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Upper airway discomfort: a randomized controlled double-blind trial comparing rocuronium and lidocaine spray for intubation
Full text linkBackground. Endotracheal intubation may be performed using deep anesthesia, neuromuscular blocks, or the topical application of anesthetics on the vocal cords. The null hypothesis in this study was that there is no diference in hoarseness one hour after extubation between patients receiving neuromuscular blocks versus lidocaine sprayed on the glottis for endotracheal intubation.
Methods. A randomized, controlled, double-blinded study was conducted. A total of 114 patients were included. Group I (n=58) received rocuronium 0.6 mg/kg. Group II (n=56) received lidocaine spray 4 ml (20 mg/ml) on the vocal cords. The primary outcome measure was hoarseness one hour after extubation. Secondary outcomes
were hoarseness at 24 and 48 h after extubation, sore throat at 1, 24, and 48 h after extubation, and intubation and extubation conditions.
Results. There was no statistically signifcant diference between groups in hoarseness one hour after extubation. At 24 h, Group I had signifcantly more reported hoarseness (27.6%) and observed hoarseness (1.7%) than Group II (12.5% reported) (p=0.03). Group II had a signifcantly sorer throat (21.4%) than Group I (1.7%) (p<0.001) at one hour. Beyond this, there were no diferences between groups.
Conclusion. Even though some diferences were observed in hoarseness and sore throat 24 h after extubation, there were few diferences between topical lidocaine spray and the use of neuromuscular blocks before intubation for patient-reported and observed outcomes. Consequently, clinicians should choose an approach based on considerations other than those included in this study, such as the need for muscle relaxation or minimizing the number of laryngoscopies.publishedVersio
Development and Testing of an IoT Platform with Smart Algorithms for Building Energy Management Systems
Full text linkBuildings are a major cause of carbon emissions. The building sector is responsible for around 40% of energy consumption and for about 30% of CO2 emissions. Building Energy Management Systems (BEMS) are crucial for enhancing energy efficiency, and energy flexibility, and mitigating the environmental impact of buildings, which account for a significant amount of global energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. This study addresses the limitations of traditional BEMS by proposing a cloud-based IoT-BEMS with an intuitive user interface and advanced machine learning algorithms for energy optimization. The system integrates demand-side management techniques, including two main principles, load shifting through demand response and energy efficiency, allowing users to control appliances without requiring technical expertise. The results demonstrate significant energy savings, particularly in water heater optimization, with an average reduction of 24.23% in energy consumption. Additionally, the Proximal Policy Optimization (PPO) algorithm used for electric vehicle (EV) charging resulted in an average cost saving of 30.6% by leveraging off-peak electricity rates. The platform’s real-time data processing and user-friendly interface make it a robust solution for residential energy management, effectively balancing energy savings with user comfort. This research underscores the potential of IoT and machine learning in revolutionizing building energy management, contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals.publishedVersio
Distributed Energy Prosumer Communities and the Application of Emerging Technologies: A Systematic Literature Review
Full text linkEnergy prosumer communities offer a mechanism where prosumers can share, and trade locally produced renewable generation directly with consumers within the same energy community. Accordingly, there is need for a decentralized approaches that enables prosumers to locally balance generation and consumption. The deployment of emerging technologies such as Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLT), Internet of Things (IoT), and Artificial Intelligence (AI) can accelerate the integration of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) and advance the development of energy internet. Therefore, this article develops an energy system architecture that shows how DLT, IoT, and AI can be deployed to support the design and actualization of energy internet in Distributed Prosumer Energy Communities (DPEC). The system architecture support energy sharing and trading from energy prosumers to consumer. Findings from this study presents how DLT based smart contracts can be employed to securely manage energy transactions within the energy internet. The system architecture provides energy consumers and prosumers with a decentralized approach for sharing and trading local energy generation without requiring any central intermediary. More importantly, this study presents a use case on the applicability of DLT and AI to support micro grid operations in DPEC.publishedVersio
Parent satisfaction with pediatric anesthesia - A cross-sectional, multicenter study in Norway.
