A retrospective observational study of CAR T-cell therapy outcomes-Experience from MSE Foundation Trust

The most common non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) is diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), an aggressive lymphoma that can be cured with standard frontline chemo-immunotherapy in 60%-70% of patients but with historically poor outcomes for relapsed/refractory disease. Patients with relapsed DLBCL after autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) or with chemotherapy-refractory disease have a particularly dismal prognosis, with a median overall survival (OS) of only 6 months. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has significantly improved outcomes for patients with relapsed/refractory large B-cell lymphoma, mantle cell lymphoma and follicular lymphoma, with multiple FDA approved CAR T products now commercially available in many developed world including European countries. Ongoing studies seek to move CAR T cells to earlier lines of therapy and to characterise the efficacy and safety of CAR T-cell approaches in additional lymphoma histologies including relapsed/refractory follicular lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukaemias. Other areas of active research address CAR T in combination with other lymphoma-directed therapies, and mechanisms of CAR T resistance. We conducted a retrospective observational study assessing the outcomes of patients referred to our tertiary centre, University College London hospital NHS foundation Trust (UCLH) from January 2018 to December 2022, over a 48-month period. We collected data including patients' demographics, types of lymphomas, prior lines of therapies including stem cell transplantation, bridging therapies as appropriate, complications and overall response rate. We also analysed the communication between teams during the challenging period of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A Shuffling Building Block and Augmentation Parameter Tuning Techniques to Handle Small Medical Dataset

The recent COVID-19 outbreak showed us the importance of faster disease diagnosis using medical image processing as it is considered the most reliable and accurate diagnostic tool. In a CNN architecture, performance improves with the increasing number of trainable parameters at the cost of processing time. We have proposed an innovative approach of combining efficient novel architectures like Inception, ResNet, and ResNet-Xt and created a new CNN architecture that benefits Extreme Cardinal dimensions. We have also created four variations of the same base architecture by varying the position of each building block and used X-Ray, Microscopic, MRI, and pathMNIST datasets to train our architecture. For learning curve optimization, we have applied learning rate changing techniques, tuned image augmentation parameters, and chose the best random states value. For a specific dataset, we reduced the validation loss from 0.22 to 0.18 by interchanging the architecture's building block position. Our results indicate that image augmentation parameters can help to decrease the validation loss. We have also shown rearrangement of the building blocks reduces the number of parameters, in our case, from 5,689,008 to 3,876,528. © 2023 IEEE.

Pharmacoinvasive Therapy in Treating Acute STEMI Patients in COVID-19 Era-Thrombolysis by Tenecteplase (TNK) / Streptokinase (STK) Followed by Rescue PCI of the Culprit Vessel

