Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

The impact of social media on consumers' acculturation and purchase intentions

YesSocial media has emerged as a significant and effective means of assisting and endorsing activities and communications among peers, consumers and organizations that outdo the restrictions of time and space. While the previous studies acknowledge the role of agents of culture change, it largely remains silent on the role of social media in influencing acculturation outcomes and consumption choices. This study uses self-administered questionnaire to collect data from 514 Turkish-Dutch respondents and examines how their use of social media affects their acculturation and consumption choices. This research makes a significant contribution to consumer acculturation research by showing that social media is a vital means of culture change and a driver of acculturation strategies and consumption choices. This study is the first to investigate the role of social media as an agent of culture change in terms of how it impacts acculturation and consumption. The paper discusses implications for theory development and for practice

Forecasting Singapore stock market

104 p.The world equity markets are integrating and the interdependences between the Singapore Stock Market and the other securities markets in developed nations, such as the US and Japan stock markets provide opportunities for investors to exploit the trends of the stock price indices.BUSINES

0.18 mu m CMOS power amplifier for Ultra-wideband (UWB) system

This paper presents the design and implementation of a single-stage and double-stage power amplifier (PA) for UWB communication system. The proposed PAs are implemented in 0.18 mu m CMOS integrated circuit technology for a 3.1-4.8GRz UWB system. The single-stage PA achieves a simulated maximum power gain of +10.4dB at an input P1dB of -5.5dBm while consuming 23.0mW of DC dissipation at a DC supply of 1.0V. Two double-stage PAs have been designed based on the single-stage PA topology. Simulation results for both the double-stage PAs show a maximum power gain of +15.5dB and +24.1dB respectively with the power consumption of 35.5mW and 26.7mW separately. Results obtained from this study can be used as a reference design for future multi-stage UWB PAs implementation

0.18 μm CMOS low noise amplifier for 3-5 GHz ultra-wideband system

A single-stage and cascode stage wideband CMOS low noise amplifier (LNA) that uses the inductive source degeneration network are presented in this paper. The proposed LNAs are implemented in 0.18 mu m CMOS technology for a 3-5GHz ultra-wideband system. The proposed single-stage LNA achieves a simulated maximum power gain of +9.25dB, minimum noise figure of 3.2dB, minimum return loss of -6.7dB, input-referred 1dB gain compression point of -5.11dBm and input third order intercept point of +3.36dBm while consuming 6.25mW of DC dissipation at a DC supply of 1V. Simulation results for the proposed cascode stage LNA show a maximum power gain of +12.3dB, a minimum noise figure of 3.2dB, a minimum return loss of -5.1dB, an input P1dB of -13dBm and an IIP3 of -4.2dBm, while consuming 10.5mW of DC dissipation with a DC supply of 1.5V. Results obtained from this study can used as reference design for current multi-stage UWB LNAs implementation

Advancing Pharmacy Service using Big Data – Are We Fully Utilising the Big Data’s Potential Yet?

Big data is anticipated to have large implications in clinical pharmacy, in view of its potential in enhancing precision medicine and to avoid medication error. However, it is equally debatable since such a powerful tool may also disrupt the need of pharmacist in healthcare industry. In this article, we commented the contribution of Big Data in various aspects of clinical pharmacy including advancing pharmaceutical care service, optimising drug supplies, managing clinical trials, and strengthening pharmacovigilance. The future direction of the usage of Big Data related to clinical pharmacy will be discussed.   This article is open to POST-PUBLICATION REVIEW. Registered readers (see “For Readers”) may comment by clicking on ABSTRACT on the issue’s contents page

Prediction of overshoot and crosstalk of low-voltage GaN HEMT using analytical model

Ultra-fast switching speed and low switching loss of the gallium nitride high electron mobility transistors enable the realisation of high power density converter with excellent conversion efficiency. However, the rapid switching transition leads to significant overshoot and crosstalk issues that can degrade the performance of the devices. To facilitate the evaluation of these effects on low-voltage gallium nitride devices, this paper develops an analytical model to predict overshoot and crosstalk during switching transitions accurately and efficiently. The model is constructed based on the detailed circuit deduction of various stages of the device's switching process. It also considers the voltage-dependent junction capacitances as well as the forward and the reverse transconductances. The simulated results obtained from the model are validated experimentally. With the model, the impacts of parasitic elements, especially the power loop inductance, on voltage/current overshoots and spurious voltage due to crosstalk can be easily evaluated, which provides valuable design guidelines for power conversion applications using low-voltage gallium nitride high electron mobility transistor.Published versionThis work was supported in part by the Project for Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements in Sichuan Province under Grant M112021ZHCG0011, and in part by the Aircraft Swarm Intelligent Sensing and Cooperative Control Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province

Shedding light on AWARE : branding AWARE through the viral marketing of an animated promo.

Shedding Light on AWARE is a promotional campaign that aims to increase the visibility of the Association of Women's Action and Research (AWARE) in Singapore, with the ultimate goal of increasing supports and members for the voluntary welfare organization.Bachelor of Communication Studie

Design of 3 to 5 GHz CMOS low noise amplifier for ultra-wideband (UWB) system

A single-stage ultra-wideband (UWB) CMOS low noise amplifier (LNA) employing interstage matching inductor on conventional cascode inductive source degeneration structure is presented in this paper. The proposed LNA is implemented in 0.18 μm CMOS technology for a 3 to 5 GHz ultra-wideband system. By careful optimization, an interstage inductor can increase the overall broadband gain while maintaining a low level of noise figure of an amplifier. The fabricated prototype has a measured power gain of +12.7 dB, input return loss of 18 dB, output return loss of 3 dB, reverse isolation of 35 dB, noise figure of 4.5 dB and input IP3 of -1 dBm at 4 GHz, while consuming 17 mW of DC dissipation at a 1.8 V supply voltage