11237 research outputs found
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Adopting construction 4.0 to promote sustainability in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam: a fuzzy delphi study
No full textThis study contributes to the understanding of Construction 4.0 (C4.0) adoption in developing countries, with a specific focus on the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. Due to a lack of innovative methods in construction, developing nations struggle to promote sustainability. To cover this research gap, prior studies have addressed the critical success factors (CSFs) and motivations but neglected the complexity and interconnections of CSFs. This study proposes a Fuzzy Delphi – Analytic Hierarchy Process analysis to discern the most influential factors for successful C4.0 adoption. The results underscore that the motivation to reduce the use of natural resources and establish an effective logistics network supersedes cost-related considerations. Collaboration, information sharing, and strategic management emerge as pivotal CSFs. This study provides valuable insights for policymakers and practitioners aiming to promote sustainable construction practices through C4.0 technology in a developing context.</p
Global and regional burden of vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia, 1969-2023: comprehensive findings with critical analysis of the WHO international pharmacovigilance database
No full textObjective:
The scarcity of studies on vaccine-induced thrombosis and thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) limits the comprehensive understanding of vaccine safety on a global scale. Therefore, the objective of this study is to assess the global burden of vaccine-induced TTS, identify the vaccines most associated with it, and suggest clinical implications regarding vaccination.
Methods:
This study employed the World Health Organization international pharmacovigilance database, extracting records of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia from 1969 to 2023 (total reports, n > 130 million). Global reporting counts, reported odds ratios (ROR), and information components (IC) were calculated to identify the association between 19 vaccines and the occurrence of vaccine-induced TTS across 156 countries.
Results:
We identified 24 233 cases (male, n = 11 559 [47.7%]) of vaccine-induced TTS among 404 388 reports of all-cause TTS. There has been a significant increase in reports of vaccine-induced TTS events over time, with a noteworthy surge observed after 2020, attributed to cases of TTS associated with COVID-19 vaccines. Measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccines were associated with most TTS reports (ROR [95% confidence interval], 2.87 [2.75–3.00]; IC [IC0.25], 1.51 [1.43]), followed by hepatitis B (HBV, 2.23 [2.07–2.39]; 1.15 [1.03]), rotavirus diarrhea (1.95 [1.78–2.13]; 0.81 [0.53]), encephalitis (1.80 [1.50–2.16]; 0.84 [0.53]), hepatitis A (1.67 [1.50–1.86]; 0.73 [0.55]), adenovirus Type 5 vector-based (Ad5-vectored) COVID-19 (1.64 [1.59–1.68]; 0.69 [0.64]), pneumococcal (1.57 [1.49–1.66]; 0.65 [0.56]), and typhoid vaccines (1.41 [1.12–1.78]; 0.49 [0.11]). Concerning age and sex-specific risks, reports of vaccine-induced TTS were more associated with females and younger age groups. The age group between 12 and 17 years exhibited significant sex disproportion. Most of these adverse events had a short time to onset (days; mean [SD], 4.99 [40.30]) and the fatality rate was 2.20%, the highest rate observed in the age group over 65 years (3.79%) and lowest in the age group between 0 and 11 years (0.31%).
Conclusion:
A rise in vaccine-induced TTS reports, notably MMR, HBV, and rotavirus diarrhea vaccines, was particularly related to young females. Ad5-vectored COVID-19 vaccines showed comparable or lower association with TTS compared to other vaccines. Despite the rarity of these adverse events, vigilance is essential as rare complications can be fatal, especially in older groups. Further studies with validated reporting are imperative to improve the accuracy of assessing the vaccine-induced TTS for preventive interventions and early diagnosis.</p
Global association of secondhand smoke exposure locations and smoking behavior among adolescents in 99 countries
No full textAim:
This study classified 99 countries into four income groups and then analysed the impact of secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure at home, in public places and at school, on current cigarette smoking prevalence.
Methods:
We utilised data from the WHO Global Youth Tobacco Survey and a meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the prevalence and weighted odds ratios (wORs) of adolescent smoking behaviour and SHS exposure locations.
Results:
Both smoking behaviours increased with higher national income levels. Smoking behaviours in high and upper-middle-income countries (HICs and UMICs) exhibited an association with SHS exposure in public places (HIC: wOR, 3.50 [95% CI, 2.85–4.31]; UMIC: wOR, 2.90 [2.60–3.23]) compared to home. Low- and lower-middle-income countries (LICs and LMICs) showed an association with SHS exposure in the home (LIC: wOR, 5.33 [3.59–7.93]; LMIC: wOR, 2.71 [2.33–3.17]) than public places. The association between current cigarette smoking and SHS exposure at home increased with lower income levels, while anticipated future use of any form of tobacco with SHS exposure in public places rose in lower income countries.
