Oral and Dental Needs and Teledentistry Applications in the Elderly: Real-Time Surveillance Using Google Trends

Featured ApplicationThe present cross-sectional analysis aimed to evaluate the level of interest in oral and dental needs and teledentistry applications among the elderly, as well as whether COVID-19 pandemic outbreaks were influenced by real-time surveillance, using Google Trends. As the number of elderly dental patients continues to increase, there is a growing need for specific interventions that address the biological and psychological issues of this population. Teledentistry represents a healthcare delivery system that can overcome these problems, although the oral and dental care provision methods involved are still unknown to most people. Indeed, there is a need to raise awareness of the indications for teledentistry, the available interventions, and the potential benefits for the oral and dental care of elderly patients.Considering the increasing need for oral and dental care in the elderly, teledentistry has been proposed to improve the education of elderly patients in oral health maintenance and risk factor control, identify patients' concerns in advance, facilitate monitoring, and save time and money. The present cross-sectional analysis of Google search data through real-time surveillance with Google Trends aimed to determine Google users' interest in oral and dental needs and teledentistry applications in the elderly, and to compare search volumes before and after the COVID-19 outbreak. Extracted CVS data were qualitatively analyzed. Pearson and Spearman correlation analyses were performed between searches for "elderly” and "teledentistry”, and all the oral and dental needs and teledentistry applications. The Mann–Whitney U test compared search volumes in the 36 months before and after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Google users' interest in the elderly and related oral and dental needs was diffusely medium–high, while teledentistry and its applications were of lower interest. Interest in teledentistry and its applications was strongly related to interest in the older population, which is consistent with the assumption that older adults represent the population segment that could benefit most from these tools. A positive correlation was also found between searches for "Elderly” and searches for almost all oral and dental needs typical of the geriatric population. Search volumes increased significantly after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. More information about teledentistry should be disseminated to increase knowledge and awareness, especially among older patients, about its indications, applications, and advantages.

Analysis of the Impact of the Pandemic on the Growth, Use, and Development of E-Business: A Systematic Review of the Literature

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected various sectors in multiple countries, among them the economic sector has been one of the most affected, so the search for tools or measures for the continuation of sales and processes became recurrent, finding in e-business and its components precise tools to counteract the situation. Therefore, the present research aims to analyze the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the use, growth, and development of e-business by conducting a systematic literature review using the PRISMA methodology, collecting scientific articles covering the period of the pandemic from databases such as IEEE Xplore, ScienceDirect, Scopus, EBSCO, and IOPScience. Despite the limitations in access to scientific articles, it could be concluded that within the main characteristics identified, e-business tools in general allowed many businesses to continue subsisting and making sales thanks to the increase in online users due to the COVID-19 lockdowns. Although it was identified that the adoption of these tools lacked policies, limitations, and supports from governments, the perception of their use was positive in that they were considered safe and efficient.

Do tourists seek the same information at destinations? Analysis of digital tourist information searches according to different types of tourists

The study analyses the searches for digital tourist information that different types of tourists, with different characteristics and connectivity preferences, make at destinations on the main topics they may require, allowing to know which digital sources they use, but also at what moment and in what situation. The study was based on an online survey that asked users about searches for tourist information they made at the destination during their last trip. The results show that tourists increasingly seek more tourist information at the destination, and search differently depending on the topic and their connectivity preferences in the different digital channels and locations. The results will allow Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) to provide tourists with suitable information, at the time and place they so require.

Research on Older Persons’ Access and Use of Technology in the Arab Region: Critical Overview and Future Directions

This paper presents the findings of a scoping review that maps exploratory evidence and gaps in research on information and communication technology (ICT) access and use among older persons in the Arab region. This review is part of a larger project that studies ICT access and use and related challenges faced by older adults in Qatar. A search was conducted in eleven scientific databases and search engines covering empirical studies published in English and Arabic between January 2016 and June 2021. Eleven studies were retrieved in the final corpus. A thematic analysis alongside the PRISMA for scoping reviews (PRISMA-ScR) was used to retrieve the findings. Our analysis identifies smartphones and social media applications for communication and information sharing as the most accessed and used technologies by older persons in the region. Moreover, our review highlighted the importance of the sociocultural factors in shaping ICT access and use by older persons in the region. The functional limitations of older persons in interaction with certain technology factors such as usability, functionality, and accessibility were also highlighted as major challenges inhibiting ICT access and use by this population segment. This scoping review provides a comprehensive overview of ICT access and use, and the factors affecting them among older persons in the Arab region. It highlights the scarcity of research on the subject in the region. It also stresses the fact that there is a need for more research on older persons and their caregivers in the context of the Arab world. More culturally appropriate need-based and adapted technologies are also recommended. Our review is a comprehensive source for researchers and technology developers interested in targeting and engaging older adults in the Arab region.

NHS librarians collaborate to develop a search bank peer reviewing and sharing COVID-19 searches: an evaluation.

