Dissecting the digital divide: A household fixed effects approach to estimating gender gaps in digital skills of youth in low- and middle-income economies.

This study investigates gender gaps in digital skills among youth (15-24 years old) in 32 low- and middle-income economies using data from UNICEF-supported and internationally comparable Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS). Utilizing a household fixed effects approach, we aim to isolate gender-based disparities from household-level variations. The intra-household analysis reveals significant inequalities, with biases against young women in possessing digital skills, including the very basic ones.

Potential effects of COVID-19 school closures on foundational skills and Country responses for mitigating learning loss.

This article investigates to what extent disrupted schooling and dropout affects children's acquisition of foundational skills prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using household survey data from thirteen low- and lower-middle-income countries, we find that missing or dropping out of school is associated with lower reading and numeracy outcomes. Drawing on global surveys conducted during the pandemic, we find that countries' remote learning responses are often inadequate to keep all children learning, avoid dropout, and mitigate the learning losses our findings predict, particularly for marginalized children and those at the pre-primary level.

Education response to COVID 19 pandemic, a special issue proposed by UNICEF: Editorial review.

This editorial paper presents 11 papers related to the special issue proposed by UNICEF on the Education Response to COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic provoked an education emergency of unprecedented scale. At its onset in February 2020, school closures were announced in the worst-hit countries.

How many students could continue learning during COVID-19-caused school closures? Introducing a new reachability indicator for measuring equity of remote learning.

This paper proposes a new reachability indicator to analyze the effectiveness of remote learning policies adopted by ministries of education in response to school closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The indicator provides the share of students that can potentially be reached by remote learning policies given the availability of necessary household assets such as radios, televisions, computers and internet access. The results of this analysis outline the stark inequities in access to remote learning, suggesting that at a minimum, more than 30 % of schoolchildren globally cannot be reached by remote learning policies due to the high variation in access to assets for remote learning that exists within and between the world regions.

Vitrectomy alone versus vitrectomy with simultaneous intravitreal injection of triamcinolone for macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion.

Background And Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of vitrectomy with simultaneous intravitreal injection of triamcinolone acetonide for macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion.

Patients And Methods: A retrospective study of 45 eyes with macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion. A posterior vitreous detachment was created and the vitreous cortex was completely removed, after which 23 eyes immediately had an intravitreal injection of triamcinolone acetonide (triamcinolone acetonide group) and 22 eyes did not (no triamcinolone acetonide group).

Efficacy of vitrectomy and internal limiting membrane removal for macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion.

Aim: To compare the results of vitrectomy with internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling to that without ILM peeling for macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO).

Methods: The medical records of 47 eyes of 47 patients with BRVO-associated macular edema were examined. To treat the macular edema, a posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) was created, and the ILM was removed in 13 eyes (ILM-removed group), whereas a PVD was created and the ILM was not removed in 34 eyes (ILM-preserved group).

Correlation of visual recovery and presence of photoreceptor inner/outer segment junction in optical coherence images after successful macular hole repair.

Purpose: To determine the relationship between the postoperative visual acuity (VA) and the presence of a photoreceptor inner segment (IS) and outer segment (OS) junction (IS/OS) in optical coherence tomographic (OCT) images after macular hole (MH) surgery.

Methods: Twenty-three eyes of 23 cases of idiopathic MH treated by vitrectomy were studied. The postoperative VA and OCT3 images of the fovea at 1, 3, and 6 months were examined.

Changes of electroretinogram without improvement of retinal circulation after radial optic neurotomy for central retinal vein occlusion. ERG changes after RON for CRVO.

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of radial optic neurotomy (RON) on retinal function in patients with central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO).

Methods: Ten eyes of 10 patients with CRVO underwent pars plana vitrectomy and RON. Standardized combined electroretinograms (ERGs) to full-field bright-flash stimuli were recorded preoperatively and, 3 months postoperatively.

Comparison of photodynamic therapy to transpupillary thermotherapy for polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy.

Purpose: To compare the therapeutic efficacy of photodynamic therapy (PDT) to that of transpupillary thermotherapy (TTT) for polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV).

Methods: PDT or TTT was performed on 46 eyes of 46 patients with PCV; 19 eyes were treated with TTT (TTT group) and 27 eyes with PDT (PDT group). PCV was diagnosed by fundus examination, fluorescein angiography (FA) , and indocyanine green angiography (ICGA) .

Early postoperative macular morphology and functional outcomes after successful macular hole surgery.

Purpose: To investigate the relationship between early postoperative macular morphology and postoperative visual acuity in eyes that had undergone successful macular hole (MH) surgery.

Methods: Pars plana vitrectomy and internal limiting membrane peeling were performed during surgery for idiopathic MHs on 25 eyes. The macular configuration was determined by optical coherence tomography, and best-corrected VA (BCVA) was measured postoperatively.

Changes in multifocal oscillatory potentials after internal limiting membrane removal for macular hole: multifocal OPs after ILM removal.