Conclusions:
Targeted interventions based on income levels are essential, emphasising home strategies in lower income countries and public place efforts in higher income countries.
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Factors affecting global adherence for the uptake of diabetic retinopathy screening: A systematic review and meta-analysis
No full textPurpose: To evaluate diabetic retinopathy (DR) screening global adherence rate and the association between sociodemographic and clinical variables and adherence rates to DR screening in individuals with diabetes.
Design: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Methods: This systematic review was registered with International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (ID: CRD42024507035). We conducted a systematic review of relevant literature from inception of databases to February 24, 2024 using electronic databases searches including PubMed, MEDLINE (Ovid), EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane CENTRAL, and CDSR and national level DR screening databases through Google searches following PRISMA guidelines. The articles were screened for title and abstract and then for the full-text reports by two independent reviewers and study quality was appraised. Meta‐analysis was performed using random effects model to calculate the pooled effects size and 95% confidence interval (CI) of each finding.
Results: Data from a total of 11,383,715 participants from 77 studies and two national websites from 28 countries over five continents were included. Global DR screening adherence rate was 66.9% in high-income countries and 39.3% in low-and-middle-income countries. DR screening adherence rate was lowest in Africa (36.1%) and was highest in Europe (81.3%). Older age (odds ratio [OR] 1.45, 95% CI 1.30-1.62), higher education level (OR1.65, 95% CI 1.45-1.78), marriage (OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.14-1.77), living in an urban area (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.08-2.29), higher family income (OR 1.29, 95% CI 1.24-1.35), having any health insurance (OR 1.90, 95% CI 1.56-2.31), longer duration of diabetes (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.27-1.94), type 2 diabetes (OR 1.68, 95% CI 1.34-2.10), family history of diabetes (OR 2.25, 95% CI 1.56-3.25), vision impairment (OR 2.07, 95% CI 1.43-2.98), history of eye diseases (OR 1.99, 95% CI 1.36-2.90), insulin treatment (OR 1.38, 95% CI 1.37-1.39), and good mental health (OR 1.14, 95% CI 1.04-1.24) were associated with DR screening adherence.
Conclusion: This meta-analysis provides key information about which population subgroups may require more targeted intervention and highlights the urgent need to identify ways to improve adherence to DR screening.</p
Amplifying Their Voices: Developing Participatory Research Approaches with Deafblind Children and Young People
No full textThis paper describes and reflects upon my (CM’s) journey from teacher to researcher working with deafblind children and young people. Historically deafblind children and young people have been perceived to be too challenging to include in participation action research, but this paper presents our attempts to meet their unique communication and access requirements. It will also describe the reflexive approach used to collaborate with deafblind young people. Based on our learning, we provide wider recommendations to make
participatory research more accessible for participants with deafblindness or sensory difficulties.</p
The Role of Digital Twins to Optimise Hospital Resilience Strategies toHeatwaves: a Review
No full textHealthcare services need to be able to withstand natural disasters like heatwaves. Heatwaves have been shown to seriously affect hospitals, making it difficult for them to function well. Hospitals struggle to cope with heatwaves, and the strategies they use to deal with them are usually only implemented after the problem has already started. This paper discusses how digital twins can help hospitals better prepare for heatwaves. The research reviews existing articles to explore hospitals' current strategies to deal with heatwaves, specifically focusing on how digital twins are used. The study shows that digital twins can help hospitals prepare for and respond to heatwaves by detecting, monitoring, and predicting potential issues. The paper emphasises the need to reconsider current solutions and use digital twin technology to improve hospital preparedness for heatwaves. It also adds to our understanding of ways to improve hospital resilience to heatwaves by addressing non-building related issues.</p
Digital Twins-enabled Zero Touch Network: A smart contract and explainable AI integrated cybersecurity framework
No full textData-driven modeling using Artificial Intelligence (AI) is envisioned as a key enabling technology for Zero Touch Network (ZTN) management. Specifically, AI has shown huge potential for automating and modeling the threat detection mechanism of complicated wireless systems. The current data-driven AI systems, however, lack transparency and accountability in their decisions, and assuring the reliability and trustworthiness of the data collected from participating entities is an important obstacle to threat detection and decision-making. To this end, we integrate smart contracts with eXplainable AI (XAI) to design a robust cybersecurity framework for ZTN. The proposed framework uses a blockchain and smart contract-enabled access control and authentication mechanism to ensure trust among the participating entities. Additionally, with the collected data, we designed Digital Twins (DTs) for simulating the attack detection operation in the ZTN environment. Specifically, to provide a platform for analysis and the development of an Intrusion Detection System (IDS), the DTs are equipped with a variety of process-aware attack scenarios. A Self Attention-based Long Short Term Memory (SALSTM) network is used to evaluate the attack detection capabilities of the proposed framework. Furthermore, the explainability of the proposed AI-based IDS is achieved using the SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) tool. The experimental results using N-BaIoT and a self-generated DTs dataset confirm the superiority of the proposed framework over some baseline and state-of-the-art techniques.</p