Background: Treating acute STEMI patients by primary PCI has dramatically fallen globally in covid era as there is chances of potential threat of spreading Covid among the non-Covid patient. Thereby, thrombolysis of acute STEMI patient either by Streptokinase (STK) or Tenecteplase (TNK) in grey zone till Covid RT PCR report to come, was the mode of treatment of acute myocardial infarction patient in our hospital. Post thrombolysis, Covid positive cases were managed conservatively in a Covid dedicated unit. Covid negative cases were treated by rescue PCI of the culprit lesion. Exact data on benefit of thrombolysis either by TNK or STK of STEMI patients in Covid era, is not well addressed in our patient population. Thereby, we have carried out this prospective observational study to see the outcomes of thrombolysis and subsequent intervention. Method(s): STEMI Patient who represented to our ER with chest pain and ECG and hs-TROP-I evidenced acute ST segment elevated myocardial infarction (STEMI), were enrolled in the study. Total 139 patients enrolled (Male:120, Female :19);average age for Male: 54yrs., female was: 56yrs. All patients were admitted in the grey zone of CCU where thrombolysis done either by TNK or STK. Positive for COVID-19, were patients excluded from intervention and managed conservatively in Covid-19 dedicated ward. Covid Negative patients were kept transferred to CCU green zone. Result(s): COVID-19 test was carried out on all studied patients. Among them, Covid-19 positive were 7.9% (11) patients and managed conservatively in dedicated Covid ward, Covid-19 negative were 92.1% (128). Primary PCI was performed in 5.03% (7). Rest was managed by Pharmacoinvasive therapy either by TNK or STK. Thrombolysis by Tenecteplase in 64% (89), Streptokinase in 17.9% (25) patient, 12.9% (18) patient did not receive any thrombolysis due to late presentation and primary PCI done in 5.4% (7). On average 2.1 days after Fibrinolysis, elective PCI carried out. Data analysis from 48 patients;chest pain duration (3.71 +/-2.8 hr., Chest pain to contact time 3.3+/-2.8hr., Chest pain to needle time 7.2 +/-12.7hr., thrombolysis to balloon time 117.5+/-314.8hr., as many of the patient develop LVF post thrombolysis. More than 50% stenosis resolution observed in 41.6% (20) patients, chest pain resolution with one hour of thrombolysis observed in 43.8% (21) patients and development of LVF in 20.8% (10) patients. Door to needle time was 30 min. At presentation of STEMI;Ant Wall MI 46.8% (65), Inferior Wall MI 52.5% (73) and high Lateral 0.7% (1). Average Serum hs Trop-I was 16656 for male and 12109 for female. LVEF were 41% for male and 48% for female. HbA1C were in Male 8.34%: Female 8.05%, SBP for Male 120mmHg: Female 128 mmHg. Total, 88 stents were deployed in 83 territories. CABG recommended for 5.03% (7) patients, PCI in 58.3% (81), remaining were kept on medical management. Stented territory was LAD 45.7% (37) and RCA 39.5% (32) and LCX 14.8% (12). Common stent used;Everolimus 61.4% (54), Sirolimus 25% (22), Progenitor cell with sirolimus 2.3%(2) and Zotarolimus 11.4% (10) Conclusion(s): In the era of COVID-19, in this prospective cohort study, on acute STEMI patient management, we found that Pharmaco therapy by Tenecteplase and Streptokinase, reduced patient symptom and ST resolution partially. Therefore, coronary angiogram and subsequent Rescue PCI by Drug Eluting Stents (DES) are key goals of complete revascularization.Copyright © 2023

Living with "long COVID": A systematic review and meta-synthesis of qualitative evidence.

OBJECTIVES: Long-term health consequences of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), also known as "long COVID," has become a global health concern. In this systematic review, we aimed to synthesize the qualitative evidence on lived experiences of people living with long COVID that may inform health policymaking and practice. METHODS: We searched six major databases and additional sources and systematically retrieved relevant qualitative studies and conducted a meta-synthesis of key findings using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) guidelines and reporting standards of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) checklist. RESULTS: We found 15 articles representing 12 studies out of 619 citations from different sources. These studies provided 133 findings that were categorized into 55 categories. All categories were aggregated to the following synthesized findings: living with complex physical health problems, psychosocial crises of long COVID, slow recovery and rehabilitation, digital resources and information management, changes in social support, and experiences with healthcare providers, services, and systems. Ten studies were from the UK, and others were from Denmark and Italy, which highlights a critical lack of evidence from other countries. CONCLUSIONS: More representative research is needed to understand long COVID-related experiences from diverse communities and populations. The available evidence informs a high burden of biopsychosocial challenges among people with long COVID that would require multilevel interventions such as strengthening health and social policies and services, engaging patients and caregivers in making decisions and developing resources, and addressing health and socioeconomic disparities associated with long COVID through evidence-based practice.

Classification of Respiratory Diseases and COVID-19 from Respiratory and Cough Sounds

Infectious and non-infectious respiratory diseases are among the primary reasons for deaths, financial and social crises around the world. In this study, we present a comparative analysis of various deep learning techniques for respiratory disease and COVID-19 identification methods from respiratory and cough sound recordings. Our experiments demonstrate that artificial intelligence can help tackle the global crisis by providing an alternative disease diagnosis method. We conduct numerous experiments using deep learning models and model training techniques to find the most efficient disease detection and classification system. We first propose procedures to extract image representations of audio features such as Mel-Spectrograms and Mel-frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC) from each sound recording. Afterward, we compare the performance of the audio features and ten different convolutional neural network (CNN) models on disease classification. We also compare and analyze the performance of various model training methodologies, such as the 1cycle policy, transfer learning, and balanced mini-batch training, to determine the most effective way to train the models. In our experiment, we classify respiratory diseases with 94.57% accuracy and Area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve (AUC) value of 0.93 and COVID-19 infected and healthy patients' cough recordings with 85.62% accuracy and 0.84 AUC value. © 2022 IEEE.

