IoT for Development of Smart Dairy Farming Akbar, Muhammad Osama; Shahbaz khan, Muhammad Saad; Ali, Muhammad Jamshaid ...
Journal of food quality,
2020, Volume:
2020
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Internet of things (IoT) and data-driven techniques are creating greater opportunities for smart dairy farming. The demand for milk is continuously increasing due to increasing population of the ...world. The consumption of the dairy products is more in developed countries as compared to developing countries. To meet this increased demand for milk products, better technological techniques for improving milk yield are required. It is expected that the use of IoT and different AI techniques can assist a farmer to overcome different traditional farming challenges and increase the milk production. In this research, the authors address different challenges that a dairy farmer has to face in daily life. Brief introduction of smart dairy farming (SDF) is presented with respect to the innovation in production and the processes of smart dairy farming. This review focuses on different aspects of smart dairy farming, and finally a state-of-the-art framework that can assist the farmers to increase the milk yield by using different latest technologies has been proposed. These technological methods can decrease the factors negatively affecting milk production and increase those positively affecting production with minimal resources.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Myocarditis and pericarditis have been reported after COVID‐19 vaccine administration in children and adolescents, raising the concern about their possible association with these vaccines. The ...objective was to explore the incidence, clinical presentation, and association of myocarditis and pericarditis with COVID‐19 vaccines in children and adolescents. We conducted a systematic literature search on three databases, that is, Cochrane, MEDLINE/PubMed, and EMBASE from inception till March 2022. A total of three case reports, four case series, and six observational studies were included in the review. For case reports and case series, the mean age of the patients was 17.4 years, with 96.9% being male. Chest pain (n = 31, 93.9%), fever (n = 18, 54.5%), myalgias (n = 15, 45.4%) and headache (n = 9, 27.2%) were the most common presentations. Out of 33 patients, 32 (96.9%) of patients received Pfizer‐BioNTech whereas only one (3.03%) received Moderna (mRNA 1273). Clinical investigations revealed ST elevation (n = 32, 97%), and elevated CRP (n = 9, 27.2%) and cardiac troponin (n = 29, 87.8%). The pooled incidence of myocarditis and pericarditis from observational studies was (0.00063%) and (0.000074%) %, respectively. Myocarditis and pericarditis in children and adolescents after the COVID‐19 vaccines were more prevalent among males and more commonly observed after the second dose of Pfizer. Though the overall incidence was low, however, the clinicians should consider myocarditis and pericarditis as probable diagnosis when encountering young patients, with a history of vaccine administration, presenting with suggestive findings.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Islamic business ethics (IBE) has overlooked a major voice in Islam: the ulama (Islamic religious scholars). To enhance our understanding of Islam and business ethics we argue for this voice's ...inclusion. We demonstrate these contentions by presenting findings from a qualitative study in which we interviewed 50 ulama in respect of Islam's views on the UN Global Compact. While the current view in IBE research is that Islam and the UN Global Compact are compatible, our findings reveal that the ulama reject this argument. By including the voices of ulama in IBE research, novel and alternative perspectives on business ethics are realized. Our research illustrates the salience of perspectives exogenous to Western modernity as a means of enlivening ethical debate and—by implication—averting moral closure in business ethics and in the wider field of management and organization studies in which it is embedded.
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NUK, OILJ, SAZU, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Background Variceal bleeding is a life-threatening complication of cirrhosis. Traditionally, endoscopy has been utilized as a preferred modality for the detection and grading of esophageal varices. ...However, endoscopy is an invasive procedure and may not be readily available in resource-limited settings. To overcome this limitation, various non-invasive tests, including Doppler ultrasonography (DUS) with portal vein (PV) velocity measurement, have been investigated to predict the presence of esophageal varices (EV). This study aimed to evaluate the potential utility of portal vein flow velocity (PVFV) as a non-invasive alternative to endoscopic screening for predicting the presence of esophageal varices among cirrhotic patients. Methodology This validation cross-sectional study was carried out at the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute & Research Centre (PKLI&RC), Lahore, Pakistan from June 8, 2022, to March 8, 2023. Cirrhotic patients were enrolled based on clinical, laboratory, and radiological assessments. Doppler ultrasonography was performed to measure portal vein flow velocity along other relevant indices. Subsequently, all patients underwent endoscopic evaluation to screen and grade the esophageal varices. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify significant clinical predictors of EV based on the results of the independent sample t-tests or Mann-Whitney U tests. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were employed to determine the optimal cut-off value for portal vein flow velocity (PVFV). Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and diagnostic accuracy were calculated based on the identified cut-off value. A p-value ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results A cohort of 137 cirrhotic patients was enrolled. The study population consisted of 92 males (67.2%) and 45 females (32.8%). Endoscopic screening confirmed the presence of esophageal varices in 81 patients (59.91%). A multivariate analysis revealed that aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index (APRI) (p=0.008) and portal vein flow velocity (p=0.001) were significant factors associated with esophageal varices and were used for receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The area under the curve (AUC) for PVFV was 0.981, and for APRI, it was 0.711. At a cut-off value of 18 cm/sec for PVFV, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and diagnostic accuracy for esophageal varices were found to be 93.83%, 92.86%, 95%, 91.23%, and 93.43%, respectively. Conclusion Measurement of portal vein flow velocity using Doppler ultrasonography (DUS) is a reliable screening method for predicting the presence of esophageal varices (EV) in patients with liver cirrhosis. DUS offers several advantages, including its non-invasive nature, cost-effectiveness, and widespread availability, making it a recommended approach due to its high diagnostic accuracy.