Challenges and Solutions for Sustainable ICT: The Role of File Storage
No full textDigitalization has been increasingly recognized for its role in addressing numerous societal and environmental challenges. However, the rapid surge in data production and the widespread adoption of cloud computing has resulted in an explosion of redundant, obsolete, and trivial (ROT) data within organizations’ data estates. This issue adversely affects energy consumption and carbon footprint, leading to inefficiencies and a higher environmental impact. Thus, this opinion paper aims to discuss the challenges and potential solutions related to the environmental impact of file storage on the cloud, aiming to address the research gap in “digital sustainability” and the Green IT literature. The key findings reveal that technological issues dominate cloud computing and sustainability research. Key challenges in achieving sustainable practices include the widespread lack of awareness about the environmental impacts of digital activities, the complexity of implementing accurate carbon accounting systems compliant with existing regulatory frameworks, and the role of public–private partnerships in developing novel solutions in emerging areas such as 6G technology.</p
Sex-specific and long-term trends of asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis in South Korea, 2007-2022: a nationwide representative study
No full textIntroduction: Although sex differences in allergic diseases such as atopic dermatitis (AD), allergic rhinitis (AR), and asthma are considered important, a limited number of studies during the COVID-19 pandemic investigated this aspect. Therefore, this study aimed to analyze sex-specific and long-term trends and risk factors for allergic diseases before and during the pandemic.
Methods: This study utilized data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2007–2022, including 92,135 participants aged 19 years and older. This study used weighted multivariate regression analysis to examine the estimates of related factors and assessed weighted odds ratios or β-coefficients for these factors across multiple categories.
Results: During the study period (2007–2022), the prevalence of AR was more common in females than in males. Particularly in 2022, the prevalence among females was 19.3% (95% confidence interval, 17.3–21.3), while among males, it was 15.6% (13.8–17.4). The prevalence of AD and asthma showed a slight disparity between males and females. Before and during the pandemic, the prevalence of AD and AR showed a continuous increase (AD: from 2.8% [2.5–3.2] in 2007–2009 to 4.7% [3.9–5.4] in 2022; AR: from 11.7% [11.1–12.4] in 2007–2009 to 17.4% [16.0–18.9] in 2022), while asthma maintained a relatively stable trend. Moreover, this study identified several sexspecific factors that seem to be associated with a higher prevalence of allergic diseases in females, such as high household income, smoking, and being overweight or obese.
Conclusions: Throughout all the periods examined, females consistently exhibited a higher prevalence of AR compared to males. Moreover, the risk factors for males and females varied depending on the disease, with females generally facing a greater number of risk factors. Consequently, this study highlights the necessity for sex-specific health interventions and further research to comprehend the complex influence of socioeconomic factors and lifestyle choices on the prevalence and risk of AD, AR, and asthma. </p
Is the frequency of breakfast consumption associated with life satisfaction in children and adolescents? A cross-sectional study with 154,151 participants from 42 countries
No full textBackground
The promotion of daily breakfast consumption and the importance of making appropriate breakfast choices have been underscored as significant public health messages. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between breakfast frequency and life satisfaction in large and representative samples of school-going children and adolescents aged 10–17 years from 42 different countries.
Methods
This study used information from the 2017/2018 Health Behavior in School-aged Children study, comprising nationally representative samples of children and adolescents aged 10–17 years who were attending school. The total number of participants from the 42 countries included in the study was 155,451 (51.3% girls). The evaluation of breakfast consumption in this study involved a specific question: “How often do you typically have breakfast (more than a glass of milk or fruit juice)?”. To measure life satisfaction, a subjective assessment scale was used in the form of a ladder, visually spanning from 0 to 10. On this scale, the topmost point (10) denotes the highest conceivable quality of life, whereas the bottom point (0) represents the worst imaginable quality of life.
Results
After adjusting for several covariates, the lowest estimated marginal mean of life satisfaction was identified in those participants who skipped breakfast (mean [M] = 5.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] 5.5 to 5.8). Conversely, the highest estimated marginal mean of life satisfaction was observed in those who had breakfast every day (M = 6.5, 95% CI 6.3 to 6.6). Overall, a nearly linear relationship between higher frequency of breakfast and greater life satisfaction in children and adolescents was identified (p-for-trend
Conclusions
There is a nearly linear relationship between higher frequency of breakfast and greater life satisfaction in children and adolescents. Considering the potential health advantages associated with breakfast during this critical age phase, these findings imply the necessity for additional global efforts to promote increased breakfast consumption among children and adolescents.</p
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