Full text linkBackground
Parental satisfaction with anesthetic care is utilized as a proxy for child satisfaction. The evidence base regarding parent satisfaction with pediatric anesthesia care is limited. The aim of the current study was to assess (1) parent satisfaction with pediatric anesthesia in three hospitals, (2) potential differences across hospitals, and (3) potential associations between parent satisfaction and the child's age, surgical specialty, hospital, whether the parent previously had followed a child to surgery, and relation to the patient.
Methods
The Norwegian version of the “pediatric anesthesia parent satisfaction survey” questionnaire (NPAPS) was used. Descriptive statistics, Kruskal–Wallis test and linear regression analysis were used to analyze the data.
Results
In total, 234 parents responded. Most respondents agreed that their child had received the highest quality care during the surgical experience (96.4%–97.4%). Nearly all respondents agreed that their questions were responded to (94.6%–97.6%), information was understandable (96.4%–97.4%), the amount of information was appropriate (96.4%–97.4%), the child's integrity was respected (94.6%–97.4%), the child was treated respectfully and professionally (96.45%–97.6%), and that personnel paid attention to the parent's concerns (93.8%–94.7%). Respondents disagreed with being explained how the child might feel physically and emotionally after anesthesia (9.5%–10.5%) and also disagreed with being satisfied with the way the child fell asleep and woke up from anesthesia (5.3%–7.1%). No factors were associated with the level of parent satisfaction, and there were few differences between hospitals.
Conclusion
Even if parents are overall satisfied with anesthesia care, improvement areas regarding the preparation of parents and control of postoperative symptoms were detected.publishedVersio
Delay Testing in Integrated Circuits: Methodologies for Path Delay Fault Detection and Hardware Security
Full text linkAs semiconductor technology advances, high-speed circuits are becoming more common, which increases the chance of delay faults that can disrupt circuit timing. This paper explores the important issue of delay faults and reviews different testing methods, particularly focusing on path delay fault (PDF) testing and its role in hardware security. Various delay fault models and test generation techniques were discussed. The experiments on benchmark circuits showed that this approach could achieve a 12.7% to 19.6% increase in detecting path delay faults in circuits affected by hardware Trojans. These results highlight the need for effective delay testing methods to ensure the reliability of integrated circuits. This work recommends future research to focus on creating more efficient test generation methods and integrating security measures into standard testing practices.publishedVersio
A Study on the Performance Evaluation of F-Type Multilevel Inverters Employing Phase Disposition Carrier PWM Schemes
Full text linkThis research presents a three-phase, three-level F-type inverter utilizing a four switch per leg and a DC link. The proposed structure necessitates less power components than traditional three-level inverter topologies, hence reducing switching stress and loss as thereby decreasing the topology cost. The suggested inverter employs a carrier-based pulse width modulation (PWM) technique, including Sine PWM, Sixty-Degree PWM, and Switching Frequency Optimal (SFO) PWM, to achieve the necessary output voltage. The inverter operates with various amplitude and frequency modulation indices (ma, mf), and its performance is evaluated based on total harmonic distortion (THD), fundamental output voltage, inverter losses, and efficiency. To demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed configuration, a 400 W prototype of the inverter is developed, and empirical findings are provided. The suggested inverter demonstrates exceptional performance with a modulation index of ma =0.9 and mf =100 under SFO PWM, enabling improved THD performance, increased output voltage, and greater efficiency. As the switching frequency increases, a greater portion of the harmonic spectrum shifts away from the fundamental frequency, so assuring that the SFO PWM technique requires reduced filter size.publishedVersio
Enabling Seamless Interoperability of Digital Systems in Smart Cities Using API: A Systematic Literature Review
Full text linkSmart cities are envisioned to achieve an urban space where systems are connected to provide value added services to citizens and stakeholders, improve quality of life, and enhance institutional effectiveness. In smart cities, digital systems are deployed that comprise a wide range of service providers who collaborate to provide digital services to citizens. Hence, there is a need for accessible data that can be used to develop innovative applications and services to improve citizens’ quality of life. Unfortunately, achieving interoperability of digital systems is challenging due to isolated systems referred to as vertical silos, which cannot communicate with each other due to lack of standardization of interfaces. Thus, interoperability is seen as a barrier for the seamless transfer of data between systems deployed in smart