Objective: To assess the knowledge of caregivers in a tertiary care setting about child abuse, their perception of potential barriers in the way of seeking medical advice for the victims, and to ...identify proposed solutions to ensure prevention and reporting of child abuse.
Method: The cross-sectional study was conducted from June to December 2022 at the paediatric ward of the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, and comprised caregivers who were attendants of inpatients. Data was collected using a predesigned anonymous questionnaire consisting of demographic information and 27 items that were scored on a 6-point Likert scale. Data was analysed using SPSS 20.
Results: Of the 144 caregivers, 96(66.6%) were females and 48(33.3%) were males. Overall, 86(59.7%) were aged <35 years, 132(91.7%) were married, and 120(83.3%) were the admitted child’s parent. The majority of caregivers 110(76.4%) perceived themselves to possess a high level of knowledge about child abuse. Barriers identified included a lack of trust in police and medicolegal departments 136(94.4%), fear of repercussion from the suspect 120(83.3%) and lack of confidentiality of the victims’ identity 116(80.6%). The proposed solutions included spreading awareness among teachers 136(94.4%) and caregivers 131(91.0%) about timely reporting and consultation, and developing proper mechanisms to follow-up on victims 133(92.4%). There were significant associations between some demographic characteristics of the respondents and their self-perceived knowledge and perceptions (p<0.05).
Conclusion: There was found a need to enhance public trust, ensure confidentiality, and fostering awareness through targeted strategies for a safer and more facilitative environment for children.
Key Words: Child abuse, Abuse reporting, Awareness, Caregivers.
A qualitative exploration of pharmacists' perceptions regarding COVID-19 conspiracies and their willingness to get vaccinated. A semi-structured questionnaire guide was developed using ground theory ...to conduct in-depth interviews. A total of 36 participants gave consent for an audio-recorded interview. Results have shown that most of the respondents believed that SARS-CoV-2 is a natural virus, not man-made, that causes a disease just like other viruses and it is absurd to believe that the vaccine is being used by foreign powers for the implantation of microchips just to control humans. A general opinion thatwhich reflected from the in-depth interview is that the pharmaceutical companies may be hiding some important information on COVID-19 to promote the sale of their product. Some doubts on the reliability and trustworthiness on the COVID-19 vaccine safety and efficacy data were noticed among the respondents. Factors leading to COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy were adverse reaction, cost of COVID-19 vaccine, and limited data on safety and efficacy profile of COVID-19 vaccine. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among health professionals is a major hindrance to our current fight against COVID-19 pandemic. Findings of this study are alarming, and the stakeholders must consider this ongoing vaccination campaign as an opportunity to formulate a mechanism to ensure high vaccination rate among general public and healthcare providers in Pakistan.
KEY POINTS
What was already known?
According to World Health Organization (WHO), vaccine hesitancy is one of the ten major threats to global healthcare system and it is a major barrier to achieve herd immunity around the globe.
Pakistan has begun vaccinating its people in a systematic phase-wise manner under which the healthcare workers and elderly people are prioritized for vaccination.
Previous experience tells us that vaccine hesitancy is a major problem in Pakistan and it is better to understand perceptions of pharmacists about COVID-19 vaccine who are the primary source of information for most of general population.
What this study adds:
This study is first of its kind to explore vaccine hesitancy among Pakistani pharmacists and the results of this study show that majority of the participants were willing to get COVID-19 vaccine and few of them have even got themselves vaccinated at the start of vaccination campaign.
Many among the willing participants considered cost of vaccine, adverse reactions, limited data, safety, and efficacy as major hindrance to their decision to get vaccine.
