Drivers and impact of the 2021 extreme warm event in the tropical Angolan upwelling system.

Benguela Niños are extreme warm events that typically occur during the main downwelling season (austral fall) in the tropical Angolan upwelling system when the biological productivity is low. However, the extreme warm event that occurred between April and August 2021 stands out due to its late timing. It occurred and peaked during the main upwelling season in austral winter with sea surface temperature anomalies exceeding 2 °C in the Angola-Benguela area in June 2021.

COVID-19's influence on Karachi stock exchange: A comparative machine learning algorithms study for forecasting.

The COVID-19 pandemic has great effects for economies internationally. This study studies the interconnection between COVID-19 metrics and Pakistan's premier stock exchange, the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) with the object of identifying the most effective machine learning (ML) model for predicting KSE developments in the pandemic. Our investigation periods the peak COVID-19 period from March 1, 2020, to November 26, 2021, applying data from both the KSE 100 index and COVID-19 associated variables.

The importance of "one health approach" to the AMR study and surveillance in Angola and other African countries.

The dissemination of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial isolates in low- and middle-income countries, including several African countries, is a major concern. The poor sanitary conditions of rural and urban families observed in certain regions may favor the transmission of bacterial infections between animals and humans, including those promoted by strains resistant to practically all available antibiotics. In Angola, in particular, the presence of these strains in human hospitals has already been described.

Cross-cultural adaptation of National Early Warning Score 2 to Angolan Portuguese.

Objective: To make a cross-cultural adaptation of the National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS 2) from English to Angolan Portuguese.

Methods: A methodological research of cross-cultural adaptation was conducted, involving sequential stages of forward translation, translation synthesis, back-translation, and the application of the Delphi Panel methodology for analyzing semantic, idiomatic, experiential, and conceptual equivalence between the translated and the original versions. This process culminated in the development of a pre-final version, which subsequently underwent testing in a cohort of nurses ( = 37).

HIV-1 diversity and pre-treatment drug resistance in the era of integrase inhibitor among newly diagnosed ART-naïve adult patients in Luanda, Angola.

The surveillance of drug resistance in the HIV-1 naïve population remains critical to optimizing the effectiveness of antiretroviral therapy (ART), mainly in the era of integrase strand transfer inhibitor (INSTI) regimens. Currently, there is no data regarding resistance to INSTI in Angola since Dolutegravir-DTG was included in the first-line ART regimen. Herein, we investigated the HIV-1 genetic diversity and pretreatment drug resistance (PDR) profile against nucleoside/tide reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs), protease inhibitors (PIs), and INSTIs, using a next-generation sequencing (NGS) approach with MinION, established to track and survey DRMs in Angola.

Novel model to authenticate role-based medical users for blockchain-based IoMT devices.

The IoT (Internet of Things) has played a promising role in e-healthcare applications during the last decade. Medical sensors record a variety of data and transmit them over the IoT network to facilitate remote patient monitoring. When a patient visits a hospital he may need to connect or disconnect medical devices from the medical healthcare system frequently.

Clinical characteristics and variables associated with COVID-19 morbidity and mortality in Luanda, Angola, in the first year of the pandemic.

Background: The impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Africa is still unclear. In comparison to Europe and North America, morbidity and death rates are lower. Several factors have been proposed, including geographical variation in virus impact, environmental factors, differences in age distribution, and the impact of infectious diseases such as malaria, HIV infection and tuberculosis.

Ethnobotany in Angola: The contribution of late 19th century christian missionaries to the knowledge of medicinal wild plants.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Angola has an extraordinary plant diversity and a great ethnobotanical potential. However, there is a general lack of information about the first botanical explorations in the country and their contribution to the knowledge of the medicinal flora.

Aim Of The Study: The main aim of this study was to unveil the ethnobotanical legacy of José Maria Antunes and Eugène Dekindt, priests of the first Catholic mission in Huíla (Angola) and shed light on their contribution to the knowledge of medicinal wild plants of the country, including information on the uses, plant parts used, and preparation methods documented in the late 19th century.

EEG-based motor imagery channel selection and classification using hybrid optimization and two-tier deep learning.

Brain-computer interface (BCI) technology holds promise for individuals with profound motor impairments, offering the potential for communication and control. Motor imagery (MI)-based BCI systems are particularly relevant in this context. Despite their potential, achieving accurate and robust classification of MI tasks using electroencephalography (EEG) data remains a significant challenge.

Seroprevalence of human immunodeficiency virus in African blood donors: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: In developing countries, the safety of blood transfusions remains an important public health concern as it is associated with a higher risk of transfusion-transmissible infections (TTIs). In this study, we aimed to estimate the seroprevalence of HIV among blood donors in Africa and assess the temporal trends and regional differences within the continent through a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Methods: Seven electronic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, Scopus, HINARI, Global Index Medicus and Clinical.

Ultra-Wide Band Radar Empowered Driver Drowsiness Detection with Convolutional Spatial Feature Engineering and Artificial Intelligence.

Driving while drowsy poses significant risks, including reduced cognitive function and the potential for accidents, which can lead to severe consequences such as trauma, economic losses, injuries, or death. The use of artificial intelligence can enable effective detection of driver drowsiness, helping to prevent accidents and enhance driver performance. This research aims to address the crucial need for real-time and accurate drowsiness detection to mitigate the impact of fatigue-related accidents.

A Comparison of the Clinical Characteristics of Short-, Mid-, and Long-Term Mortality in Patients Attended by the Emergency Medical Services: An Observational Study.

