Performance Analysis of Switches in High Speed LAN

© ASEE 2009This paper presents an analysis of switches in high speed LAN. In order to support our analysis, this paper provides both analytical and mathematical models. The proposed analytical model is based on a finite state Markov model developed for analyzing networks with virtual channels in a switched LAN. Our proposed mathematical model provides a mean to quantify different critical parameters such as end-to-end delay, short and long message latency, channel bandwidth, and utilization in switched LAN. Simulation is performed using OPNET that based on the mathematical expressions derived in the mathematical model. In addition, simulation results of this paper compare the performance of high speed LAN with respect to the utilization of both switches and hub. Finally, based on the simulation results, we provide a performance analysis that indicates the role of each critical parameter in the overall perfor

A prospective study to analyse antibiotic susceptibility pattern of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a tertiary care hospital

Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a gram-negative pathogen is commonly associated with nosocomial infections. Infections caused by P. aeruginosa can range from superficial skin infections to fulminant sepsis. Antimicrobial resistance is an area of prime concern in pseudomonal infections. The objective of the study was to evaluate and analyse the antibiotic susceptibility pattern of P. aeruginosa at a tertiary care hospital in South India.Methods: The study was carried out at Kasturba Medical College and Hospital, Manipal, India from January 2011 to December 2011. Ten different types of specimens were collected from patients who were culture positive for Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Antibiotic susceptibility was confirmed by disk diffusion technique on Muller-Hinton medium and was performed according to the Clinical Laboratory Standard Institute (CLSI) guidelines.Results: Out of 200 samples of P. aeruginosa 69.5% and 30.5% were from male and female patients respectively. Majority of the specimen from which P. aeruginosa was isolated consisted of sputum, pus and urine. Among the antimicrobial drugs tested, organism was most sensitive to carbapenems (77.5%), piperacillin-tazobactam (77%) and cefoperazone-sulbactam (72%). Resistance rates were high for fluoroquinolones (FQs) (43.5%), gentamicin (40.5%), tobramycin (40.5%), ticarcillin-clavulanic acid (39%) and aztreonam (38%) when compared to cefepime (31.5%), ceftazidime (32.5%), netilmicin (34.5%) and amikacin (35%).Conclusions: Carbapenems and piperacillin-tazobactam were the best antipseudomonal agents with highest sensitivity to P. aeruginosa. FQs, gentamicin and tobramycin were the least effective drugs against P. aeruginosa as monotherapy

Progressive Class-Wise Attention (PCA) Approach for Diagnosing Skin Lesions

Skin cancer holds the highest incidence rate among all cancers globally. The importance of early detection cannot be overstated, as late-stage cases can be lethal. Classifying skin lesions, however, presents several challenges due to the many variations they can exhibit, such as differences in colour, shape, and size, significant variation within the same class, and notable similarities between different classes. This paper introduces a novel class-wise attention technique that equally regards each class while unearthing more specific details about skin lesions. This attention mechanism is progressively used to amalgamate discriminative feature details from multiple scales. The introduced technique demonstrated impressive performance, surpassing more than 15 cutting-edge methods including the winners of HAM1000 and ISIC 2019 leaderboards. It achieved an impressive accuracy rate of 97.40% on the HAM10000 dataset and 94.9% on the ISIC 2019 dataset

Knowledge and attitudes toward epilepsy among Malaysian Chinese

Background: Epileptics are often socially discriminated due to the negative public attitudes, misconceptions and false beliefs. Thus, the main objective of this study was to assess the knowledge and attitudes toward epilepsy among Malaysian Chinese. Methods: A cross-sectional study by using a 23-item validated, self-administered questionnaire was carried out in urban areas, selected through stratified sampling. A Chinese population was randomly selected in the stratified areas of Penang, Ipoh, Klang valley, and Kuala Lumpur and was asked to complete the questionnaire. Results: Among 382 (74.6%) respondents, 16.2% believed that epilepsy is a type of mental illness. Majority (90.8%) accepted that epileptics can become useful members of the society however, only 16% agreed to marry them. About 57% of respondents recognised epilepsy as nervous system problem. Significant relationships between education level and statements such as, epileptics are as intelligent as everyone else (p=0.009), epilepsy can be successfully treated with drugs (p=0.037) and epileptics can be successful in their chosen career (p=0.009), were found. Conclusions: The general Chinese population in the selected areas of peninsular Malaysia had relatively good knowledge and positive attitudes toward certain aspects of epilepsy at the time of the investigation. However, minority of the study participants demonstrated prejudice and discriminatory behaviour towards people with epilepsy

Development and Validation of Analytical Method for Losartan-Copper Complex Using UV-Vis Spectrophotometry

Purpose: To develop a new spectrophotometric method for the analysis of losartan potassium in pharmaceutical formulations by making its complex with copper.Method: A coloured complex based on UV/Vis spectroscopic method was developed for the determination of losartan potassium concentration in pharmaceutical formulations in the visible region. The colored complex of losartan was formed with cupric acetate (5:4). Analysis was carried out by the two methods - absorption ratio and calibration curve methods. The proposed method was validated in terms of linearity, accuracy and precision.Results: The λ maximum of the complex was recorded at 530 nm. Beer`s law was obeyed in the range of 10 - 50 μg/ml with a correlation coefficient (r2) of 0.9989. Mean analytical results from the calibration curve and absorption ratio methods were 99.42 and 99.16 % with relative standard deviation (RSD) of 0.97 and 0.82 %, respectively. Mean recovery was between 98.61 and 101.35 % and precision expressed as relative standard deviation (RSD) was 0.91 %.Conclusion: The proposed method is simple, easy to apply, low-cost, and requires relatively inexpensive instruments. Thus, it is a suitable alternative to currently used spectrophotometric methods for the determination of losartan in bulk and solid dosage forms.Keywords: Losartan, Copper complex, Spectrophotometry, Validatio

