In this study, a commercially available polypropylene homopolymer (H-PP) was blended with blow molding polyethylene (PE) grade via melt mixing using a compounding machine. The resulting blends were subjected to high-temperature size exclusion chromatography (SEC) analysis, coupled with infrared-5 (IR-5), viscometer (VISCO), and multi-angle laser light scattering (MALS) detectors. The molecular weight (MW) and MW distributions were investigated using SEC, and the exact blend compositions were evaluated using C nuclear magnetic resonance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLung cancer remains a leading cause of cancer-related mortality globally and presents significant challenges in Egypt. In 2023, the first annual meeting of the Thoracic Oncology Multidisciplinary Faculty, organized by the Egyptian Cancer Research Network and the Egyptian Society of Respiratory Neoplasms, was held in Cairo, Egypt. The meeting aimed to address gaps in lung cancer management across Egypt and the broader Middle East and North Africa region.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To evaluate the impact of UCCs on reducing non-urgent Emergency Department (ED) visits and improving patient flow, focusing on metrics such as door-to-doctor time, doctor-to-decision time, and overall patient disposition.
Methods: This observational cohort pre-post study analyzed data from 198,050 ED visits to King Fahad Hospital, Al Madina Al Munawara between June 2021 and May 2023 and compared visit patterns before and after UCC implementation.
Results: Post-UCC implementation, the average door-to-doctor time decreased but was not statistically significant.
Delirium, a neuropsychiatric syndrome characterized by acute disruptions in attention and awareness, significantly impacts children in Pediatric Intensive Care Units (PICUs), leading to prolonged hospitalization, increased infection risk, and dependence on mechanical ventilation. Despite growing recognition, its true burden and risk factors in children remain poorly understood. This prospective cohort study investigated the prevalence, characteristics, and potential therapeutic targets for delirium in 890 children admitted to a tertiary PICU between January and December 2022.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIt is widely recognized that fuzzy number theory relies on the characteristic function. However, within the fuzzy realm, the characteristic function transforms into a membership function contingent upon the interval [0,1]. This implies that real numbers and intervals represent exceptional cases of fuzzy numbers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Cardiovascular disease risk assessment is a key tool in primary prevention. The ADRS (Abu Dhabi Risk Study) is a retrospective cohort study aiming to develop 10-year risk prediction equations for coronary artery disease (CAD), stroke, and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), and validate international risk equations.
Methods And Results: The 8699 participants were examined in the Abu Dhabi cardiovascular screening program from 2011 to 2013 with a subsequent average follow-up of 9.
In recent years, water pollution has become a pressing global issue because of the continuous release of organic dyes from various industries. Therefore, finding an easy way to remove these harmful dyes from water has drawn the attention of researchers. This study investigates the removal of toxic Rose Bengal (RB) dye using hematite nanoparticles as a visible light photocatalyst without any additive.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRecently, we have reported the influence of various reaction atmospheres on the solid-state reaction kinetics of ferrocene, where oxalic acid dihydrate was used as a coprecursor. In this light, present study discusses on the nature of decomposed materials of the solid-state reactions of ferrocene in O, air, and N atmospheres. The ambient and oxidative atmospheres caused the decomposition to yield pure hematite nanomaterials, whereas cementite nanomaterials along with α-Fe were obtained in N atmosphere.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Health warnings on cigarette sticks are emerging as a tool to control tobacco consumption; hence, understanding how they are perceived is valuable in determining their effectiveness. Our study aimed to evaluate the perception of health-related messages and warnings on individual cigarette sticks. It also aimed to evaluate the perceptions of the effectiveness of cigarette packaging warnings and the acceptance level for the inclusion of health warnings on cigarette sticks.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Math anxiety (MA) is a worldwide appearing academic anxiety that can affect student mental health and deter students from math and science-related career choices.
Method: Using the Arabic version of the Modified-Abbreviated Math Anxiety Scale (m-AMAS), the prevalence of MA was investigated in a very large sample of students (N = 10093) from grades 7 to 12 in Qatar.
Results: The results showed a better fit to the original two-factor model of the m-AMAS (learning MA and Evaluation MA) than to a single-factor solution.
The high-quality n-type CdS on a p-type Si (111) photodetector device was prepared for the first time by a one-pot method based on an ns laser ablation method in a liquid medium. Cadmium target was ablated in DMSO solution, containing sulfur precursor, and stirred, assisting in 1D-growth, to create the sulfide structure as CdS nano-ropes form, followed by depositing on the Si-substrate by spin coating. The morphological, structural, and optical characteristics of the CdS structure were examined using X-ray diffraction, transmission, and scanning electron microscopy, photoluminescence, and UV-VIS spectroscopy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: The aim was to identify and review the research literature on dissuasive cigarettes, including key concepts, types, sources of evidence and research gaps.
