Teaching package improves mothers knowledge on vaccine preventable diseases and vaccination: a Quasi experimental study

Background: Today vaccination is a very essential part of child’s health. Vaccination programme is the key step for the vaccine preventable diseases in children. Objectives of current study were 1. To assess the knowledge of mothers regarding selected vaccine preventable diseases and vaccination. 2. To find the effectiveness of teaching package on knowledge regarding selected vaccine preventable diseases and vaccination among mothers. 3. To find the association between pre-test knowledge score and demographic variables.Methods: An evaluative approach with quasi experimental - Two group pre-test and post-test design was adopted. The sample comprised of 100 mothers in selected hospitals of Mangalore who were selected by purposive sampling technique and assigned to control and experimental group. On first day pre-test was conducted with a structured knowledge questionnaire to both control and experimental group and teaching package was given only to the experimental group followed by post-test and information booklet to both the groups on 7th day.Results: The mean and standard deviation of post-test knowledge score of mothers in experimental group (27.80 ± 3.010) was much greater than pre-test value (10.44 ± 2.323). There is no change in pre and post-test knowledge score in control group (9.74 ± 1.805). The calculated’ value t98=34.54 was greater than the table value 1.68 at 0.05 level of significance. This indicates that the teaching package was effective in improving the level of mothers knowledge.  Conclusion: The study findings concluded that the mothers were benefited by teaching package on vaccination and vaccine preventable diseases. Furthermore mass health education programs can be conducted to create awareness among general public.

Factors influencing contraception choice and use globally: a synthesis of systematic reviews

Background: Unintended pregnancy has a huge adverse impact on maternal, child and family health and wealth. There is an unmet need for contraception globally, with an estimated 40% of pregnancies unintended worldwide. Methods: We systematically searched PubMed and specialist databases for systematic reviews addressing contraceptive choice, uptake or use, published in English between 2000 and 2019. Two reviewers independently selected and appraised reports and synthesised quantitative and qualitative review findings. We mapped emergent themes to a social determinants of health framework to develop our understanding of the complexities of contraceptive choice and use. Findings: We found 24 systematic reviews of mostly moderate or high quality. Factors affecting contraception use are remarkably similar among women in very different cultures and settings globally. Use of contraception is influenced by the perceived likelihood and appeal of pregnancy, and relationship status. It is influenced by women’s knowledge, beliefs, and perceptions of side effects and health risks. Male partners have a strong influence, as do peers’ views and experiences, and families’ expectations. Lack of education and poverty is linked with low contraception use, and social and cultural norms influence contraception and expectations of family size and timing. Contraception use also depends upon their availability, the accessibility, confidentiality and costs of health services, and attitudes, behaviour and skills of health practitioners. Interpretation: Contraception has remarkably far-reaching benefits and is highly cost-effective. However, women worldwide lack sufficient knowledge, capability and opportunity to make reproductive choices, and health care systems often fail to provide access and informed choice

Immunization status of children in the age group 0-5 years in urban slum area of Pratiksha nagar, Sion, Mumbai

Background: In India, immunization services are being provided through existing healthcare delivery system. In spite of services being available, it is observed that many children are not immunized till date. This study was carried out with the aim to find the immunisation status of the children in the urban slum areas of Pratiksha nagar, Sion which is the field practice area of Department of Community Medicine, K. J. Somaiya Medical College and Reasearch Centre. Objectives of the study was to assess the proportion of children fully immunized, to assess the proportion of children partially immunized, to assess the proportion of children not at all immunized and to explore the reasons for partial immunization.Methods: It is a cross-sectional study. This study was carried out in  urban slum areas of  Pratiksha nagar, in Sion  namely Almeda compound, Shastrinagar B wing, Panchsheel nagar which are  the field practice areas of Department of  Community Medicine located in F north ward of Mumbai city.Results: 148 (76.29%) children were fully immunized and 46 (23.71%) were partially immunized. Out of the 46 children who were partially immunized, 23.91% respondents reported that child was ill when immunisation was due, so they did not take the child to health care facility for immunisation, followed by the other common reason that family was out of town (17.39%).Conclusions: The study highlights the need for educating parents that minor illnesses are not a contraindication for immunisation and that the child may receive the vaccine due in any health centre when they are out of town so as to avoid delay between the doses therein not interrupting the immunisation schedule.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN PHARMACY DRUG DESIGN

Drug discovery is said to be a multi-dimensional issue in which different properties of drug candidates including efficacy, pharmacokinetics, and safety need to be improved with respect to giving the final drug product. Current advances in fields such as artificial intelligence (AI) systems that refine the design thesis through report investigation, microfluidics-assisted chemical synthesis, and biological testing are now giving a cornerstone for the establishment of greater automation into detail of this process. AI has stimulated computer-aided drug discovery. This could likely speed up time duration for compound discovery and enhancement and authorize more productive hunts of related chemicals. However, such optimization also increases substantial theories, technical, and organizational queries, as well as suspicion about the ongoing boost around them. Machine learning, in particular deep learning, in multiple scientific disciplines, and the development in computing hardware and software, among other factors, continue to power this development worldwide

Community interventions to prevent violence against women and girls in informal settlements in Mumbai: the SNEHA-TARA pragmatic cluster randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND In a cluster randomised controlled trial in Mumbai slums, we will test the effects on the prevalence of violence against women and girls of community mobilisation through groups and individual volunteers. One in three women in India has survived physical or sexual violence, making it a major public health burden. Reviews recommend community mobilisation to address violence, but trial evidence is limited. METHODS Guided by a theory of change, we will compare 24 areas receiving support services, community group, and volunteer activities with 24 areas receiving support services only. These community mobilisation activities will be evaluated through a follow-up survey after 3 years. Primary outcomes will be prevalence in the preceding year of physical or sexual domestic violence, and prevalence of emotional or economic domestic violence, control, or neglect against women 15–49 years old. Secondary outcomes will describe disclosure of violence to support services, community tolerance of violence against women and girls, prevalence of non-partner sexual violence, and mental health and wellbeing. Intermediate theory-based outcomes will include bystander intervention, identification of and support for survivors of violence, changes described in programme participants, and changes in communities. DISCUSSION Systematic reviews of interventions to prevent violence against women and girls suggest that community mobilisation is a promising population-based intervention. Already implemented in other areas, our intervention has been developed over 16 years of programmatic experience and 2 years of formative research. Backed by public engagement and advocacy, our vision is of a replicable community-led intervention to address the public health burden of violence against women and girls. TRIAL REGISTRATION Controlled Trials Registry of India, CTRI/2018/02/012047. Registered on 21 February 2018. ISRCTN, ISRCTN84502355. Registered on 22 February 2018

Compensation of B-L charge of matter with relic sneutrinos

We consider massless gauge boson connected to B-L charge with and without compensation to complete the investigation of the gauging of B and L charges. Relic sneutrinos predicted by SUSY and composite models may compensate B-L charge of matter. As a consequence of the possible compensation mechanism we have shown that the available experimental data admit the range of the B-L interaction constant, 10^{-29} < {\alpha}_{B-L} < 10^{-12}, in addition to {\alpha}_{B-L} < 10^{-49} obtained without compensation.Comment: 6 page

Technology assessment of automated atlas based segmentation in prostate bed contouring

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Prostate bed (PB) contouring is time consuming and associated with inter-observer variability. We evaluated an automated atlas-based segmentation (AABS) engine in its potential to reduce contouring time and inter-observer variability.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>An atlas builder (AB) manually contoured the prostate bed, rectum, left femoral head (LFH), right femoral head (RFH), bladder, and penile bulb of 75 post-prostatectomy cases to create an atlas according to the recent RTOG guidelines. 5 other Radiation Oncologists (RO) and the AABS contoured 5 new cases. A STAPLE contour for each of the 5 patients was generated. All contours were anonymized and sent back to the 5 RO to be edited as clinically necessary. All contouring times were recorded. The dice similarity coefficient (DSC) was used to evaluate the unedited- and edited- AABS and inter-observer variability among the RO. Descriptive statistics, paired t-tests and a Pearson correlation were performed. ANOVA analysis using logit transformations of DSC values was calculated to assess inter-observer variability.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The mean time for manual contours and AABS was 17.5- and 14.1 minutes respectively (p = 0.003). The DSC results (mean, SD) for the comparison of the unedited-AABS versus STAPLE contours for the PB (0.48, 0.17), bladder (0.67, 0.19), LFH (0.92, 0.01), RFH (0.92, 0.01), penile bulb (0.33, 0.25) and rectum (0.59, 0.11). The DSC results (mean, SD) for the comparison of the edited-AABS versus STAPLE contours for the PB (0.67, 0.19), bladder (0.88, 0.13), LFH (0.93, 0.01), RFH (0.92, 0.01), penile bulb (0.54, 0.21) and rectum (0.78, 0.12). The DSC results (mean, SD) for the comparison of the edited-AABS versus the expert panel for the PB (0.47, 0.16), bladder (0.67, 0.18), LFH (0.83, 0.18), RFH (0.83, 0.17), penile bulb (0.31, 0.23) and rectum (0.58, 0.09). The DSC results (mean, SD) for the comparison of the STAPLE contours and the 5 RO are PB (0.78, 0.15), bladder (0.96, 0.02), left femoral head (0.87, 0.19), right femoral head (0.87, 0.19), penile bulb (0.70, 0.17) and the rectum (0.89, 0.06). The ANOVA analysis suggests inter-observer variability among at least one of the 5 RO (p value = 0.002).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The AABS tool results in a time savings, and when used to generate auto-contours for the femoral heads, bladder and rectum had superior to good spatial overlap. However, the generated auto-contours for the prostate bed and penile bulb need improvement.</p

Numerical Simulations of the Onset and Stability of Dynamical Mass Transfer in Binaries

Hydrodynamical simulations of semi-detached, polytropic binary stars are presented in an effort to study the onset and stability of dynamical mass transfer events. Initial, synchronously rotating equilibrium models are constructed using a self-consistent-field technique and then evolved with an Eulerian hydrodynamics code in a fully self-consistent manner. We describe code improvements introduced over the past few years that permit us to follow dynamical mass-transfer events through more than 30 orbits. Mass-transfer evolutions are presented for two different initial configurations: A dynamically unstable binary with initial mass ratio (donor/accretor) $q_0 = 1.3$ that leads to a complete merger in $\sim 10$ orbits; and a double-degenerate binary with initial mass ratio $q_0 = 0.5$ that, after some initial unstable growth of mass transfer, tends to separate as the mass-transfer rate levels off.Comment: 47 pages, 11 figures, submitted to the Astrophysical Journal. See http://www.phys.lsu.edu/faculty/tohline/astroph/dmtf05 for high resolution figures and mpeg animation

Bond percolation on a class of correlated and clustered random graphs

We introduce a formalism for computing bond percolation properties of a class of correlated and clustered random graphs. This class of graphs is a generalization of the Configuration Model where nodes of different types are connected via different types of hyperedges, edges that can link more than 2 nodes. We argue that the multitype approach coupled with the use of clustered hyperedges can reproduce a wide spectrum of complex patterns, and thus enhances our capability to model real complex networks. As an illustration of this claim, we use our formalism to highlight unusual behaviors of the size and composition of the components (small and giant) in a synthetic, albeit realistic, social network.Comment: 16 pages and 4 figure