Atmospheric Aerosols Monitoring: Ground and Satellite-Based Instruments

Aerosols are submicron particles suspended in the atmosphere which affect Earth’s energy balance directly by scattering and absorbing the of solar radiation. In addition, they can indirectly affect radiation balance by changing the micro-physical and optical properties of the cloud. The difficulties in accessing the contribution of aerosols to radiative balance are caused partly due to incomplete knowledge of spatiotemporal variabilities in physicochemical and optical properties of aerosols on regional to global scale. Several state-of-the-art instrumentation techniques for ground-based measurements and satellite remote sensing technologies have been developed in past three decades to monitor physicochemical and optical properties of aerosols for a better understanding of radiative balance and feedback mechanisms. Satellite retrievals of moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS), ozone monitoring instrument (OMI), multi-angle imaging spectroradiometer (MISR) are used for this purpose. Ground-based measurements of aerosol properties provide a basis for validation of atmospheric correction procedures and can be used for validation of aerosol models used in atmospheric correction algorithms. This chapter describes in details about the widely used ground- and satellite-based remote sensing instruments for aerosol monitoring

Phenotype-genotype correlations for clinical variants caused by CYLD mutations

Background Studies evaluating acceptability of simplified follow-up after medical abortion have focused on high-resource or urban settings where telephones, road connections, and modes of transport are available and where women have formal education. Objective To investigate women’s acceptability of home-assessment of abortion and whether acceptability of medical abortion differs by in-clinic or home-assessment of abortion outcome in a low-resource setting in India. Design Secondary outcome of a randomised, controlled, non-inferiority trial. Setting Outpatient primary health care clinics in rural and urban Rajasthan, India. Population Women were eligible if they sought abortion with a gestation up to 9 weeks, lived within defined study area and agreed to follow-up. Women were ineligible if they had known contraindications to medical abortion, haemoglobin < 85mg/l and were below 18 years. Methods Abortion outcome assessment through routine clinic follow-up by a doctor was compared with home-assessment using a low-sensitivity pregnancy test and a pictorial instruction sheet. A computerized random number generator generated the randomisation sequence (1:1) in blocks of six. Research assistants randomly allocated eligible women who opted for medical abortion (mifepristone and misoprostol), using opaque sealed envelopes. Blinding during outcome assessment was not possible. Main Outcome Measures Women’s acceptability of home-assessment was measured as future preference of follow-up. Overall satisfaction, expectations, and comparison with previous abortion experiences were compared between study groups. Results 731 women were randomized to the clinic follow-up group (n = 353) or home-assessment group (n = 378). 623 (85%) women were successfully followed up, of those 597 (96%) were satisfied and 592 (95%) found the abortion better or as expected, with no difference between study groups. The majority, 355 (57%) women, preferred home-assessment in the event of a future abortion. Significantly more women, 284 (82%), in the home-assessment group preferred home-assessment in the future, as compared with 188 (70%) of women in the clinic follow-up group, who preferred clinic follow-up in the future (p < 0.001). Conclusion Home-assessment is highly acceptable among women in low-resource, and rural, settings. The choice to follow-up an early medical abortion according to women’s preference should be offered to foster women’s reproductive autonomy

Breast cancer management pathways during the COVID-19 pandemic: outcomes from the UK ‘Alert Level 4’ phase of the B-MaP-C study