Rethinking survival, renewal, and growth strategies of SMEs in Bangladesh: the role of spiritual leadership in crisis situation

Purpose: For Bangladeshi small and medium enterprises (SMEs), the COVID-19 economic shock is remarkable in both its complexity and intensity. SMEs need systemic inspiration to solve the crisis, aligned with a moral and authentic approach that serves both the leader and the follower's interests. This study aims to conceptualize the innovation-focused success method of SMEs before and after the pandemic to manage the crisis by establishing spiritual leadership based on Islamic perspectives. Design/methodology/approach: To discuss the impact of spiritual leadership on innovation-focused SME performance configuration through the lens of a crisis, a comprehensive literature study has been carried out in which over 360 articles are read and reviewed by the authors. It has also established the reliability and validity of literature analysis. Also, a qualitative investigation has been used to support the direction of the study. Findings: For a subsequent process of scientific deployment and evaluation of its execution, a new applied strategic innovation-focused SME success configuration through spiritual leadership development is made available. The primary value of this paradigm is the potential to calculate and treat the aspects of spiritual leadership obtained from Islamic ideas. Research limitations/implications: Prior analytical or empirical attempts from multiple viewpoints are subsequently needed to inquire about the proposed conceptualization. Practical implications: Among the realistic consequences of this analysis is that while a number of leadership paradigms have been embraced by a broad body of leadership studies, the findings indicate that this paper should pay heed to the influential spiritual style of leadership, taking into account Islamic perspectives on the context of crisis. Therefore, Bangladeshi SMEs need to develop and run leadership training programs focused on the Islamic viewpoint of spirituality to encourage the actions of leaders during and after crises. Social implications: The legal and moral values of the society would ultimately be upgraded from this conceptualization. Moreover, less corruption in corporate activities would improve the economic prosperity of a nation. It would also contribute to the cross-cultural portrayal of the positive picture of Islam. Originality/value: This holistic conceptualization describes the mediating role of strategic innovation practices based on theoretical foundations, which have seldom been done in previous research, between the Islamic model of spiritual leadership and SME success during and after a crisis. © 2021, Ariful Islam, Nur Fadiah Mohd Zawawi and Sazali Abd Wahab.

Impact of supplemental vitamins and natural honey for treatment of COVID-19: A review

Abstract The main aim of the paper is to assess whether vitamin C, vitamin D, and natural honey can be administered in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic for promising in line methods with recent evidence. Both systematic literature and clinical trial identification were conducted by searching various databases. A total 58 articles and 29 clinical trials were selected wherein 11 for vitamin C, 16 for vitamin D, and 2 for natural honey were identified for analysis. The high doses of vitamin C (i.e. '200 mg/kg body weight/day, divided into 4 doses') has been found to reduce COVID-19 lung damage, various flu infections. Additionally, the high doses of vitamin C can shorten around 7.8% stay in the intensive care unit. At the same time, vitamin D can effectively protect from lung injury and acute respiratory infections whereas vitamin D deficiency severely affects 75% of the institutionalized people (serum 25(OH) D < 25 nmol/L). Meanwhile, natural honey which contains proteins (0.1-0.4%); ash (0.2%); water (15-17%) has potential antiviral effects and the ability to improve immunity. Therefore, the administration of vitamins and honey is the promising evidence-based approach for reducing fatalities, saving lives, and bringing the COVID-19 pandemic to a rapid end. It is believed that the utilization of vitamin C, vitamin D, and natural honey with the current treatment may be effective in treating COVID-19-caused fatal complications such as pneumonia. Therefore, high-level clinical studies are required on COVID-19 to administrate the effects of vitamins and natural honey.