Aim: The development of predictive models for patients treated by emergency medical services (EMS) is on the rise in the emergency field. However, how these models evolve over time has not been studied. The objective of the present work is to compare the characteristics of patients who present mortality in the short, medium and long term, and to derive and validate a predictive model for each mortality time.

Risk Factors Associated with Loss to Follow-Up during Tuberculosis Treatment in the Sanatorium Hospital of Luanda, Angola.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) continues to be a serious public health threat that affects the most vulnerable populations. Patients who are lost to follow-up (LTFU) after TB diagnosis still represent one of the biggest challenges to TB control.

Method: In this prospective observational study, we aimed to identify and analyse the risk factors associated with LTFU among TB patients who started first-line TB treatment in the Sanatorium Hospital in Luanda.

Examining Changes in Shoulder Strength, Lower Body Power, and Body Composition among Collegiate Baseball Players after Completion of a Summer Baseball League Season.

The strength of the shoulder musculature involved with internal rotation and arm extension plays an important role in the overhead throwing motion for baseball athletes, both for throwing-related performance and injury risk. The maintenance of shoulder strength is a high priority for baseball athletes throughout a season; however, little is known in regards to the expected changes in strength throughout a season. To examine pre-post changes in shoulder strength, lower body power, and body composition among collegiate baseball players after the completion of a summer baseball league season.

Sickle Cell Disease: Current Drug Treatments and Functional Foods with Therapeutic Potential.

Sickle cell anemia (SCA), the most common form of sickle cell disease (SCD), is a genetic blood disorder. Red blood cells break down prematurely, causing anemia and often blocking blood vessels, leading to chronic pain, organ damage, and increased infection risk. SCD arises from a single-nucleotide mutation in the β-globin gene, substituting glutamic acid with valine in the β-globin chain.

Dynamics and features of transmission clusters of HIV-1 subtypes in the state of São Paulo, Brazil.

Background: Molecular epidemiology techniques allow us to track the HIV-1 transmission dynamics. Herein, we combined genetic, clinical and epidemiological data collected during routine clinical treatment to evaluate the dynamics and characteristics of transmission clusters of the most prevalent HIV-1 subtypes in the state of São Paulo, Brazil.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted with 2,518 persons living with HIV (PLWH) from 53 cities in São Paulo state between Jan 2004 to Feb 2015.

Exposure to radon gas in groundwater in southwest Angola (Lubango-Huíla): Implications of geology and climate change.

In southern African countries most of the population uses groundwater collected in dug wells for domestic consumption instead of water from public distribution systems. To investigate the impact of natural and human factors on urban groundwater quality, 276 samples were collected in the Lubango region (Angola) in water distribution systems and dug wells ranging from a few meters to almost one hundred meters in depth. Radon concentrations (RC) were determined by liquid scintillation counting according to ISO 13164-4:2015.

From by-products to new application opportunities: the enhancement of the leaves deriving from the fruit plants for new potential healthy products.

In the last decades, the world population and demand for any kind of product have grown exponentially. The rhythm of production to satisfy the request of the population has become unsustainable and the concept of the linear economy, introduced after the Industrial Revolution, has been replaced by a new economic approach, the circular economy. In this new economic model, the concept of "the end of life" is substituted by the concept of restoration, providing a new life to many industrial wastes.

Cross-efficiency analysis of energy sector using stochastic DEA: Considering pollutant emissions.

Undesirable outputs can be challenging to avoid in the production of goods and services, often overlooked. Pollution is generally regarded as a negative externality and is taken into account during the production process. The novelty of this study lies in introducing CO2 as an economic "bad" in the energy sector's efficiency measure through a stochastic data envelopment analysis (DEA) cross-efficiency model.

HIV infection among children in Malanje province, Angola: a twelve-year follow-up study.

Introduction: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) / acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) infection has been a serious health problem in pediatric age groups globally, and especially in African countries such as Angola. Our aim was to determine the prevalence rate, accumulate incidence rate, and mortality rate of HIV/AIDS infection in children under 14 years of age residing in four municipalities of Malanje (Malanje, Cacuso, Calandula, and Caculama), from 2010 to 2021.

Methodology: This was a documentary research study, with data from 2010 to 2021, developed from a sample size of 10,984 children.

Efficient deep learning-based approach for malaria detection using red blood cell smears.

Malaria is an extremely malignant disease and is caused by the bites of infected female mosquitoes. This disease is not only infectious among humans, but among animals as well. Malaria causes mild symptoms like fever, headache, sweating and vomiting, and muscle discomfort; severe symptoms include coma, seizures, and kidney failure.

Trauma-informed systems change training has transcultural, transcontinental transformative healing power: An analysis of leaders in the United States and Angola, Africa.

The Institute for Trauma-Informed Systems Change (ITISC) facilitated a 2-day, 12-hr trauma-informed workshop, delivered virtually, using the Training for Change curriculum. The workshop took place in Portuguese in September 2021 with a group of Angolan leaders (N = 51) and in May 2022, in English, with neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) workers from the United States (N = 73). Surveys were administered before (Time [T] 0) and after the workshop (T1) and consisted of demographic questions and the Survey for Trauma-Informed Systems Change (STISC), which assesses system-wide knowledge and attitudes about trauma-informed systems change and the intersection of culture, safety, and acceptance in the workplace.

Can women empowerment boost dietary diversity among children aged 6-23 months in sub-Saharan Africa?

Background: The empowerment of women has implications on the health and dietary needs of children. Using the survey-based women's empowerment index (SWPER), we examined the association between women's empowerment and dietary diversity among children aged 6-23 months in sub-Saharan Africa.

Methods: Data from the Demographic and Health Surveys of 21 countries were utilized.