cities. In order to facilitate interoperability of systems in smart cities, this article conducts a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) to investigate the role of Application Programming Interface (API) to enable seamless interoperability in smart cities. An SLR was employed to guide the selection of studies retrieved to adequately address the formulated research questions. Findings from this study present the importance of interoperability in smart urban environments and help in providing an overview and categorization of existing interoperability solutions to make cities smarter. The findings also identified prior interoperability approaches in smart cities. Findings present a case scenario that depicts how APIs support seamless interoperability among digital systems in a smart city environment. Lastly, the findings elaborate on available API management tools and further suggest that APIs can significantly contribute to improve interoperability between digital systems and decrease barriers in providing innovative digital services in smart cities.publishedVersio
The Effect of Stereotypes on Perceived Competence of Indigenous Software Practitioners: A Study of Dress Style in Professional Photos
Full text linkContext. Potential employers can easily access job candidates’ photos online and attempt to infer a candidate’s ft or alignment based on their dress style. In this context, for candidates from marginalized groups like Indigenous people, traditional clothing holds cultural signifcance as it serves as a lively expression of belonging, participation in ceremonies, and resistance.
Objective. This exploratory study aims to empirically demonstrate whether dress manipulation in a picture afects the perceived competence of equally qualifed candidates for a position like a software developer in which this cue should not be crucial.
Method. We conducted a quasi-experiment based on a survey. It involved job candidates (photo models) and participants (evaluators) from IT companies located in Ecuador. The analysis was performed by ftting a linear mixed-efects (LME) model based on dress style, gender and race/ethnicity of the candidates as well as evaluators’ gender and experience in hiring. Also, a thematic analysis was conducted.
Results. Findings show that dress manipulation hardly infuences the evaluators’ evaluation of candidates’ competence, as no statistically signifcant diferences were found in our sample. Most of the unexplained variance (64.461%) stems from variability in scores across evaluators. Likewise, the thematic analysis revealed notable evaluator discrepancies indicating varying judgments and outcomes that suggest idiosyncrasies, which are not noise or error.
Conclusions. This study demonstrates the value of contextual factors - such as gender, race/ethnicity and cultural background— in software engineering studies and calls for valuing individual software developers and their human aspects. Perceived competence extends beyond hiring situations as it can infuence initial trust and cooperative behaviors among software development team members when interacting with unfamiliar collaborators.publishedVersio
Context matters: adapting and validating the TEDS-instruct observation instrument assessing teaching quality for its use in Norwegian primary education
Full text linkThe current investigation aims to adapt and validate the Teacher Education and Development Study-instruct observation instrument for assessing teaching quality in new contexts: Norwegian Grade 6 mathematics and science lessons. More specifically, the article examines content validity and reliability in the new contexts using a multi-methods approach, involving the Delphi technique and generalizability theory. Findings suggest that while the core components of the instrument are relevant in the new contexts, specific adaptations are necessary to capture teaching quality in a more nuanced and meaningful way. Based on the findings, specific adaptions are made to the instrument. Finally, recommendations for developing and using the instrument in the new contexts are provided. The current investigation underscores the importance of contextual sensitivity in the assessment of teaching quality.publishedVersio
Open-Access Publishing in Special Education and Related Fields: Making Scholarship Freely Available to All
Full text linkOpen access to research findings, syntheses of research, and papers providing guidance on implementing research based practices is critical for informing policy and practice in special education and related fields. Yet most published articles are behind paywalls and cannot be accessed freely by many practitioners, policymakers, individuals with disabilities and their families, and other interested parties. In this article, we describe the benefits of open-access publishing for researchers and research consumers, as well as different types of open-access publishing–with a particular focus on self-archiving or green open-access publishing. Self-archiving makes papers freely available, with little time burden and no monetary cost to authors. We provide recommendations for what, where, when, and how to self-archive one’s papers. We conclude by sharing our own experiences with open-access publishing.publishedVersio