence in other parts of the gastrointestinal system has not been studied much. Few previous studies have identified “H. pylori” in gallbladder and found its association in causing cholecystitis and gallstones, but there is limited data showing a significant association in Pakistan. This study was designed to identify H. pylori microorganism in cholecystitis patients and find its association with the morphological changes seen in the affected gall bladders. Material and Methods: All patients with acute and chronic cholecystitis admitted in Akbar Niazi Teaching Hospital (ANTH) between the ages of 18 and 80 years from January 2017 till March 2019, who underwent cholecystectomy, were included in the study. Gall bladder specimens were sent to Pathology department, ANTH after surgery and were analyzed for the presence of H pylori bacteria using Hematoxylin and Eosin and Giemsa staining. Signs of inflammation, hyperplasia, metaplasia, mucosal atrophy or erosion, lymphoid infiltration, fibrosis, cholesterolosis or any other morphological changes were also noted. Association of H. pylori with cholecystitis and other morphological changes were assessed by Chi Square analysis. P value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.Results: Chronic cholecystitis was present in 91% cases and acute cholecystitis in 9%. Other histological findings were Hyperplasia (10%), Metaplasia (15%), Fibrosis (79%), Cholesterolosis (19%) and ulcerations (36%). H pylori was found in 17% of gall bladders and all the cases were of chronic cholecystitis, with 11.7% males and 88% females. Gallstones were present in 76.4% cases and were more common in 41-60 years’ age group (64.7%). Other histological findings seen in H. pylori positive cases were; Hyperplasia in 11.7% cases, Metaplasia in 17.6%, Fibrosis in 94.1%, cholesterolosis in 23.5% and ulcerations in 17.6% cases. Association of H. pylori with gender, cholecystitis, gall stones, histological features and age distribution was non-significant.Conclusion: Although H. pylori infection has been found in cases of chronic cholecystitis and gall stone formation, its association with cholecystitis and other morphological changes could not be proved. Hence, it is uncertain whether H. pylori eradication in patients with gastritis can prevent cholecystitis or gall stones formation

An Empirical Study on the Effect of Perceived Usefulness and Ease of Use on Purchase Intention Through Mobile Devices in Pakistan: A Mediating Role of Online Trust

In Pakistan, electronic commerce market is in developing phase, and people are not much familiar with technology. Customers feel fear for providing debit/credit card information to online retailers. This research proposes a theoretical model in which online trust is used as a mediator among perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness and intention to purchase through mobile devices. In this study Smartphone, cellular phones and tablets with internet connection conceived as mobile devices. Data were collected through questionnaire from the students and employees of different universities in Pakistan and analyzed by partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) method. Results suggest that PEOU have an insignificant effect while PU has a positive effect on online trust and purchase intention through mobile devices. Also, online trust does not mediate between PEOU and purchase Intention through mobile devices while it partially mediates between PU and purchase intention through mobile devices. Keywords: Electronic Commerce, Online trust, Intention to purchase through mobile devices, Perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness

Empirical Investigation of Influencing Factors Regarding Offshore Outsourcing Decision of Application Maintenance

Global Software Development (GSD) has been an emerging trend in the development of software globally, for the last two decades. Information Technology (IT) outsourcing includes application development, application maintenance, infrastructure management and business process outsourcing. Software maintenance aims to keep the IT system operational and to fulfill the client requirements. The maintenance is considered the longest phase of software life cycle that consumes about 60-70% of the total software budget. Maintenance of software is not only time consuming but also requires a significant human resources' ratio. Mostly, software acquisition and maintenance consume a big portion of the total IT budget. The current study aims to evaluate the findings of the systematic literature review and to derive a list of critical success factors regarding offshore outsourcing decision of application maintenance. Thus, an empirical study is performed to validate the influencing factors that were identified by using systematic literature review. These factors are further validated by 93 outsourcing experts from 30 different countries. The collected data through online survey is analyzed based on variables such as respondents experience level, respondents' locations (continents), experts' positions. Similarly, the data is analysed based on Chi square test (linear by linear association) and Spearman Rank Correlation. Additionally, the identified factors through survey and systematic literature review are ranked by two different methods. Consequently, a project assessment model is proposed, based on the critical success factors for the sourcing decision of application maintenance.Qatar University [QUHI-CBE-21/22-1]

Analyzing factors that influence offshore outsourcing decision of application maintenance

Application maintenance consumes a considerable amount of an organization's time and resources each year. Almost 60% of IT budget is spent alone on application maintenance. The reason of offshore outsourcing of application maintenance is not only the reduction of maintenance cost but to free up the resources and to keep the focus on core products. Offshore outsourcing is a common business strategy that is used by companies to achieve cost savings about 20-50%. However, the decision making process of application maintenance is a complex phenomenon. It is based on a set of influencing factors, clients' requirements and nature of the project. Hence, the current study is aimed at the in-depth investigation of the complex sourcing decision process of application maintenance. Accordingly, a systematic literature review is performed to determine the influencing factors and critical success factors that will be used by the decision makers for the evaluation of projects before making the outsourcing decisions. A total of 15 influencing factors out of 52 selected papers were identified. Based on the defined criteria, amongst the identified factors, only 10 factors were ranked as critical success factors, which are employees' skills, cost, legal requirements, infrastructure, communication, knowledge transfer, maturity level, project management, language barrier and frequent requirements changes. Consequently, a sourcing model was proposed based on the identified critical success factors that help the IT managers and domain experts in making appropriate outsourcing decisions.Qatar University [IRCC-2020-009]