Improved Less Invasive Surfactant Administration Success in Preterm Infants after Procedure Standardization

Less invasive surfactant administration (LISA) has been introduced at our tertiary Level IV perinatal center since 2016 with an unsatisfactory success rate, which we attributed to an inconsistent, non-standardized approach and ambiguous patient inclusion criteria. This study aimed to improve the LISA success rate to at least 75% within 12 months by implementing a highly standardized LISA approach combined with team training. The Plan Do Study Act method of quality improvement was used for this initiative. Baseline assessment included a review of patient medical records 12 months before the intervention regarding patient characteristics, method success rate, respiratory, and adverse outcomes. A multi-professional team developed a standardized LISA approach and a training program including an educational film, checklists, pocket cards, and team briefings. Twenty-one preterm infants received LISA before and 24 after the intervention. The mean LISA success rate improved from 62% before the intervention to 92% (p = 0.029) after the intervention. Implementing a highly standardized LISA approach and multi-professional team training significantly improved the methods’ success rate.

IT service: concepts and types for accounting purposes

Ensuring effective management of IT services requires well-defined terminology. There is no unity among scientists on this issue. The purpose of the article is to reveal the concept, main characteristics and types of IT services that have an impact on their accounting. To achieve this goal, the following methods were used: analysis and synthesis, logical generalization, contrastive comparison, graphical method. Based on the analysis of scientific works, which raised the issue of interpretation of IT services, the main characteristics of this concept are identified. Disclosure of the essence of IT services is impossible without a description of their classification. The article summarizes the types of IT services provided in the works of scientists. It is proposed to classify them according to the following characteristics: method of provision (IT consulting, IT outsourcing, software development, system integration); object of provision (services related to software; technical support services; services related to the processing and storage of electronic information). It is established that the IT service for accounting purposes meets the characteristics inherent in all services, and has its own specific characteristics. The list of such features has been expanded and presented as follows: immateriality; inseparability from the source; indistinctness; receiving income from the performer or incurring costs; ensuring a useful result for the consumer of IT services; availability of special software and hardware for the service recipient; insensitivity of the IT service until the recipient receives the final version of the IT product; uncertainty of the quality of IT services before its implementation; difficulty in calculating the final price.

Validation of a method employing liquid chromatography to identify and quantify glycomacropeptide of casein in raw milk

BACKGROUND: The information on official testing methods, or regulatory methods in Colombia to test whey in milk is limited; this restriction of information goes against the possibility of mitigating the risk of food fraud. OBJECTIVES: The validation of an HPLC method to determine casein glycomacropeptide (c-GMP), a protein that countries such as Brazil, Spain, and Ecuador have used as an indicator of raw milk adulteration with whey, was carried out. METHODS: A 10mL sample of raw milk is precipitated with 24% TCA using ultrasound, a process followed by filtration. The collected fraction ensured the separation of c-GMP and then injected into the liquid chromatography. RESULTS: A 30 minutes analysis allowed the determination of c-GMP with a retention time of 12.9 ± 0.5 minutes. The performance characteristics method in the validation exercise were: recovery percentage 99.97%, linearity R2> 0.95; % RSD accuracy <5.3%. CONCLUSION, the method exhibits desirable attributes for the intended purpose.

Gabor Feature Representation and Deep Convolution Neural Network for Marine Vessel Classification

The Vessel Surveillance System (VSS), a crucial tool for fisheries monitoring, controlling, and surveillance, has been required to use for the reservation of the current depressed state of the world's fisheries by fisheries management agencies. An important issue in the vessel surveillance system is the classification of vessels. However, several factors, such as lighting, congestion, and sea state, will affect the vessel's appearance, making it more difficult to classify vessels. There are two main methods for conventional classifications of vessels: the traditional-based- characteristics method and the convolutional neural networks-used method. In this paper, we combine Gabor feature representation (GFR) and deep convolution neural network (DCNN) to classify vessels. Gabor filters in different directions and ratios are used to extract vessel characteristics to create a new image of vessels, which is DCNN's input. The visible and infrared spectrums (VAIS) dataset, the world's first publicly available dataset for paired infrared and visible vessel images, was used to validate the proposed method (GFR-DCNN). The numerical results showed that GFR-DCNN is more accurate than other methods.

Self-removal of long-acting reversible contraception: A content analysis of YouTube videos

Objective: To explore publicly available information about the self-removal of long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) on a popular video-sharing website. Study Design: We conducted a comprehensive keyword search of YouTube videos related to self-removal of long-acting reversible contraception (LARC)—namely intrauterine devices (IUDs) and implants. We analyzed video content to explore demographic characteristics, method and duration of LARC use, and motivations and experiences of self-removal. Results: Our keyword search identified 58 videos that met the criteria for inclusion, including 48 videos that featured individuals who removed an IUD and 10 who removed an implant. Collectively, videos had over 4 million views. We identified most video creators as white (53.4%), 31% as Black, and 14.3% as Latinx. Reasons for LARC discontinuation included negative side effects, fear of potential side effects, and desire for pregnancy. Users were motivated to remove their own device by both preferences and barriers to formal care. Fifty-six individuals (96.6%) successfully removed their device, and most described their experience in positive terms related to the ease of removal. Conclusion: This study builds upon prior research by describing publicly available information about LARC self-removal. The over-representation of Black women in our sample may reflect a higher prevalence of LARC self-removal among this population. Positive experiences of self-removal and high levels of viewer engagement with online videos suggest a greater need for provider counseling on LARC removal at the time of insertion. Implications: Prior to LARC insertion, patients should be made aware of any financial requirements for discontinuation. Provider counseling for self-removal at the time of insertion will likely minimize health risks and affirm patient reproductive autonomy.

A hedonic assessment of the relative importance of structural, locational and neighbourhood factors on advertised rents in Malta

Purpose The private rental market in Malta has expanded significantly in recent years, but as at 2020, no official rent index is yet published. This paper aims to construct such an index and explores the relative importance of structural, locational and neighbourhood factors to advertised rents. Design/methodology/approach The authors compile hedonic indices for advertised rents in Malta collected from publicly available sources using webscraping techniques. The database comprises more than 25,000 listings with information on various property attributes. Hedonic regressions are estimated using ordinary least squares and rent indices are computed using three alternative methods: the time dummy method, the rolling time dummy method and the average characteristics method. For the latter, indices are computed using the Laspeyres, Paasche and Fisher methods. Findings The results from the hedonic indices indicate that the annual growth rate in advertised rents was slowing down during 2019, albeit still remaining relatively high, while in 2020, advertised rents contracted sharply, amplified by the effects of COVID-19. The findings also reveal that advertised rental prices are significantly influenced by various structural, locational and neighbourhood factors. Originality/value This paper introduces the first rent index in Malta that will be used to monitor developments in the rental segment of the housing market and for financial stability purposes given the share of buy-to-let properties. It also provides various elasticities on the impact of property attributes on advertised rents in Malta. Finally, the study contributes to the literature on the effect of foreign-born residents on advertised rents.

Factors associated to quality of life in people with intestinal stomas

ABSTRACT Objective: To assess the quality of life of people with intestinal stoma and its association with sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Method: Cross-sectional and analytical study conducted with people with intestinal stoma. An instrument was used for sociodemographic and clinical characterization: COH-QOL-OQ, validated in Brazil. Results: The sample included 152 people with stomas. There were significant differences among all dimensions (p-value < 0.01) of quality of life. The dimension spiritual well-being had the highest mean, with 6.69 (±1.56), followed by the psychological well-being dimension, 5.00 (±1.94), social well-being, 4.63 (±1.83), and physical well-being, 4.54 (±1.77). Marital status, religion, type of stoma, and permanence had statistically significant associations with dimensions of quality of life (p-value < 0.05). Conclusion: The assessment of quality of life in people with intestinal stoma presented lower scores in the physical, social, and psychological dimensions. There was an association between better quality of life scores and people with definitive ileostomy, in a domestic partnership and practicing other religions.