Data Sources: PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science databases were searched up to January 2023 with no language or date restrictions. All study designs were included.
A polymeric nanocomposite film, composed of PMMA/PVDF and different amounts of CuO NPs, was successfully prepared using the casting method to enhance its electrical conductivity. Various techniques were employed to investigate their physicochemical properties. The addition of CuO NPs causes a noticeable difference in the intensities and locations of vibrational peaks in all bands, confirming the incorporation of CuO NPs inside the PVDF/PMMA.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe regenerative braking in the tram allows the energy to be returned to the power grid through a power inverter. Since the inverter location between the tram and the power grid is not fixed, resulting in a wide variety of impedance networks at grid coupling points, posing a severe threat to the stable operation of the grid-tied inverter (GTI). By independently changing the loop characteristics of the GTI, the adaptive fuzzy PI controller (AFPIC) can adjust according to different impedance network parameters.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground Overuse or misuse of broad-spectrum antibiotics appeared to be a major cause of increased antibiotic resistance. This study aimed to explore awareness and knowledge of antibiotic prescribing and resistance among hospital physicians in Medina, Saudi Arabia. Methodology A cross-sectional study was conducted among 223 physicians in seven public hospitals in Medina, Saudi Arabia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe growth of distributed generation significantly reduces the synchronous generators' overall rotational inertia, causing large frequency deviation and leading to an unstable grid. Adding virtual rotational inertia using virtual synchronous generators (VSG) is a promising technique to stabilize grid frequency. Due to coupled nature of frequency and active output power in a grid-tied virtual synchronous generator (GTVSG), the simultaneous design of transient response and steady state error becomes challenging.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic-induced social restrictions, including face masks, on patients with hearing problems. Methodology This cross-sectional survey study was conducted in an ENT tertiary care center. After signing the consent form, we invited study subjects with hearing disabilities who were using unilateral or bilateral hearing aids to participate in filling out the study survey.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAn automotive supply chain includes a range of activities from the concept of the product to its final transfer to a customer and subsequent vehicle maintenance. The three distinct stages of this chain are production, sales, and maintenance. In many countries, automobile records are not available to the public and anyone who has access to the central database or government systems can tamper with these records.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFResearch on internet gaming disorder (IGD) has increased considerably over the last decade. Although most IGD research has focused on Western or South Asian samples, it is critical to understand and assess this disorder among other populations. The present study investigated the association between IGD and sensation seeking among Arab adolescents.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMicromachines (Basel)
July 2022
This paper examines the design and analysis of DC-DC converters for high-power and low-voltage applications such as renewable energy sources (RESs) and comparisons between converters based on switch stresses and efficiency. The RESs including photovoltaic arrays and fuel cell stacks must have enhanced output voltages, such as 380 V DC in the case of a full bridge inverter or 760 V DC in the case of a half bridge inverter, in order to interface with the 220 V AC grid-connected power system. One of the primary difficulties in developing renewable energy systems is enhancing DC-DC converters' efficiency to enable high step-up voltage conversion with high efficiency and low voltage stress.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Objective: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is milder with favorable outcomes in children than in adults. However, detailed data regarding COVID-19 in children from Saudi Arabia are scarce. This study aimed to describe COVID-19 among children in Al-Madinah, Saudi Arabia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) are widely distributed in human gastrointestinal (GI) tract, especially in the layer of muscularis externa between neurons and smooth muscles. They play a very important role of coordination of GI tract motility. The aims of this research were to study the morphology and distribution of ICC in the muscularis externa of the GI tract, using immunohistochemistry staining methods, to determine the distribution of immune reactivity of anoctamin 1 (Ano1) compared with c-Kit, and to determine if Ano1 is a reliable marker for ICC in human GI tract.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Meropenem is commonly used in the ICU to treat gram-negative infections. Due to various pathophysiological changes, critically ill patients are at higher risk of having subtherapeutic concentrations and hence have a higher risk of treatment failure-especially in regions where gram-negative drug resistance is increasing, such as Saudi Arabia. No studies have evaluated the pharmacokinetics of meropenem in critically ill patients in Saudi Arabia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCongenital absence of more than 6 teeth except the third molar is known as oligodontia. It can affect both primary and permanent dentitions. The affected individuals usually demonstrate esthetic, functional, and psychological concerns.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe worldwide spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the absence of medical treatment and vaccination, the delayed onset of symptoms, and the rapid human-to-human transmission have led the vast majority of countries to impose strict social distancing procedures. Whereas it appears that social distancing is an effective strategy for mitigating spread, it may also result in a variety of unintended negative consequences to individuals' psychological well-being and mental health. During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the present study examined associations among some demographic variables (gender, age, marital and working statuses, and having a family member or a friend infected with COVID-19), acceptance of social distancing, mood changes, and quality of life (QoL) in Qatar, a high-income Middle Eastern Arabic-speaking country.
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