Work Stressors and Intention to Leave Among Jordanian Nurses During COVID-19: A Cross-sectional study (preprint)

Background: Nurses come across several stressors in the workplace, especially during COVID-19 outbreaks. Work stressors are associated with physical and psychological health problems among workers and thus increase their intentions to leave work. Aim: This study aimed to identify Jordanian nurses’ perceptions regarding work stressors and intention to leave levels, examine if nurses' perceptions regarding work stressors and intention to leave scores differ across nurses' demographic data, and investigate the relationship between work stressors and intention to leave. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted. A convenient sample of 154 nurses who worked with COVID-19 patients participated in this study. Self-reported questionnaires were sent online via social media applications to participants.  Results: Most of the participants (85.7%) had a positive level of work stressors regarding their perceptions. Concerning the intention to leave, 57.8% of participants had a slightly positive level, and 21.4% had a moderately positive level. There were significant differences in work stressors and the intention to leave scores according to nurses' age, marital status, educational level, and experience duration (p< 0.015). Also, work stressors significantly correlated with intention to leave (r = 0.52, p< 0.001).  Conclusions: Health organizations must adopt strategies, programs, and policies to reduce work stressors and the intention to leave among nurses during these stressful events.

Early Usability Evaluation of a Relational Agent for the COVID-19 Pandemic

Relational agents (RAs) have shown effectiveness in various health interventions with and without healthcare professionals (HCPs) and hospital facilities. RAs have not been widely researched in COVID-19 context, although they can give health interventions during the pandemic. Addressing this gap, this work presents an early usability evaluation of a prototypical RA, which is iteratively designed and developed in collaboration with infected patients (n=21) and two groups of HCPs (n=19, n=16) to aid COVID-19 patients at various stages about four main tasks: testing guidance, support during self-isolation, handling emergency situations, and promoting post-infection mental well-being. The prototype obtained an average score of 58.82 on the system usability scale (SUS) after being evaluated by 98 people. This result implies that the suggested design still needs to be improved for greater usability and adoption. © 2022 Owner/Author.

COVID-19 Chest X-Ray Classification with Augmented GAN

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a major concern now. According to the Globe Health Organization, the coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic is straining healthcare systems worldwide (WHO). Early-stage detection using artificial intelligence of this virus will help in the fast recovery. Early identification of this infection utilizing artificial intelligence will aid in its quick recovery. In the fight against COVID-19, it’s critical to have a positive chest X-ray for infected patients. Early research suggests that chest X-ray abnormalities in COVID-19 patients are common. Using augmented chest X-ray images, this research proposes a novel model for identifying the presence of COVID-19. As medical images are sensitive, GAN (Generative Adversarial Networks) augments chest X-Ray images. Augmented images are classified through our proposed model. Then classified images are segmented for validation. GAN augmentation model consists of a generator and a discriminator. Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) based classification model needs a substantial amount of training data. Augmentation increased dataset into 10x amount. Before augmentation, our initial model received 94.42% accuracy, and after augmentation, our final model accuracy raised to 98.58%. We hope our model will detect COVID-19 presence accurately through X-Ray images. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

Jordanian nurses' attitudes toward using electronic health records during COVID-19 pandemic.

Electronic health records (EHRs) have proven their effectiveness during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. However, successful implementation of EHRs requires assessing nurses' attitudes as they are considered the first line in providing direct care for patients. This study assessed Jordanian nurses' attitudes and examined factors that affect nurses' attitudes toward using EHRs. A cross-sectional, correlational design was used. A convenient sample of 130 nurses was recruited from three major public hospitals in Jordan. All Participants completed the Nurses' attitudes Towards Computerization (NATC) Questionnaire. The overall nurses' attitude was positive; the mean was 61.85 (SD = 10.97). Findings revealed no significant relationship between nurses' attitudes toward using EHRs and nurses' age, gender, education level, previous computer skills experience, years of work experience, and years of dealing with EHRs. However, the work unit was found to have a significant correlation with nurses' attitudes toward using EHRs. Therefore, nurse administrators should arrange for the conduct of educational workshops and continuous training programs considering the needs of the nurses.

Deranged Liver Enzymes in COVID-19 Patients;and its Impacts on Prognosis

Objectives: The objective of this study was to investigate derangement of liver enzymes in COVID-19 patients. The prevalence of deranged hepatic enzymes with COVID-19 infection, its association with other co-morbidities and any changes in its prognosis were investigated. Methodology: This study was conducted in Mayo hospital from 1st June 2021 till 31st September 2021. A number of 224 patients were included in this study. Both male and female patients of varying age groups were included in the study. Laboratory tests were conducted to collect data related to liver enzyme values of each patient. Liver function test (LFT) was performed twice, first on day 1 and then on day 7 to observe any further changes in liver enzymes values in COVID-19 patients. The LFTs of the patients told us Bilirubin, Alanine aminotransferase (ALT), Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP), C-reactive protein (CRP), Ferritin and D-dimer levels in the body. The data were analyzed by SPSS analysis. The t-test used was for the comparison of standard features in both groups. The P value less than 0.05 was regarded significant. Data about co-morbidities, autoimmune disease and its treatment, and outcome was also collected. Gender, autoimmune disease and COVID-19 PCR data was analyzed using descriptive analysis. Prevalence of deranged liver enzymes in COVID-19 patients was analyzed using paired sample test. Association with co-morbidities and prognosis was also analyzed by frequency analysis. Result(s): Sample consists of 224 individuals among them the ratio of male and female was 50:50 with age ranging 17-90 years. There were 220 COVID-19 PCR positive patients, 1 negative and 3 suspected patients with about 89.7 per cent patients having no autoimmune disease. The results showed that bilirubin, ALT and D-dimer show significant derangement in COVID-19 patients while ALP, CRP and Ferritin did not. The patients with both diabetes mellitus and hypertension showed the highest percentage of association with the value being 25 percent. Other co-morbidities like asthma, chronic liver disease and hepatitis C among many other also showed association with corona virus disease. And the results of prognosis showed that 33 percent, of the patients were shifted to the ICU. 18.8 percent of the patients were admitted in the hospital. 20.5 percent of the patients died. 18.8 percent were discharged and 6.3 percent shifted to the HDU. Conclusion(s): As the results show liver enzyme ALT, D-dimer and bilirubin show significant derangement in COVID-19 patients. This concludes that some, but not all, of the liver enzyme derangement is prevalent in COVID-19 patients. The patients with both diabetes mellitus and hypertension showed highest association with COVID-19. The patients being shifted to the ICU was the highest prognosis of disease. Other than that a large number of patients died, some were admitted to the hospital due to worsening condition, some discharged and others shifted to the HDU. Copyright © 2022 Lahore Medical And Dental College. All rights reserved.

Community-based asthma assessment in young children: adaptations for a multicentre longitudinal study in South Asia.

Background: Systematic assessment of childhood asthma is challenging in low- and middle-income country (LMIC) settings due to the lack of standardised and validated methodologies. We describe the contextual challenges and adaptation strategies in the implementation of a community-based asthma assessment in four resource-constrained settings in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. Method: We followed a group of children of age 6-8 years for 12 months to record their respiratory health outcomes. The study participants were enrolled at four study sites of the 'Aetiology of Neonatal Infection in South Asia (ANISA)' study. We standardised the research methods for the sites, trained field staff for uniform data collection and provided a 'Child Card' to the caregiver to record the illness history of the participants. We visited the children on three different occasions to collect data on respiratory-related illnesses. The lung function of the children was assessed in the outreach clinics using portable spirometers before and after 6-minute exercise, and capillary blood was examined under light microscopes to determine eosinophil levels. Results: We enrolled 1512 children, 95.5% (1476/1512) of them completed the follow-up, and 81.5% (1232/1512) participants attended the lung function assessment tests. Pre- and post-exercise spirometry was performed successfully in 88.6% (1091/1232) and 85.7% (1056/1232) of children who attempted these tests. Limited access to health care services, shortage of skilled human resources, and cultural diversity were the main challenges in adopting uniform procedures across all sites. Designing the study implementation plan based on the local contexts and providing extensive training of the healthcare workers helped us to overcome these challenges. Conclusion: This study can be seen as a large-scale feasibility assessment of applying spirometry and exercise challenge tests in community settings of LMICs and provides confidence to build capacity to evaluate children's respiratory outcomes in future translational research studies.

Jordanian nurses’ attitudes toward using electronic health records during COVID-19 pandemic

Electronic health records (EHRs) have proven their effectiveness during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. However, successful implementation of EHRs requires assessing nurses' attitudes as they are considered the first line in providing direct care for patients. This study assessed Jordanian nurses' attitudes and examined factors that affect nurses' attitudes toward using EHRs. A cross-sectional, correlational design was used. A convenient sample of 130 nurses was recruited from three major public hospitals in Jordan. All Participants completed the Nurses' attitudes Towards Computerization (NATC) Questionnaire. The overall nurses' attitude was positive;the mean was 61.85 (SD = 10.97). Findings revealed no significant relationship between nurses' attitudes toward using EHRs and nurses’ age, gender, education level, previous computer skills experience, years of work experience, and years of dealing with EHRs. However, the work unit was found to have a significant correlation with nurses' attitudes toward using EHRs. Therefore, nurse administrators should arrange for the conduct of educational workshops and continuous training programs considering the needs of the nurses.

Prevalence of dermatological manifestations due to face mask use and its associated factors during COVID-19 among the general population of Bangladesh: A nationwide cross-sectional survey.

Following the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, individuals have begun to take preventive measures to avoid exposure. Among the precautionary measures, facemask was mostly emphasized. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of dermatological symptoms linked with face mask usage and explore other associated factors. This cross-sectional survey was conducted throughout all eight divisions of Bangladesh. 1297 people were approached using a fixed-step procedure on a random route sample where 803 fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The overall prevalence of dermatological manifestation in this study was 40.85%. The common dermatological manifestations due to facemasks use were acne (26%), allergy symptoms (24%), traumatic symptoms (24%), and other symptoms (26%). Two important frequently reported risk factors were previous history of skin diseases and obesity. Females were more likely to have acne (CI: 1.199, 3.098; p = .007) and allergy issues (CI: 1.042, 2.359; p = .031). N95 and KN95 masks were more likely to produce allergic symptoms, while surgical mask users were more likely to develop acne. Acne was prevalent more than twice (CI: 1.42, 4.26; p = 0.001) in persons with a COVID-19 infection history. Further exploration is required to find out the reason. Surgical mask users reported more complaints than other types of masks, and prolonged use caused more skin symptoms. Modifications in the pattern of facemask usage and planning for work recesses might also be advised to provide for a pause from uninterrupted facemask use.

Incidence, Risk Factor and Outcome of Delirium in Intensive Care Unit (COVID vs Non-COVID ICU): An Observational Study

Aim and background: Delirium is the disturbance of consciousness characterised by acute onset, rapid fluctuations in mental status, and impaired cognitive functioning. The patient's ability to receive, process, store, and recall information is impaired in delirium. Objective: To study the incidence of delirium in patients in COVID and non-COVID ICU. To also study various risk factors associated with delirium. Materials and methods: After ethical committee approval and written informed consent, this study was carried out over a period of 1 year (August 2020 to July 2021). Each patient meeting the inclusion criteria was evaluated on the RAAS score within 24 hours of admission, then screened for delirium according to CAM-ICU worksheet every 6th hourly after admission in MICU. 50 patients were studied each in COVID and non-COVID ICU. Patients found to have delirium after the first assessment were classified as new cases. Various risk factors were evaluated prospectively. Results: Incidence of delirium in non-COVID ICU was 29%, while in COVID ICU was 37%. Delirium is present in a patient who has risk factors including smoking, higher severity of illness, oversedation, and mechanical ventilation. Antipsychotics can be used for patients who develop delirium. Conclusion: Delirium is a preventable issue in ICU patients that can be managed by preventing the risk factors that will decrease overall length of stay in ICU.

