A meta-analysis of meta-analyses of the effectiveness of FIFA injury prevention programmes in soccer

FIFA has a Medical and Research Centre (F-MARC) which has designed a comprehensive programme targeting muscle strength, kinaesthetic awareness, and neuromuscular control during static and dynamic movements to decrease injury risk for soccer players. A number of meta-analyses now exist on how effective FIFA's programmes to prevent and reduce injury actually are, with various degrees of injury reduction reported. This research aimed to carry out a systematic review and to meta analyse the existing meta-analyses so that a conclusion can be drawn on how effective the injury programmes are. Relevant studies were identified by searching five databases for the period January 1990 till 1 July 2018. Results of each meta-analysis were combined together using risk ratios (RR) in a summary meta-analysis. QUOROM checklist and AMSTAR 2 assessment were used to assess the quality of reporting and methodology in the meta-analyses. Four meta-analyses met the inclusion criteria covering fifteen primary studies. All four meta-analyses scored quite highly on QUOROM, but two were rated by AMSTAR 2 as moderate quality and two were found to be of critically low quality. An overall risk reduction of 34% [RR= 0.66 (0.60 - 0.73)] for all injuries and a reduction of 29% [RR= 0.71 (0.63 - 0.81)] for injuries to the lower limbs were revealed by this meta-analysis of meta-analyses. Combining every previous meta-analysis into a single source in this paper produced decisive evidence that the risk of injuries while playing soccer is reduced as a result of FIFA's injury prevention programmes

Implementing ISO 14001 and Environmental Performance Evaluation: A Logistic Regression Model

Due to the growing popularity of environmental management systems and the ongoing debate among practitioners and researchers concerning the influence of environmental management systems on environmental performance, there is a need to assess how the implemented environmental management systems impact the environment. The current study examines the relationship between the guidelines provided by the ISO 14031 and ISO 14001 standards from three aspects, namely, utilizing information and data, planning for environmental performance and reviewing and improving environmental performance. This study will utilize a binary logistic regression to model and analyse the link between ISO 14001 and ISO 14031 using a 7-point Likert scale questionnaire. A total of 590 companies operating within the Saudi Arabia industrial sector were invited to take part in the study. The collection of data using questionnaires lasted from January to March 2019, and the results were analysed and compared with those of related studies. The model included a dependent variable representing whether the company is certified or not for ISO 14001 and 13 independent variables representing the main ISO 14031 guidelines. The research findings revealed that the developed model predicts 92.8% of the values, and the remaining 7.2% of the values are not covered. Thirteen independent variables were positively correlated with the dependent variable, indicating that the company is certified. The results of this study contribute significantly to the determination of the relationship between environmental performance and ISO 14001 certification

A Modern Syllogistic Method in Intuitionistic Fuzzy Logic with Realistic Tautology

The Modern Syllogistic Method (MSM) of propositional logic ferrets out from a set of premises all that can be concluded from it in the most compact form. The MSM combines the premises into a single function equated to 1 and then produces the complete product of this function. Two fuzzy versions of MSM are developed in Ordinary Fuzzy Logic (OFL) and in Intuitionistic Fuzzy Logic (IFL) with these logics augmented by the concept of Realistic Fuzzy Tautology (RFT) which is a variable whose truth exceeds 0.5. The paper formally proves each of the steps needed in the conversion of the ordinary MSM into a fuzzy one. The proofs rely mainly on the successful replacement of logic 1 (or ordinary tautology) by an RFT. An improved version of Blake-Tison algorithm for generating the complete product of a logical function is also presented and shown to be applicable to both crisp and fuzzy versions of the MSM. The fuzzy MSM methodology is illustrated by three specific examples, which delineate differences with the crisp MSM, address the question of validity values of consequences, tackle the problem of inconsistency when it arises, and demonstrate the utility of the concept of Realistic Fuzzy Tautology

Factors affecting the extent of utilization of physiotherapy services by physicians in Saudi Arabia