Few participants were found highly vaccine-hesitant because of their staunch belief in the prevalent myths and rumors about COVID-19 vaccine.
Objective The objective of this study is to observe the knowledge, attitude and practices related to antibiotic use, the prevalence of self-medication and non-adherence to the prescribed course of ...antibiotics across Pakistan. Method A cross-sectional quantitative study on knowledge, practices, attitude and adherence to antibiotic therapy was conducted from January 2021 to March 2022 among the adult population living in different areas across Pakistan. Individuals with poor knowledge were selected for video-based intervention programme. Video template produced by WHO to create antibiotic awareness was used for this purpose. A postintervention study was conducted to assess the improvement in their knowledge and practices regarding the use of antibiotics. Paired samples t-test was applied to assess the improvement in postintervention survey scores. Results 68.9% (n=340/493) of the participants were female and the majority of the sample population was from urban areas. Our study revealed that 39.2% (n=196) of individuals have undergone self-medication with antibiotics in the last 6 months and 42% (n=207) of the total participants were non-adherent to antibiotic treatment plan. Lack of proper information from healthcare professionals was observed to be the most important barrier to antibiotic treatment adherence. The interventional video was shown to 31.64% (n=156/493) of participants who lack proper knowledge about antibiotic use and its associated problems. There appeared to be a significant improvement in the postintervention mean scores of knowledge, practices, attitude and adherence related to antibiotics. Conclusion This study highlights the alarming situation of self-medication and non-adherence to antibiotic therapy. To cope with the situation, certain pertinent measures are direly needed before the precious lifesaving antibiotics become useless in eradicating various controllable microbial diseases.
Background Community pharmacies are integral to the healthcare system, actively contributing to patient safety through accurate dispensing, education, collaboration, monitoring, and the ...implementation of safety protocols. Their accessibility and role as medication experts make them key partners in promoting positive health outcomes for individuals and communities. Objective The current study will evaluate the patient safety culture (PSC) among community pharmacies in Karachi, Pakistan. Additionally, this study will measure the association between patient safety culture in community pharmacies and the demographic characteristics of the pharmacy staff. Methods A cross-sectional survey of pharmacy staff was conducted using a survey instrument developed by the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Demographic variables and assessments of safety culture in pharmacies were studied. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results Among the 102 participants, positive responses ranged from 30% to 87.5%. The highest positive response was for the dimension "mistakes in communication" (86.3%), followed by "communication across shifts" (82.2%) and "communication openness" (81.7%). The dimensions "overall perceptions of patient safety" and "response to mistakes" had the lowest positive responses (56.0% and 60.9%, respectively). Furthermore, many staff did not regularly record the errors, even if they impacted the practices. Conclusion There was an overall unfavorable perception of patient safety culture among the surveyed pharmacies of Karachi, Pakistan. However, the communication dimensions showed the highest positive response. There is a strong need to improve the overall perception of patient safety among the staff and develop an optimistic response to mistakes.
Pheochromocytoma is a rare neuroendocrine tumor of the adrenal gland. With its heterogeneous clinical presentation, its diagnosis is frequently elusive. This case focuses on an unusual presentation ...of pheochromocytoma without the typical picture of hypertension, palpitations, and headaches. A few similar reports suggest a role of interleukin-6 production by the tumor in this presentation, indicating that not all symptoms and signs of the disease are due to catecholamine secretion.
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IJS, NUK, UL, UM, UPUK, VSZLJ
This investigation assessed the potential of cepharanthine (CEP), a compound from Stephania cepharantha Hayata, in mitigating atherosclerosis in a hyperlipidemic rat model. Using Wistar rats, four ...distinct diet and drug treatment groups were established: a high-fat high sucrose diet (HFHS), HFHS supplemented with intraperitoneal cepharanthine (HFHS-C) or oral atorvastatin (HFHS-A) from the 8th week, and a normal-fat diet (NFD). The study aimed to evaluate diet and drug impact on aortic histopathological changes over 16 weeks. Our results revealed significant atherosclerosis prevention in the aorta of the HFHS-C group, marked by preserved endothelial integrity, absence of inflammation, and lack of atherosclerotic plaques. Additionally, CEP demonstrated a crucial role in preventing the emergence of cholesterol clefts and foamy macrophages. These findings suggest that CEP effectively curbs atherosclerosis progression in hyperlipidemic rats, reducing arterial fat deposition and offering a potential natural preventative strategy against this disease. Keywords: ABCC10, atherosclerosis, cepharanthine, foamy macrophages, hyperlipidemia.
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