Students’ perception of academic databases as recognition of learning and research during the COVID-19 pandemic

Consistent with their goal of becoming a centre for educational excellence in teaching, learning and research, the authorities of Chinese higher education introduced their academic database system as one of their e-library services. However, the existing literature exhibits inadequate empirical measurements of academic databases in all aspects of higher education throughout the world during the COVID-19 pandemic. To address this gap, this study aims to validate the technology satisfaction model (TSM) for measuring students’ satisfaction in using academic databases for their learning and research purposes. This study also analysed local and international academic databases to explore whether these databases could play a moderating role in shaping learners’ satisfaction. The data were collected through a survey of 500 respondents studying at a research university in Shanghai. The results, which were analysed by structural equation modelling and the Rasch model, showed that students’ satisfaction is determined by three valid predictors: computer self-efficacy, perceived usefulness and ease of use, and causal direct and indirect relationships among these variables in the use of local and international academic databases. Our new findings on the moderating effect of local (i.e. Chinese) and international (e.g. English) academic databases highlighted that the TSM has successfully estimated dual databases and produced insignificant, dissimilar results. This study could aid local and international educators, researchers, information science professionals and others in measuring the perception of academic databases for learning and research. This research could also serve as a guideline for researchers and psychometricians in measuring innovative learning technologies using structural equation modelling and the Rasch model. This is the unique contribution of this study, which concludes that local and international academic databases are almost equally important for postgraduate students at a research university in China. Moreover, these students are satisfied in using these academic databases to learn and do research. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Information Science is the property of Sage Publications, Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Predicting the potential for zoonotic transmission and host associations for novel viruses.

Host-virus associations have co-evolved under ecological and evolutionary selection pressures that shape cross-species transmission and spillover to humans. Observed virus-host associations provide relevant context for newly discovered wildlife viruses to assess knowledge gaps in host-range and estimate pathways for potential human infection. Using models to predict virus-host networks, we predicted the likelihood of humans as hosts for 513 newly discovered viruses detected by large-scale wildlife surveillance at high-risk animal-human interfaces in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Predictions indicated that novel coronaviruses are likely to infect a greater number of host species than viruses from other families. Our models further characterize novel viruses through prioritization scores and directly inform surveillance targets to identify host ranges for newly discovered viruses.

Euphorbia neriifolia Leaf Juice on Mild and Moderate COVID-19 Patients: Implications in OMICRON Era

Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has shattered the public health delivery system of most of the countries of the world. COVID-19 displays variable clinical presentations. The severe COVID-19 represents a fulminant pathological condition and most of the patients run a downhill course if extensive medical measures are not adopted. The major challenges about COVID-19 are related to develop strategies to manage huge populations of mild and moderate cases of COVID-19 with two realistic purposes: (1) early negativity of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus and (2) arrest of progression of moderate COVID-19 patients from developing severe complications. Although several medications have been repurposed for these purposes, none of these have passed the test of time in global perspective. Thus, there remains a pressing need to develop new and novel innovative management strategies for these patients as new variants of SARS-CoV-2 have been destroying the normal public health delivery system of different countries from time to time. The study presented here has checked the safety and efficacy of a herbal medication, leaves of Euphorbia neriifolia Linn (E. neriifolia), in mild and moderate COVID-19 patients. Sixty patients (30 mild COVID-19 and 30 moderate COVID-19) were enrolled in the study. Fifteen mild COVID-19 patients received standard of care (SOC) management, and the remaining 15 patients received SOC plus E. neriifolia. The moderate COVID-19 patients similarly received either SOC (N = 15) or SOC plus E. neriifolia (N = 15). Although there were marked diversity regarding biochemical parameters of these patients at entry, the moderate COVID-19 patients receiving E. neriifolia showed decrease in C-reactive protein and D-dimer and increase in oxygen saturation 7 days after trial commencement. However, these improvements were not detected in moderate COVID-19 patients receiving SOC. Hospital staying was significantly lower in both mild and moderate COVID-19 patients receiving SOC plus E. neriifolia than those receiving only SOC. Taken together, it may be proposed that usage of E. neriifolia may have beneficial effects regarding management for COVID-19 patients, especially for those in developing and resource-constrained countries, although a conclusive statement may not be given due to small sample size. This herbal medication is also pertinent in the context of emergence of OMICRON variant of COVID-19 as the overload of SARS-CoV-2-infecetd patients may be addressed considerably by this medication without hospitalization, if proper communication between patients and physicians can be ensured. How to cite this article Pramanik MEA, Miah MMZ, Ahmed I, et al. Euphorbia neriifolia Leaf Juice on Mild and Moderate COVID-19 Patients: Implications in OMICRON Era. Euroasian J Hepato-Gastroenterol 2022;12(1):10–18.