Purpose: To investigate physicians’ attitudes, opinions and experiences towards physiotherapy services as well as to identify the potential factors that may affect the extent of utilization of physiotherapy services (based on physicians’ beliefs) in Saudi Arabia (SA). Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted. Results: A total of 108 respondents met the inclusion criteria. The respondents’ attitude towards physiotherapy was slightly low (53.5%), while their opinions and experiences of physiotherapy indicated some important issues. For example, 50% of them believed that physiotherapists did not create a good awareness about physiotherapy services and 55.5% admitted that they did not have enough information about physiotherapy services. The most potential factor reported by physicians that may affect the extent of utilization of physiotherapy services was the lack of physiotherapist’s skills and knowledge to assess and treat patients (55.3%), followed by the limited knowledge of physicians regarding the types of physiotherapy services (44.5%) and the lack of cooperation between physicians and physiotherapists (40.7%). Conclusion: There were some factors that limited the extent of utilization of physiotherapy services in SA. Physiotherapy academics and clinicians should attempt to change physicians’ negative attitudes, promoting awareness to provide them with a better understanding of physiotherapy services

Nephroprotective potential of Polyalthia longifolia roots against vancomycin-induced renal toxicity in experimental animals

This study was done to investigate the possible nephroprotective effect of an ethanolic root extract of Polyalthia Longifolia (PL) on vancomycin-induced nephrotoxicity using curative and protective models. Vancomycin (150 mg/kg, intravenous) was given to healthy Wistar albino rats in the curative model before the start of treatment, whereas the protective group received vancomycin at the conclusion of the 10-day treatment procedure. Animals were divided into six groups for both models; group I served as the normal control, while groups II, III, IV, V, and VI were kept as toxic control, standard (selenium, 6 mg/kg), LDPL (low dose of PL 200 mg/kg), HDPL (high dose of PL 400 mg/kg), and HDPL + selenium (interactive) groups, respectively. Renal biomarkers [(uric acid, creatinine, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum proteins], and blood electrolyte levels were measured for all tested groups. When compared to the vancomycin group, the HDPL significantly (p < 0.01) showed greater effectiveness in lowering the BUN, potassium, and calcium levels. Additionally, in the curative model, there was a significant (p < 0.05) decrease in the blood levels of uric acid, creatinine, BUN, potassium, and calcium in the animals who received the combination of selenium and HDPL. Both LDPL and HDPL did not provide any distinguishable effect in the protective model, but groups that received HDPL with selenium did provide detectable protection by significantly lowering their levels of uric acid, BUN, serum potassium, and total serum protein in comparison to the vancomycin control group. These findings indicate that, whether administered before or after renal damage is induced, the Polyalthia longifolia root extract provided only modest protection to nephrons, which require selenium support to prevent vancomycin-induced kidney damage

The need for national medical licensing examination in Saudi Arabia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Medical education in Saudi Arabia is facing multiple challenges, including the rapid increase in the number of medical schools over a short period of time, the influx of foreign medical graduates to work in Saudi Arabia, the award of scholarships to hundreds of students to study medicine in various countries, and the absence of published national guidelines for minimal acceptable competencies of a medical graduate.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>We are arguing for the need for a Saudi national medical licensing examination that consists of two parts: Part I (Written) which tests the basic science and clinical knowledge and Part II (Objective Structured Clinical Examination) which tests the clinical skills and attitudes. We propose this examination to be mandated as a licensure requirement for practicing medicine in Saudi Arabia.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The driving and hindering forces as well as the strengths and weaknesses of implementing the licensing examination are discussed in details in this debate.</p

Search for High-Mass Resonances Decaying to τν in pp Collisions at √s=13 TeV with the ATLAS Detector

A search for high-mass resonances decaying to τν using proton-proton collisions at √s=13 TeV produced by the Large Hadron Collider is presented. Only τ-lepton decays with hadrons in the final state are considered. The data were recorded with the ATLAS detector and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb−1. No statistically significant excess above the standard model expectation is observed; model-independent upper limits are set on the visible τν production cross section. Heavy W′ bosons with masses less than 3.7 TeV in the sequential standard model and masses less than 2.2–3.8 TeV depending on the coupling in the nonuniversal G(221) model are excluded at the 95% credibility level

Search for the direct production of charginos and neutralinos in final states with tau leptons in √s=13 TeV collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for the direct production of charginos and neutralinos in final states with at least two hadronically decaying tau leptons is presented. The analysis uses a dataset of pp collisions corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb−1, recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider at a centre-of-mass energy of 13TeV.Nosignificant deviation from the expected Standard Model background is observed. Limits are derived in scenarios of ˜χ+1 ˜χ−1 pair production and of ˜χ±1 ˜χ02 and ˜χ+1 ˜χ−1 production in simplified models where the neutralinos and charginos decay solely via intermediate left-handed staus and tau sneutrinos, and the mass of the ˜ τL state is set to be halfway between the masses of the ˜χ±1 and the ˜χ01. Chargino masses up to 630 GeV are excluded at 95% confidence level in the scenario of direct production of ˜χ+1 ˜χ−1 for a massless ˜χ01. Common ˜χ±1 and ˜χ02 masses up to 760 GeV are excluded in the case of production of ˜χ±1 ˜χ02 and ˜χ+1 ˜χ−1 assuming a massless ˜χ01. Exclusion limits for additional benchmark scenarios with large and small mass-splitting between the ˜χ±1 and the ˜χ01 are also studied by varying the ˜ τL mass between the masses of the ˜χ±1 and the ˜χ01

Combined measurement of differential and total cross sections in the H → γγ and the H → ZZ* → 4ℓ decay channels at s=13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A combined measurement of differential and inclusive total cross sections of Higgs boson production is performed using 36.1 fb−1 of 13 TeV proton–proton collision data produced by the LHC and recorded by the ATLAS detector in 2015 and 2016. Cross sections are obtained from measured H→γγ and H→ZZ*(→4ℓ event yields, which are combined taking into account detector efficiencies, resolution, acceptances and branching fractions. The total Higgs boson production cross section is measured to be 57.0−5.9 +6.0 (stat.) −3.3 +4.0 (syst.) pb, in agreement with the Standard Model prediction. Differential cross-section measurements are presented for the Higgs boson transverse momentum distribution, Higgs boson rapidity, number of jets produced together with the Higgs boson, and the transverse momentum of the leading jet. The results from the two decay channels are found to be compatible, and their combination agrees with the Standard Model predictions

Measurement of jet fragmentation in Pb+Pb and pp collisions at √s NN =5.02 TeV with the ATLAS detector

This paper presents a measurement of jet fragmentation functions in 0.49 nb −1 of Pb+Pb collisions and 25 pb −1 of pp collisions at √ sNN =5.02 TeV collected in 2015 with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. These measurements provide insight into the jet quenching process in the quark-gluon plasma created in the aftermath of ultra-relativistic collisions between two nuclei. The modifications to the jet fragmentation functions are quantified by dividing the measurements in Pb+Pb collisions by baseline measurements in pp collisions. This ratio is studied as a function of the transverse momentum of the jet, the jet rapidity, and the centrality of the collision. In both collision systems, the jet fragmentation functions are measured for jets with transverse momentum between 126 GeV and 398 GeV and with an absolute value of jet rapidity less than 2.1. An enhancement of particles carrying a small fraction of the jet momentum is observed, which increases with centrality and with increasing jet transverse momentum. Yields of particles carrying a very large fraction of the jet momentum are also observed to be enhanced. Between these two enhancements of the fragmentation functions a suppression of particles carrying an intermediate fraction of the jet momentum is observed in Pb+Pb collisions. A small dependence of the modifications on jet rapidity is observed