Purpose: To determine whether removal of the internal limiting membrane (ILM) during macular hole (MH) surgery alters the retinal function.

Methods: Multifocal electroretinograms (mfERGs) were recorded preoperatively and 3 months after surgery from 11 eyes of 10 patients with an idiopathic MH treated successfully by pars plana vitrectomy accompanied by ILM removal. A low frequency (9.

Correlation of retinal sensitivity measured with fundus-related microperimetry to visual acuity and retinal thickness in eyes with diabetic macular edema.

Aim: To determine whether significant correlations exist between retinal sensitivity measured by fundus-related microperimetry and the visual acuity and the foveal thickness measured by optical coherence tomography (OCT) in eyes with diabetic macular edema (DME).

Methods: A retrospective chart review of 32 eyes with DME and 17 normal healthy eyes that had undergone fundus-related microperimetry and OCT. The macular sensitivity was measured using the recently introduced fundus-related microperimeter, Micro Perimeter 1.

Morphological and functional changes of the macula after vitrectomy and creation of posterior vitreous detachment in eyes with diabetic macular edema.

The purpose of this study was to determine the morphological and functional changes in the macula after pars plana vitrectomy with the creation of a posterior vitreous detachment in eyes with diabetic macular edema (DME). A simple posterior vitreous detachment was created during pars plana vitrectomy accompanied by simultaneous cataract surgery in 19 eyes of 17 patients with DME. The visual acuity (log MAR units), multifocal electroretinograms (mfERGs), and optical coherence tomographically (OCT)-determined foveal thickness were determined preoperatively and at 6 months postoperatively.

Central retinal artery occlusion after radial optic neurotomy in a patient with central retinal vein occlusion.

Purpose: To describe a patient with a central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO) who developed central retinal artery occlusion after radial optic neurotomy.

Design: Interventional case report.

Methods: A 70-year-old woman with CRVO underwent a radial optic neurotomy on her right eye.

Vitrectomy with or without arteriovenous adventitial sheathotomy for macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion.

Purpose: compare the results of vitrectomy with or without arteriovenous (AV) crossing sheathotomy for macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO).

Design: Interventional case series.

Methods: A retrospective study of 36 eyes with BRVO-associated macular edema.

Electroretinogram contact lens electrode with tri-color light-emitting diode.

Purpose: This study was performed to evaluate a new electroretinogram (ERG) contact lens electrode containing four light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that are used for both stimulus and background light.

Methods: The luminance of each LED could be changed independently and used as stimulus light. Red, blue, bright white, and flickering ERGs were recorded in 12 normal subjects and two patients with progressive cone dystrophy.

Orbital T-cell lymphoma in a multiple myeloma patient.

Purpose: To report an 82-year-old woman with multiple myeloma who developed an orbital T-cell lymphoma concomitantly.

Methods: The patient presented with left upper eyelid swelling. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated an orbital mass compressing the eyeball.

Successful endoscopic resection of intramural metastasis after esophagectomy for esophageal cancer: a case report.

Carcinoma of the esophagus is often accompanied by intramural metastasis (IM) at the time of diagnosis, and the prognosis of patients with such metastasis is very poor. Here we report the case of a 60-year-old man who presented with a submucosal tumor in the wall of the cervical esophagus at 2 years after esophagectomy for thoracic esophageal cancer. The tumor was resected endoscopically and was histologically shown to be an IM of esophageal cancer.

Effective intra-arterial chemotherapy for acinar cell carcinoma of the pancreas.

A 41-year-old man with a huge pancreatic tumor (acinar cell carcinoma) was treated by intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), mitomycin C (MMC) and cisplatin (CDDP). The tumor was significantly reduced, and he underwent a pancreaticoduodenectomy with complete excision of the tumor. Unfortunately multiple metastatic liver tumors were noted 5 months after resection.

CYP1A1, CYP2E1 and GSTM1 polymorphisms are not associated with susceptibility to squamous-cell carcinoma of the esophagus.

We investigated the genetic polymorphisms of CYP1A1, CYP2E1 and GSTM1 in Japanese esophageal cancer patients (n = 53) with a histological diagnosis of squamous-cell carcinoma, to determine whether susceptibility to esophageal cancer is associated with these polymorphisms. There were no significant differences in the frequency distribution of any one of the 3 polymorphisms between esophageal cancer patients and 132 healthy Japanese controls. The genotype distributions in tobacco smokers or alcohol drinkers were also quite similar for male patients and male controls.

Successful treatment of an esophageal hemangioma by endoscopic injection sclerotherapy: report of a case.

We report herein the case of a 46-year-old man in whom an esophageal hemangioma was successfully treated by endoscopic injection sclerotherapy (EIS). The patient was admitted to hospital after a routine upper gastrointestinal series demonstrated a filling defect in the esophagus. Endoscopy, computed tomography (CT) images, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) subsequently revealed a hemangioma in the middle esophagus.