Evaluation of Anomalous Coronary Arteries on 64 Slice Multidetector Computerized Tomographic Angiography

Introduction: Anomalous Coronary arteries is a well-known congenital entity with variable effects. The majority of such patients are asymptomatic but some can have adverse effects like ischemia and arrhythmia. Its association with Sudden Cardiac Death in young is established. Objective: To determine the frequency of   ACA on MDCT in patients referred for coronary artery disease assessment and to determine the origin, course, and morphological variable of SCD of ACA on MDCT. Materials and Methods: The study was done in the Department of Cardiovascular Imaging at the Punjab Institute of Cardiology. A retrospective data of patients undergoing CTA for CAD between a  period of Jan 2009 and Dec 2017 were analyzed for the presence of  Anomalous Coronary Artery (ACA). All patients having anomalous origin from opposite coronary cusp and its course were included. The patients with myocardial bridging and coronary artery fistula were excluded. Results: Total patients analyzed with MDCT for CAD and graft assessment between Jan 2009 and December 2017 were 8028. Fifty-three patients were excluded because of poor image quality. Among these ACA were found in 166 (2.08%). Gender distributions were 126 (75.9%) males and 40 (24.09%) females, the mean age in years was 49.31 ± 13.23. The most common ACA was Right coronary artery 83 followed by Left Circumflex 44 (26.50%), Left Anterior Descending Artery 22 (13.25%), and Left Main Stem 17 (10.24%) respectively. Fifty-three (31.92%) patients had previously unknown ACA and were found to have ACA on MDCT and 82 (49.39%) patients were referred following ICA for the confirmation of ACA. The Inter-arterial course was predominant in RCA and Left Coronary Artery 97% and 77% respectively. A retro artic course was predominant (100%) in LCx. Seven patients had associated cyanotic heart disease with ACA. Two patients(one LAD and one RCA) had origin from the Main Pulmonary artery. Conclusion: MDCT is the imaging modality of choice for the evaluation of ACA. It can identify the origin of ACA from opposite coronary cusp and defines the malignant course of ACA for the potential risk of sudden cardiac death

Modeling Sustainable Traffic Behavior: Avoiding Congestion at a Stationary Bottleneck

Sustainable traffic behaviour is increasing in importance as traffic volume rises due to population growth. In this paper, a model for traffic flow at a stationary bottleneck is developed to determine the parameters that cause congestion. Towards this goal, traffic density, speed, and delay were acquired during peak and off-peak periods in the morning and afternoon at a stationary bottleneck in Peshawar, KPK, Pakistan. The morning and afternoon peak periods have high densities, low speeds, and considerable delays. Regression models are developed using this data. These results indicate that there is a linear relationship between density and time at the stationary bottleneck and a negative linear relationship between density and speed. Thus, an increase in density increases the time delay and reduces the speed. I comprehensive traffic delay model is characterized by a stationary bottleneck. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov (KS) test and P-values were used to identify the best-fit distribution for speed and density. The binomial and generalized extreme values are considered the best fits for density and speed. The results presented can be used to develop accurate simulation models for stationary bottlenecks to reduce congestion. Doi: 10.28991/CEJ-2022-08-11-02 Full Text: PD

Patient-reported adverse drug reactions and drug-drug interactions: a cross-sectional study on Malaysian HIV/AIDS patients

Objective: This study aimed to explore the adverse drug reactions (ADRs) reported by patients and to identify drug-drug interactions (DDIs) among human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) patients. Subjects and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Medication Therapy Adherence Clinic, Hospital Sungai Buloh, an HIV/AIDS referral centre. The patients were randomly selected and were encouraged to describe ADRs caused specifically by any of the prescribed antiretroviral drugs (ARDs). Sociodemographic characteristics were recorded from the patients’ medical records. In addition data on antiretroviral treatment (ART), DDIs and other conventional medication were also documented. Results: A total of 325 randomly selected HIV/AIDS patients with a mean age of 22.94 years participated in the study. The most frequently prescribed ARDs were lamivudine (64.6%), zidovudine (40.6%) and efavirenz (42.5%). Commonly reported ADRs were fatigue (54.8%), allergic reactions (41.5%), weight loss (41.5%), dry mouth (35.1%) and memory loss (35.1%). Female (87.8%), non-complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) users (87.3%) and participants below 50 years old (81.1%) were identified as having a higher prevalence of ADRs compared to males (79.6%), CAM users (78.7%) and participants aged 50 years or more (77.5%). Patient age was found to be significantly associated (p = 0.048) with the ADRs. In addition, a total of 44 cases of DDIs belonging to category D were also found in this study. Conclusions: This study enabled us to identify the most common ADRs and DDIs associated with the use of ART. Safe and effective treatment depends on the healthcare providers’ knowledge of the same