Reliability Analysis of Spread Footing Over Circular Void

Presence of void beneath the footing affects the stability itself and causes severe damage to the structure. The stability of footing depends on condition of operating it and the properties of soil, voids. Existence of underground cavities for important and huge structures such as pipe lines and tunnels affects its serviceability. The factors affecting the Bearing capacity and settlement of footing are soil properties, operational conditions, void size, location of void, number of voids and depth of foundation. The performance of footing is analysed over void under different boundary conditions using finite element package PLAXIS 8.1 version. The data used in the present study is taken from available literature. On the other hand, though deterministic analysis gives basic idea, probability of failure of the structure is analysed using reliability method. For this purpose linear response surface model is generated using two-level full factorial design and limit state function is obtained. Reliability analysis is performed on the footing with voids by using first order reliability method (FORM). The probability of failure of structure under standard conditions is analysed and requirement of reliability is discussed

Study of induction of labour with vaginal misoprostol in a tertiary hospital in a rural area of Telangana, India

Background: The present study aims at the analysis of obstetric outcome of induction of labour with 25 µg of vaginal misoprostol in pregnancies beyond 36 weeks of gestation with unfavourable cervices.Methods: The present observational study was conducted at Bhaskar medical college & general Hospital, Yenkepally, Telangana from march 2014 to October 2014. 116 pregnant women were enrolled into the study based on appropriate indication for labour induction with 25 µg of vaginal misoprostol inserted fourth hourly till maximum of four doses or till the desired response was obtained.Results: Common indications for induction were postdatism (50.86%), pregnancy induced hypertension (PIH-19.82%), premature rupture of membranes (PROM-14.66%) & oligohydramnios (14.66%). Poor Bishop score of less than 4 was seen in 66.38% of cases. Normal vaginal delivery occurred in 60 cases (51.72%) against Lower Segment Cesarean Section (LSCS) for various reasons in 56 cases (48.28%). Successful induction, measured as onset of active labour (3 contractions in 10 min with duration of 40 sec of each contraction) or cervical dilatation of 3 cm or successful vaginal delivery, was seen in 107 (92.24%) cases. Failed induction measured as no cervical changes or no onset of labour pains even after 4 doses of vaginal misoprostol was seen in 9 cases (7.76%). Out of 60 successful vaginal deliveries 2 doses of misoprostol was required in 27 cases (45%) & 1 dose was required in 29 cases (48.33%). Induction delivery interval of 7-12 hours was seen in 26 cases (43.33%). Maternal complications were seen in 27 cases (23.28%), common ones being postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) & PROM. No case of uterine hyperstimulation or rupture was seen. In 113 cases (97.41%), 5 min APGAR score was more than 7. Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) admissions in the newborn was 4 (3.45%).Conclusions: Hence labour induction with 25microgms of vaginal misoprostol in pregnancies with unfavourable cervices improves Bishop's score, reduces induction delivery interval, reduces caesarean section rates & does not affect fetal outcome

Low birth weight: an observational study of maternal and neonatal factors in a rural tertiary care hospital, Telangana, India

Background: Poor maternal health among Indian women is of global significance because India is home to 1/5th of the world’s births. 27% of these newborn babies in India are low birth weight (LBW), an important cause of high infant mortality. This study was conducted among puerperal women who delivered LBW babies in our hospital to know the various factors pertaining to socio-demographic, obstetric and anthropometric characteristics.Methods: this observational study was conducted in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Bhaskar medical college and hospital, Moinabad, Hyderabad from January 2016 to June 2017. The study sample were those who delivered LBW babies in our hospital and a set questionnaire was used to collect the relevant details.Results: 75% of these mothers were in the age group of 20-25 years, 73.5% had more than 10 years of schooling. About 64% of these women had their 1st antenatal visit in 1st trimester of pregnancy and 54% had their 1st ultrasound in 1st trimester. 36 babies had NICU admission, either at our hospital or at a level III NICU facility, and all had good neonatal outcome.Conclusions: The state must endeavor to make quality health free and easily accessible to pregnant women so that all can avail these services to better the maternal and neonatal outcomes. This will be helpful in improving the overall health of our population over the next few decades. 

PRESCRIBING PATTERNS OF ANTIBIOTICS IN PAEDIATRICS FOR RESPIRATORY TRACT INFECTIONS/ DISORDERS IN TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL

ABSTRACTObjectives: The main objective was to study the prescribing practice of antibiotic in hospital in-patient is to assess the prescribing patternsof antibiotics in children who were admitted in a tertiary care hospital regarding respiratory tract infections and to check out which category ofantibiotics are most prescribed.Methods: The study which includes a retrospective monitoring of pediatrics undergoing treatment with diff types of antibiotics were carried out fora period of 6 months both in-patient as well as outpatient.Results and Discussion: A total of 50 patients were screened. The most common category of antibiotic prescribed is aminoglycosides (48%),broad-spectrum antibiotics (29%), cephalosporins (14%), and fluoroquinolones (7%) macrolides (2%). 48% were admitted with common coughand cold accompanied by fever, 24% with bronchopneumonia, 14% with bronchial asthma, 12% with bronchitis, 2% with pneumonia. The numberof antibiotics per prescription ampicillin with garamycin were 51%, cefuroxime with garamycin were 21%, ciprofloxacin with garamycin were10%, cefotaxime with garamycin was 7%, ciprofloxacin with amoxicillin was 2%, single antibiotic prescribed are cefuroxime (2%), garamycin(4%), ciprofloxacin (4%). Adverse drug events were detected in sample size n=50 were 6% for drugs with ampicillin (rashes *4 days), ciprofloxacin(loose stools *2 days).Conclusion: In order to reduce the risk of antibiotic resistance of microbes, an antibiotic policy should be carefully instituted and implemented. Thedoses prescribed to the pediatrics should be calculated according to the weights in order to avoid adverse drug reactions.Keywords: Antibiotics, paediatrics, infection

The yeast Batten disease orthologue Btn1 controls endosome–Golgi retrograde transport via SNARE assembly

Btn1 controls endosome–Golgi retrograde sorting by regulating SNARE phosphorylation and assembly

Pitfalls in machine learning‐based assessment of tumor‐infiltrating lymphocytes in breast cancer: a report of the international immuno‐oncology biomarker working group

The clinical significance of the tumor-immune interaction in breast cancer (BC) has been well established, and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) have emerged as a predictive and prognostic biomarker for patients with triple-negative (estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and HER2 negative) breast cancer (TNBC) and HER2-positive breast cancer. How computational assessment of TILs can complement manual TIL-assessment in trial- and daily practices is currently debated and still unclear. Recent efforts to use machine learning (ML) for the automated evaluation of TILs show promising results. We review state-of-the-art approaches and identify pitfalls and challenges by studying the root cause of ML discordances in comparison to manual TILs quantification. We categorize our findings into four main topics; (i) technical slide issues, (ii) ML and image analysis aspects, (iii) data challenges, and (iv) validation issues. The main reason for discordant assessments is the inclusion of false-positive areas or cells identified by performance on certain tissue patterns, or design choices in the computational implementation. To aid the adoption of ML in TILs assessment, we provide an in-depth discussion of ML and image analysis including validation issues that need to be considered before reliable computational reporting of TILs can be incorporated into the trial- and routine clinical management of patients with TNBC

Sustainable Perspective of Low-Lime Stabilized Fly Ashes for Geotechnical Applications: PROMETHEE-Based Optimization Approach

In the present scenario of global green environmental and sustainable management, the disposal of large volumes of coal-based ashes (fly ashes) generate significant environmental stress. The aim is to exploit these fly ashes for bulk civil engineering applications to solve societal-environmental issues employing sustainable measures. In this study, the addition of lime and/or gypsum in improving the geotechnical properties (hydraulic conductivity, compressibility, unconfined compression strength, lime leachability, and California bearing ratio) of fly ashes was investigated. To assist the practicing engineers in selecting the right mix of lime and/or gypsum for a given amount of fly ash for a specific application, a multi-criteria approach was adopted. The possible alternatives investigated included untreated fly ash, fly ash treated with lime (1%, 2.5%, 5%, or 10%), and a variation in gypsum dosage (1% or 2.5%) in the presence of lime. Sensitivity analysis was performed to recognize and resolve the conflicting advantages and disadvantages when mixing lime and gypsum. The study revealed that to derive the potential benefits of fly ash, it is essential to combine the lime dosage with gypsum for pavement and liner applications where bulk quantities of fly ash are employed

Local recurrence as a first sign of parathyroid malignancy! Need to redefine the criteria for diagnosis of parathyroid carcinoma

Pathological criteria alone do not make an accurate diagnosis of parathyroid carcinoma in cases of well-defined organ contained lesion without local and distant metastasis. Intra-operative appearance of pale, grayish, firm tumor is highly suggestive of parathyroid carcinoma, even though this finding is not included in the pathological criteria for diagnosing a malignancy. Gross features of the tumor also should be added to the pathological criteria so as to ensure an accurate assessment of the biological behavior of the parathyroid tumor

Reliability-Based Design Optimization of Biopolymer-Amended Soil as an Alternative Landfill Liner Material

This paper presents our findings on the effect of adding biopolymers to locally available soil to form low-cost alternative landfill liner materials. Hydraulic conductivity is the key parameter for assessing the suitability of any geomaterial as a landfill liner. In view of this, the hydraulic conductivity of biopolymer-modified soil was determined at various dosages. Two biopolymers - xanthan gum and guar gum - were used in the experimental work at dosages of 0.5%, 1%, 2%, and 4% by weight of dry soil mass. The results indicated that the hydraulic conductivity values decreased with an increase in biopolymer content and consolidation pressure (σcp). The influence of xanthan gum content (G1) and guar gum content (G2) on the soil hydraulic conductivity is represented by nonlinear regression models based on experimental data obtained for σcps of 50, 100, 200, 400, and 800 kPa. The performance of the soils was assessed using reliability-based design optimization methodology. The optimal mixtures of cohesive soils blended with a range of G1 and G2 were evaluated considering the variability associated with the dosages of G1 and G2, and the σcp. © 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers