Measurable Results Research Articles

Status of outcome measures in randomized controlled trials of kidney-tonifying and blood-activating method in treatment of knee osteoarthritis

This study assesses the status of outcome measures in the randomized controlled trial(RCT) involving the kidney-tonif-ying and blood-activating method for treating knee osteoarthritis(KOA), aiming to establish a theoretical foundation for the development of a core set of outcome measures in traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) treatment of KOA. The relevant articles were retrieved from CNKI, Wanfang, VIP, SinoMed, PubMed, EMbase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science, in addition to ClinicalTrials.gov and the China Clinical Trial Registration Center, with the time interval from inception to August 2023. The RCT of treating KOA with the kidney-tonifying and blood-activating method was included. Two assessors independently conducted literature screening, data collection, and qualitative analysis to compile the outcome measure results. A total of 350 RCTs were included, involving 165 outcome measures with the total frequency of 1 462. These outcome measures were categorized into six domains: symptom and sign measures(23) with the frequency of 718(49.1%), TCM symptom and syndrome measures(3) with the frequency of 53(3.6%), physical examination measures(130) with the frequency of 506(34.6%), quality of life measures(4) with the frequency of 20(1.3%), long-term efficacy measures(2) with the frequency of 6(0.4%), and safety measures(3) with the frequency of 159(10.9%). Additionally, 53 studies used TCM syndrome and symptom scores as indicators of efficacy, employing eight distinct measurement tools. The RCTs involving the kidney-tonifying and blood-activating method for treating KOA had a variety of problems, such as unclear prio-ritization of outcome measures, diversity in measurement tools, absence of standardized assessment criteria for specific measures, and non-standardized usage. These problems affected the research quality and reliability. Hence, it is advisable to draw upon international expertise, improve research design, and merge TCM efficacy characteristics with clinical research to establish a core set of KOA outcome measures aligned with TCM principles.

The influence of the geographic positioning system error on the quality of ship magnetic signature reproduction based on measurements in sea conditions

In previous studies, the authors performed the magnetic signature reconstruction of the marine ship Zodiak as part of the measurement campaign focused on recording magnetic data and the relative position of a ship during its passage over a magnetometer immersed on the testing ground. A high degree of representation of the magnetic signature was obtained. However, the recorded measurement data revealed new patterns of the multi-dipole model behavior that were not observed in the synthetic data based analyzes. It was assumed that the main factor influencing the abovementioned behavior of the model is the error in determining the geographical position of the ship in relation to the magnetometer. Therefore, another research was carried out to determine the relative position of the ship and the measurement device in sea conditions, in the area of the test site used in the previous study. For this purpose, two different classes of GPS receivers were used. The first receiver was the same as that used to determine the position of Zodiak in the previous measurement campaign, while the second receiver, treated as a reference, was a top-class geodetic receiver. The difference in indications between these two receivers gave a picture of the scale of errors in the data recorded during the previous measurement campaign. These errors are used in the article to analyze the effect of inaccuracies in determining the ship position on the quality of magnetic signature reproduction. Two types of signature reproduction error were introduced – the error based only on the data collected from the ship’s paths, and the error in the entire area of magnetic anomaly. The model of Zodiak was used to determine the value of the magnetic flux outside the paths. Profiles of differences in indications of GPS receivers at sea which were obtained from actual measurements were used to analyze the errors in determining the ship position. A measurable result of the work reported in the article is the map of the loss of quality of magnetic signature reproduction as a function of the ship position determination error, which can indicate the range of applicability of the model and the described method.

PedBotLab: A Novel Video Game–Based Robotic Ankle Platform Created for Therapeutic Exercise for Children With Neurological Impairments

Aims Assess the potential benefits of using PedBotLab, a clinic based robotic ankle platform with integrated video game software, to improve ankle active and passive range of motion, strength, selective motor control, gait efficiency, and balance. Methods Ten participants with static neurological injuries and independent ambulation participated in a 10-week pilot study (Pro00013680) to assess feasibility and efficacy of PedBotLab as a therapeutic device twice weekly. Isometric ankle strength, passive and active ankle range of motion, plantarflexor spasticity, selective motor control of the lower extremity, balance, and gait speed were measured pre- and post-trial. Results Statistically significant improvements were seen in flexibility, active range of motion, and strength in multiple planes of ankle motion. Ankle dorsiflexion with knee flexion and knee extension demonstrated statistically significant results in all outcome measures. No significant changes were observed in gait speed outcomes. Conclusions The use of PedbotLab can lead to improvements in ankle strength, flexibility, and active range of motion for children with static neurological injuries. Future studies aim to evaluate the effect on gait quality and work toward developing a home-based device.

Comparative Effects of Hold Relax with Agonist Contraction and Active Release Therapy on Pain, Functional Disability, and Sleep Quality in Piriformis Syndrome

Background: Piriformis syndrome is characterized by pain, numbness, and tingling from the hip down to the leg. It develops from a variety of contributing factors. Objective: The objective of this study was to compare the effects of active release therapy (ART) and hold relax with agonist contraction (HRAC) on pain, functional disability, and sleep quality in patients with piriformis syndrome. Material and Methods: This study was conducted from March 2022 to November 2022. A total of 82 participants of both genders, 25 to 55 years of age, diagnosed with piriformis syndrome were involved in the study. Those with a history of fracture of the pelvis or hip, disc disease, or postural deformity were excluded. Participants were assigned into two groups; HRAC and ART with routine physical therapy. Outcome measures were pain, functional disability, and sleep quality measured by the Numeric Pain Rating Scale, Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire, and Chronic Pain Sleep Inventory respectively. Assessment was made at baseline, at the end of 1st and 2nd week. Mann-Whitney Test was used for between-group analysis and Friedman’s ANOVA was computed for within-group differences. Results: Between-groups analysis showed a statistically significant difference in pain score (P ≤ 0.05), but no significant difference was found between both techniques regarding functional disability and sleep quality (P ≥ 0.05). However, the within-group analysis showed statistically significant results in all outcome measures (P<0.05). Conclusion: ART was more effective in decreasing pain. Whereas, both techniques had equal effects in enhancing sleep quality and reducing functional disability among patients with piriformis syndrome.

Effect of amino acid complexing agents on chemical mechanical polishing performance and action mechanism of C-plane sapphire: Combining experiments and theoretical calculations

Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) of sapphire faces greater challenges as the performance and processing requirements of sapphire devices continue to improve. Amino acids are often used as complexing agents on CMP because of their high water solubility, environmental friendliness and strong complexing ability. In this study, a combination of experimental techniques and theoretical calculations were used to investigate the effects of glycine (Gly), serine (Ser) and lysine (Lys) as complexing agents on the CMP properties of C-plane sapphire. The existence forms of three amino acid molecules under alkaline conditions were analyzed, and their possible binding modes to sapphire were discovered. Experimentally, it can be found that all three amino acids can improve the performance of C-plane sapphire CMP in different degrees. The measure results of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) show that the three amino acids can be complexed with the Al(OH)4‒ ions produced by the sapphire to form soluble substance, thus speeding up the removal of sapphire. By calculation, it can be shown that the process of complexation is that the –NH2 and –OH groups in amino acids form covalent bonds with Al atom in Al(OH)4‒. Finally, the complexation capacity of the three amino acids is in the following order: Gly < Ser < Lys. Therefore, this study can confirm that amino acids as complexing agent have a good complexing effect on sapphire CMP, and the addition of –NH2 and –OH groups can help to enhance the complexing ability of the complexing agent, which has a certain good guiding significant for the selection of sapphire CMP complexing agent.

Sustainable Dengue Prevention and Management: Integrating Dengue Vaccination Strategies with Population Perspectives.

The GEMKAP study (2023) unveiled consistent knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) levels across Asia-Pacific (APAC) and Latin America (LATAM) countries regarding dengue, with variations in the willingness to vaccinate. Despite an overall KAP parity, the disparities within and between the countries indicated the need for both overarching and tailored strategies. Population-wide gaps in dengue awareness result in suboptimal vaccination priorities and preventive measures. This commentary delves into identifying the drivers and barriers for implementing a multi-pronged dengue prevention and management program, emphasizing the pivotal role of vaccination alongside education and vector control. Drawing on expert interviews in APAC and LATAM, informed by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR), four key themes emerged: prioritizing and continuously advocating for dengue on national health agendas, fostering stakeholder collaboration, incorporating population perspectives for behavioral change, and designing sustainable dengue prevention and management programs. Successful implementation requires evidence-based decision making and a comprehensive understanding of population dynamics to design adaptive education tailored to diverse population views. This commentary provides actionable strategies for enhancing dengue prevention and management, with a pronounced emphasis on dengue vaccination, advocating for a holistic, population-centric approach for sustained effectiveness.

Prediction of Survival in the Elderly Patients with Glioblastoma using Cumulative Inflammatory Markers Score

Abstract Objectives This retrospective study aimed to explore the prognostic effect of cumulative score based on neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and fibrinogen in older adults diagnosed with glioblastoma (GBM). Design Retrospective study. Setting Huashan Hospital. Participants Patients aged over 60 years and diagnosed with GBM between 2010 and 2017. Main Outcome Measures Results of preoperative routine biochemistry and coagulation blood examinations were reviewed from medical records. Overall survival (OS) was considered a period from first resection surgery until death. Progression-free survival (PFS) was considered a period from initial operation until the date of tumor progression demonstrated in brain magnetic resonance imaging or death from any cause. If no event occurred, the last follow-up appointment was the end of the observation for OS or PFS. The Kaplan–Meier method was used to evaluate survival curves, and prognostic factors were analyzed by the Cox proportional hazards model. Results A total of 289 patients were included. Patients with higher levels of fibrinogen, NLR, and PLR had significantly shorter median OS (p = 0.001, p = 0.016, and p = 0.002, respectively) and PFS (p = 0.004, p = 0.022, and p = 0.009, respectively) compared with those with lower levels. Multivariate analyses showed a significant association between higher F-NLR-PLR score and reduced OS (adjusted hazard ratios [aHRs]: 1.356, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.009–1.822 for scores 1–2 compared with 0; 5.974, 95% CI 2.811–12.698 for score 3 compared with 0). Similarly, a significant association between higher F-NLR-PLR score and reduced PFS was observed (aHR: 1.428, 95% CI 1.066–1.912 for scores 1–2 compared with 0; aHR: 2.860, 95% CI 1.315–6.223 for score 3 compared with 0). Conclusion Higher F-NLR-PLR score is associated with reduced OS and PFS in older adults with GBM, which helps identify patients at high risk and guide the individualized treatment in clinical practice.

EFFECT OF RESISTANCE TRAINING THROUGH IN-PERSON AND TELECONFERENCING SESSIONS IN REHABILITATION OF ACUTE STROKE PATIENTS.

To determine whether application of a strength training regimen yields measurable results on stroke survivors and compare different methods for the proposed intervention. Ninety stroke patients were recruited from the neurological clinic of a local third-level clinic. Sixty patients participated in a strength training regimen with trainings taking place 3 times a week for 12 weeks with the use of resistance bands. Thirty of these patients were given face-to-face sessions and 30 patients were given trainings through an on-line platform. The last 30 patients who comprised the control group only followed usual care after the stroke. The applied strength regimen had a statistically significant effect on Visual Analog Scale scores of stroke patients who received it (p = 0.009), as well as in the teleconferencing group (p = 0.004). The measured arteriovenous oxygen difference was elevated for stroke patients who received the intervention as a whole (p = 0.007). Patients who were trained in person and the ones who were trained via teleconferencing yielded similar results as evaluated through the VAS index. Administration of strength training 3 times weekly for 12 weeks to stroke patients yielded measurable results in terms of general function and quality of life.

Image Steganography:

Steganography is the practice of hiding secret information within other media, such as images, audio, video, and text. It has become increasingly important in today's society as a way to enable private and secure communication. This research project focuses on image steganography techniques that are used to evade detection of the secret message through statistical steganalysis techniques. The aim of this research is to compare and evaluate different image steganography methods, study their implementation complexity, and propose a framework to improve current approaches. The research will provide a comparison of the efficiency of different steganography techniques in avoiding detection by steganalysis and may lead to the development of better steganography techniques in the future. This paper focuses on the three steganography methods in the spatial domain: Least Significant Bit (LSB), Pixel-Value Difference (PVD) and Edge-based Data Embedding (EBE) methods. A simple experiment has been conducted to encrypt several images using these three methods, and the distortion measure for LSB using mean square error (MSE) and peak-to-noise ratio (PSNR) has been investigated. Although the distortion measure result is considered acceptable for LSB method in the experiment, all methods resulted in significant difference in the file capacity. This shows that further enhancement in the security of the encryption is necessary so that the secret message will not be easily discovered. Thus, in this paper, we propose a conceptualized enhancement in the security using Morse Code, Base 64, SHA-245, and Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) before encrypting using PVD.

Exploring uses for an algorithmically generated Animal Welfare Indicator for welfare assessment of dairy herds

On-farm welfare assessment is time-consuming and costly. Assessing welfare using routinely collected herd data has been proposed as a more economical alternative. The online Animal Welfare Indicator (AWI), developed by a Norwegian dairy cooperative, applies an algorithm to routinely collected health, production, and management data to "indicate" aspects of animal welfare at herd level. The overall AWI score is based on 10 AWI subindicator scores, representative of elements of animal welfare such as claw health, udder health, and mortality. Our cross-sectional study explored 2 ways in which the AWI may enable more efficient welfare assessment of Norwegian dairy herds. First, we investigated using the AWI to reduce the duration of on-farm assessments by replacing on-farm measures. Second, we examined reducing the number of on-farm welfare assessments by using the AWI to predict which herds have poorer welfare with respect to specific on-farm measures. Using Spearman rank analyses, we investigated if the AWI scores for 157 herds were associated with 24 on-farm welfare variables measured contemporaneously by Welfare Quality assessment. The mortality AWI subindicator score and the percentage mortality in the previous 12 mo were moderately correlated, as were the udder health AWI subindicator score and the percentage high somatic cell count (SCC) in the previous 3 recordings. Only negligible or weak correlations were found between the other AWI scores and the on-farm assessment variables. We built Generalized Linear Models using AWI scores as independent variables to predict herds with poorer welfare. Herds were classified as having poorer welfare based on their results in specific on-farm welfare measures. We evaluated the models' predictive ability and accuracy. Moderately accurate models were built for predicting poorer herds with respect to high SCC, mortality, and moderate or severe lameness. The other models were less accurate. The AWI scores were generally unsuitable as replacements of on-farm welfare measures. The AWI subindicators for udder health and mortality could replace the on-farm welfare measures related to those 2 topics, but there was some overlap in the data used to calculate them. Despite a lack of independence, the use of those 2 AWI subindicators may marginally reduce the duration of on-farm assessments. A prediction model based on AWI scores showed potential for identifying herds with poorer welfare in terms of moderate or severe lameness, facilitating more efficient use of resources for on-farm lameness assessment. As a consequence of the data used in the AWI, it was only reflective of health-related welfare outcomes.

The Impact of Diglossia on Inflectional Morphological Constructions and Their Relation to Literacy Skills: A Longitudinal Study.

This study examined the differences in spoken Arabic (SpA) and standard Arabic (StA) in inflectional (gender, number, possessive pronouns, and tense) construction use in Arabic among preschoolers. Moreover, we tested the contribution of the inflectional constructions possessed in kindergarten to reading skills in the first grade and examined whether this morphological contribution differs between SpA and StA. We assessed 261 Arabic-speaking kindergartners for 1 year until the end of first grade for inflectional knowledge in kindergarten and reading skills in first grade (reading accuracy and fluency, spelling, and reading comprehension). The findings revealed that among inflections, prevalence of performance on gender constructions was the highest, followed by number and possessive pronouns, and lowest performance for tense constructions. Although the performance for SpA was higher than for StA in all constructions, similar patterns were observed except similarity between gender and number in StA. Moreover, the results indicate a significant contribution of almost all inflectional constructions (except possessive pronouns) possessed in kindergarten to all reading skills in the first grade. However, tense did not contribute to reading comprehension, and possessive pronouns did not contribute to any of the reading measures. Regarding diglossia, although the claims that linguistic components in StA are not represented in the mental lexicon, StA accounted for an additional significant 2%-3% of the explained variance in Step 2 (which checked the practical significance of statistically significant results) in all reading measures. This study highlights the impact of diglossia-specific morphological differences (prevalence of the use of the morphological construction in Arabic in SpA vs. StA) on reading and literacy measures, especially the contribution of morphological awareness in SpA, which may provide a stronger basis for StA reading skills. The implications of these results are discussed, especially regarding exposing children to the morphological representations of both the SpA and StA forms to promote reading and literacy in Arabic.

Application of the Green Building Concept (BGH) in High-Rise Office Buildings Based on Hybrid Dynamics to Improve Cost Performance

Global warming, including droughts, rising sea levels, melting polar ice caps, and solar storms, poses a very serious and significant threat to the planet due to current climate change. Green Buildings (GB) are buildings that achieve significant and measurable results in saving energy, water, and other resources by applying BGH principles based on the function and classification of the project. The Indonesian government's latest regulation, through the Technical Guidance on BGH Performance Evaluation Standards of the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) for 2022, is a way to reduce carbon emissions and achieve the net zero emissions (NZE) target by 2060. Regulatory Review: This study aims to analyze the factors that most influence the implementation of green buildings by the Minister of Public Works and Public Housing ministry of high-rise office buildings in indonesia towards increasing costs using the hybrid dynamic method, using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) - Partial Least Square (PLS).

Alternation in Some Encodings of Secondary Predicates in Latin: Overview and a Sample Proposal on an Issue under Discussion

This paper offers a comprehensive and critical review of the most significant studies on the possible alternation between two specific encodings that can express, in a generic sense, the Manner in which a verbal process is developed: adverbial expressions (ADV) and Secondary Predicates (SP). The main types of SP/ADV to be addressed here are those which are Subject and/or event oriented. Both general and typological works will be taken into account, as well as others more focused on the Latin language; the central criterion of the study will essentially be to distinguish and analyse approaches which are more or less favourable to seeing the two types of constituents as equivalent. A section devoted to the work of one of the Latinists who has contributed most specifically and notably to the issue under discussion (H. Pinkster) will also be included. Following a critical review of the criteria which have the greatest explanatory potential for explaining the issue, some analytical approaches will be proposed which are as objective as possible for a subsequent corpus study; these criteria include parameters pertaining to different linguistic levels: syntax, lexical-semantics, pragmatics, etc.: their application — here only tentatively discussed — will provide clear and measurable results on the problem and on those questions arising from the critical review itself.

СТРАТЕГІЯ ОРГАНІЗАЦІЙНОЇ СТАЛОСТІ РЕГІОНАЛЬНО-ЗНАЧИМОЇ КЛАСТЕРНОЇ ЛІКАРНІ

The article considers the main results of the last stage of the reform of the public health system, its structural restructuring and the creation of hospital districts in Ukraine, considers in more detail the Odessa region and its features. The normative legal acts on which the reform system is based are considered, as well as the results obtained in the Odessa region as of 20.12.2023. The structure of the Odessa hospital district and the features of its construction are investigated. As of 20.12.2023 in Ukraine, 19 regions have formed capable hospital networks, which include 562 institutions, of which 123 are super-clustered hospitals, 157 cluster HCFs and 282 general health care institutions. In the Odessa region, the capable network of the Odessa hospital district included: 7 cluster districts, 5 supercluster hospitals, 13 cluster hospitals, 20 general hospitals. In addition to primary care and emergency medical care facilities, 38 specialized medical care facilities were included. Methodological or regulatory support for the development of such documents neither the CMU, nor the Ministry of Health or health departments provide. Therefore, we proposed a reference model for developing a strategic development plan that can be used for a cluster or general hospital. The reference model for formation of the strategy of organizational development and constancy is offered. In which the structural process of describing the main elements of the strategy for the development of HCV is provided, an approximate example of performing a SWOT analysis for a cluster hospital is given. The passport of description of business processes and indicator, which contains information about business directions, units of measurement, method of calculation, data sources, multiplicity of data collection and methods of verification, criteria of evaluation of data in dynamics, responsible persons and owners of business processes, and its fragment is given. It also considers what should be included in operational annual plans to ensure the necessary effectiveness and viability of the strategy. There are no strict requirements for a strategic plan for the development of a health care institution. This will allow institutions to adapt plans to their real needs, develop and adjust documents that will help develop according to an understandable scenario and measure results.

Mapeamento das práticas e abordagens de terapeutas ocupacionais na doença de Parkinson: uma revisão de escopo

Abstract Introduction Parkinson’s disease (PD) ranks second among progressive chronic neurodegenerative diseases, with high prevalence and annual incidence. Therefore, it is necessary to update the current and developing occupational therapy options for this pathology. Objective To map the practices and approaches of occupational therapists conducted through therapeutic interventions in PD. Method Review conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) Checklist, based on the methodology of the Joanna Briggs Institute. The research question was formulated using the PCC (Patient, Concept, and Context) acronym, with primary and secondary terms consulted in the DeCS/MeSH multilingual thesaurus. Searches were conducted on five scientific databases between 2011 and 2020. Blind researchers were compared by the degree of agreement measured by Cohen’s kappa coefficient. Results The findings indicate that there are at least eight categories of practices and approaches performed by occupational therapists in PD. Most procedures are conducted at home. Research in outpatient environments is the primary setting for knowledge production in the field. Strategies focused on physical and functional behaviors are most in demand in PD, with measurable results, while occupation-based interventions show modest results. Conclusion The actions of occupational therapists in PD are highly variable, occur in different contexts, and their outcomes suggest that not all mapped options present consistent results or are not sufficiently detailed to favor a better interpretation of the findings.

Dermatološki izazovi u pandemiji kovida 19 - značaj dermokozmetičkih preparata

Introduction. Although COVID-19 is present in a milder form nowadays, systemic disorders caused by the virus lead to multiple organ malfunctions. Skin manifestations are the consequence of the disease itself but also the result of preventative measures taken to avoid the infection. They generally do not require pharmacotherapy except in severe cases. Depending on the severity of COVID-19-related skin disorder, cosmeceuticals are often recommended in their management. In this study, we highlighted skin adverse events related to all aspects of COVID-19 pandemic aiming to provide a comprehensive overview and enlighten the role of cosmeceuticals in the treatment of those skin issues, according to published studies and guidelines. Methods. Different steps were conducted in preparation of this review-identification of all factors that affect skin in pandemics (protective measures, disease itself, post-COVID syndrome), selection and classification of reported skin symptoms which could be managed using cosmeceuticals, according to relevant papers and guidelines. Discussion. Skin challenges in COVID-19 pandemics could be divided into three main categories: 1) Cutaneous manifestations of COVID-19 disease; 2) Cutaneous symptoms as a result of wearing protective equipment and using disinfectants, and 3) Cutaneous symptoms related to the post COVID-19 syndrome. Conclusion. Cosmeceuticals, a unique category of products between cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, are highly recommended in literature for the management of the aforesaid changes except in severe skin disorders. Since the introduction of cosmeceutical concept, those topicals have become an extremely important part of dermatologist's armamentarium. COVID-19 pandemic confirms their importance.

Integration of the rural revitalization strategy in the construction of rural elderly services in the information age

Abstract Aiming at the uncertainty of decision-making factors and the difficulty of quantifying various subjective and objective weights in the process of rural pension service quality evaluation, this paper proposes a rural pension service quality evaluation method combining improved interval AHP and CRITIC method based on indicator correlation at the level of rural revitalization strategy. The method is based on 5 guidelines and 11 common factors, comprehensively considers the influence of subjective and objective weights on the design scheme, introduces the interval number and triangular fuzzy number, and establishes the evaluation index system of rural elderly service. By utilizing the improved interval AHP and CRITIC method, the subjective and objective weights of each evaluation index can be calculated. The analysis is done by combining examples to explore the ecological niche of the senior care industry, the rural suitability for elderly people, and their expectations and perceptions of the service. From the market ecological niche, it can be seen that the result of the senior care manufacturing industry measure is 0.85, which contributes the most to the rural economy in rural revitalization. The travel, ecological landscape, living services, and socio-economic environment in rural areas are improved under the rural revitalization strategy, and the weighted scores of the four are 0.5528, 1.1524, 1.299, and 0.6031, respectively. According to the comprehensive results, the rural revitalization strategy has resulted in a noticeable increase in the rural aged-care industry and services.

Trends of the tuberculosis epidemical situation during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: Russia and the northwestern federal district, 2020–2023

The dynamics of TB incidence and mortality is an important tool for assessing epidemiological well-being. Monitoring of a number of key indicators has shown that the COVID-19 pandemic has made serious adjustments to the current style and methods of operation of the TB care system. There is a point of view that this is a natural result of restrictive measures taken to combat the pandemic — an airborne disease, including a decrease in the active detection of tuberculosis cases. Therefore, it seemed relevant to us to study the dynamics of the main indicators characterizing both the epidemic situation with tuberculosis in Russia and the effectiveness of the measures taken to detect tuberculosis from 2010 to 2023, as well as to assess the possibility of achieving the targets of the End TB strategy. Methods. The dynamics of the number of TB incident cases and the number of HIV-negative TB deaths in 2010–2023 relative to the number of these cases were analyzed according to the results of regression analysis, based on 2010–2019 data. Results.It was noted that the COVID-19 pandemic did not lead to a significant increase in the number of deaths from tuberculosis, but contributed to an increase in the number of cases of postmortem detection and early (before 1 year of observation) TB deaths of new tuberculosis cases. During the pandemic, there was a decrease in the number of incident cases of tuberculosis, an increase in the proportion of new TB cases with destructive, including fibro-cavernous tuberculosis. The impact of migration processes associated with the special military operation on the incidence of tuberculosis was small. Conclusion.The technique, which involves the use of regression analysis, makes it possible to clarify details of processes associated with the epidemiology of tuberculosis with greater accuracy. The COVID-19 pandemic did not have a significant impact on the dynamics of the number of deaths from tuberculosis, but it did affect the detection rates of tuberculosis patients. In general, in Russia and the Northwestern Federal District, the goals of the End TB strategy, which envisage a decrease in the number of TB incidents, are expected to be achieved. Achieving the indicator stipulating a decrease in the number of deaths from tuberculosis is more likely in the Northwestern Federal District, and less likely in Russia as a whole

The bound of the correlation results of the roughness measure of the disturbation fuzzy set

&lt;abstract&gt;&lt;p&gt;This paper mainly studies and proves the roughness bound of disturbation fuzzy sets. Firstly, based on the theory of determining self-increment and uncertain self-decrement operators, the problem that the execution subsets are not equal sets is effectively solved, which hinders the quantitative study of disturbed fuzzy sets and lays a foundation for the quantitative study of the related properties of disturbed fuzzy sets in the future. The boundary of roughness measure of disturbing fuzzy set is further studied and proved. The new territories proposed in this paper can effectively avoid the unnecessary calculation space outside the boundary in the calculation process, so as to improve the work efficiency.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/abstract&gt;

Sky view factor method as an analytical tool in the analysis of compactness of an urban interior

This article is aimed to present the results of the study on urban canyon compactness. The topic seems to be vital as physiognomic research on urban canyons has so far relied on visual assessment made by an observer intuitively. These types of studies comply with relevant standards which define elements of a visually sensed space and prescribe methods of recording such a sensual experience. Therefore, such studies are classified within descriptive research, and are sometimes charged with such drawbacks as the subjectivity and lack of comparativeness. To attain higher objectivity, the number of respondents is typically increased and results are calculated and presented in the statistical form. This article presents an analytical methods based on a normative approach, the application of which will render measurable and comparable results. The purpose of the studies consisted in testing one of the normative methods, i.e., the sky view factor (SVF) method, in the objective calculation of compactness of an urban interior.