BACKGROUND: Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, Health Education England (HEE) mobilised a group of expert searchers from NHS libraries in England to develop a platform for librarians to share peer reviewed search strategies and results on the Knowledge for Healthcare website. OBJECTIVES: (1) To document the origins of the COVID-19 search bank, (2) evaluate attitudes of NHS librarians in England towards the search bank and (3) identify lessons learned and consider whether the initiative might be developed further. METHODS: Structured interviews with the peer reviewers (n = 10) were conducted, and a questionnaire survey of the NHS library community using the search bank was undertaken. RESULTS: The interviews confirmed the value of collaboration. Expert searchers worked in pairs to peer review submitted search strategies. The survey (85 responses) indicated that a majority had used the search bank, and approved of the project, with some differences of opinion on functionality and future developments. DISCUSSION: Collaborative working for the search bank probably saved time for individual NHS librarians. The quality of the searches submitted was variable as were librarians' approaches to presentation and development of search strategies. Peer review benefits from a buddy approach among expert searchers and agreement about feedback provided to contributors. CONCLUSION: Search strategies are the most useful element of a search bank. Peer review can be challenging and would benefit from a formal structure, but it is professionally rewarding.

Augmented reality in retail: a systematic review of research foci and future research agenda

Purpose>This paper synthesises peer-reviewed published journal articles on augmented reality in retail settings to ascertain the current foci of academic research in this nascent area and develop a conceptual framework to form the basis for a future research agenda.Design/methodology/approach>Thematic analysis was conducted on a sample of 76 papers published between 1997 and 2020 identified through a systematic search of high quality peer-reviewed papers.Findings>Three major research avenues and theoretical bases emerged: AR adoption-based factors with technology acceptance models, AR user experience design and features that influence consumer behaviour, and AR shopping experience and value theory. The resultant S-O-R-based conceptual framework highlights the functional and experiential elements needed for an effective consumer AR experience, which could be implemented by retailers seeking to engage consumers with an augmented shopping experience and make AR applications financially viable.Originality/value>This is the first systematic literature review on AR in retail settings to include multiple disciplinary perspectives (HCI and marketing/management) and research methodologies.

Role of factors in eHealth literacy in period of COVID-19: a study of Turkey

Purpose>This study aims to understand the eHealth literacy skills of chronic patients and to explore the relations, patterns between eHealth literacy skills and different factors such as demographics, search strategies and health information sources and to explain their effects on eHealth literacy in Turkey in Izmir in COVID-19 outbreak.Design/methodology/approach>A quantitative method was used in the study including a questionnaire. A total of 604 chronic patients responded to the questionnaire who applied the five popularly identified hospitals in Izmir in Turkey. CHAID analysis method was implemented to explore the strongest correlation between eHealth literacy and independent variables.Findings>Using different social media types were correlated with patients’ eHealth literacy scores. Using Facebook, Twitter were the supportive predictors for the eHealth literacy scores. However, digital literacy was highly important for eHealth literacy.Originality/value>This study shows that the social media channels which provides much more information such as Facebook and Twitter for the chronic patient. This could be beneficial for the eHealth tools and social media content developers in terms of the supply of health information. Moreover, the study gives ideas about the effect of digital literacy and the importance of health information provided.

Stochastic harmonic trapping of a Lévy walk: transport and first-passage dynamics under soft resetting strategies

We introduce and study a Lévy walk (LW) model of particle spreading with a finite propagation speed combined with soft resets, stochastically occurring periods in which an harmonic external potential is switched on and forces the particle towards a specific position. Soft resets avoid instantaneous relocation of particles that in certain physical settings may be considered unphysical. Moreover, soft resets do not have a specific resetting point but lead the particle towards a resetting point by a restoring Hookean force. Depending on the exact choice for the LW waiting time density and the probability density of the periods when the harmonic potential is switched on, we demonstrate a rich emerging response behaviour including ballistic motion and superdiffusion. When the confinement periods of the soft-reset events are dominant, we observe a particle localisation with an associated non-equilibrium steady state. In this case the stationary particle probability density function turns out to acquire multimodal states. Our derivations are based on Markov chain ideas and LWs with multiple internal states, an approach that may be useful and flexible for the investigation of other generalised random walks with soft and hard resets. The spreading efficiency of soft-rest LWs is characterised by the first-passage time statistic.

Unpacking the Trend of the Belt and Road Initiative Narratives in Australian Media from 2013 to 2020

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a central policy of the Chinese government. This paper analyses the trend and evolution of the BRI narratives from 2013 to 2020 in Australian print media. By using Leximancer and NVivo Analysis, and frame analysis, this paper selects works from five Australian mainstream print media: The Sydney Morning Herald (The SMH), The Age, The Australian, The Australian Financial Review (The AFR) and Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). It identifies that the BRI has been gradually politicised and ideologized in Australian print media and these narratives shifted in tone from mostly positive to highly critical. Also, the BRI media narratives have been not about the BRI, but the Chinese government as a whole.