Abstract: Background: The B-MaP-C study aimed to determine alterations to breast cancer (BC) management during the peak transmission period of the UK COVID-19 pandemic and the potential impact of these treatment decisions. Methods: This was a national cohort study of patients with early BC undergoing multidisciplinary team (MDT)-guided treatment recommendations during the pandemic, designated ‘standard’ or ‘COVID-altered’, in the preoperative, operative and post-operative setting. Findings: Of 3776 patients (from 64 UK units) in the study, 2246 (59%) had ‘COVID-altered’ management. ‘Bridging’ endocrine therapy was used (n = 951) where theatre capacity was reduced. There was increasing access to COVID-19 low-risk theatres during the study period (59%). In line with national guidance, immediate breast reconstruction was avoided (n = 299). Where adjuvant chemotherapy was omitted (n = 81), the median benefit was only 3% (IQR 2–9%) using ‘NHS Predict’. There was the rapid adoption of new evidence-based hypofractionated radiotherapy (n = 781, from 46 units). Only 14 patients (1%) tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 during their treatment journey. Conclusions: The majority of ‘COVID-altered’ management decisions were largely in line with pre-COVID evidence-based guidelines, implying that breast cancer survival outcomes are unlikely to be negatively impacted by the pandemic. However, in this study, the potential impact of delays to BC presentation or diagnosis remains unknown

and O.P.Vyas ‘Fuzzy Weighted Associative Classifier: A Predictive Technique For

ABSTRACT In this paper we extend the problem of classification using Fuzzy Association Rule Mining and propose the concept of Fuzzy Weighted Associative Classifier (FWAC). Classification based on Association rules i

Association of C-Reactive Protein with Mild and Severe Depression

Introduction: Depression is associated with increased serum C-Reactive Protein (CRP) levels in circulation. Inflammatory response is established as an important factor in the pathophysiology of depressive disorders. Increased levels of CRP are associated with Cardiovascular diseases. Aim: The objective of the present study was to assess the changes in circulating CRP level according to severity of depression. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Physiology Department of KGMU, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India, with time duration of one year. Study group comprised of 40 drug naïve depressive patients between the age group of 18-40 years enrolled in the study. Diagnosis of depression was based on International Classification of Diseases (ICD10). Patients were divided into two groups (mild depression and severe depression) on the basis of severity of depression accessed via Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (Ham-D). Serum CRP levels were accessed on both groups by commercially available ELISA kit. Results: Statistically insignificant relationship was seen when age (p=0.14), Blood Pressure (BP) {Systolic Blood Pressure (SBP) (p=0.102) and Diastolic Blood Presure (DBP) (p=0.270)}, Body Mass Index (BMI) (p=0.539) were compared with both mild and severe depression group. Serum CRP levels and both the depression group (mild depression and severe depression) showed statistically significant relationship (p=0.015). Conclusion: It can be concluded that there exist a significant association of serum CRP levels with severity of depression. Patients with severe depression have lower levels of CRP as compared to patients with mild depressive symptoms

A study to determine age at menarche in adolescent school girls of Indore city, M. P. India

Background: Menarche is a significant milestone in women's life. It affects the reproductive health and well being of women. This study aims to find out the age at menarche of adolescent girls of Indore city and its relation to various factors. Method: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in six schools of urban areas of Indore city the study group included 492 school girls of age 11 to 18 years. After taking written informed consent from the parents, data was collected on the date of birth, family size, birth order, dietary intake, social-economic status, menarcheal age. Anthropometric measurements were done and data was analyzed. Results: Mean age at menarche was found to be 13.2+1.24 years. It was found to be significantly associated with socioeconomic status, BMI and birth order. Conclusion: The mean age at menarche in this study is comparable to that found in other Indian studies. It is found to be significantly associated with BMI and socioeconomic status of the girl

Negotiating collective and individual agency : a qualitative study of young women's reproductive health in rural India

The societal changes in India and the available variety of reproductive health services call for evidence to inform health systems how to satisfy young women's reproductive health needs. Inspired by Foucault's power idiom and Bandura's agency framework, we explore young women's opportunities to practice reproductive agency in the context of collective social expectations. We carried out in-depth interviews with 19 young women in rural Rajasthan. Our findings highlight how changes in notions of agency across generations enable young women's reproductive intentions and desires, and call for effective means of reproductive control. However, the taboo around sex without the intention to reproduce made contraceptive use unfeasible. Instead, abortions were the preferred method for reproductive control. In conclusion, safe abortion is key, along with the need to address the taboo around sex to enable use of "modern" contraception. This approach could prevent unintended pregnancies and expand young women's agency