1,721,005 research outputs found
Assessment of Knowledge, Attitude and Awareness of Diabetes Mellitus in adults of a slum area of Mumbai, India: A Cross-Sectional Study
No full textBackground: Diabetes Mellitus is one of the diseases which can be considered as a slow poison. World will have more than 300 million diabetics by 2025. India alone accounts for more than 50 million patients which is the highest in the world. Very limited studies have been conducted before which assessed the awareness of diabetes mellitus in slum dwellers especially in Mumbai. The aim and objective of the study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and awareness in slum dwellers of Mumbai, India.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at a slum area of Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. A well-structured questionnaire was distributed to 150 adults between 18 to 60 years. Data was collected and statistics were drawn with the help of SPSS 19.
Results: In the present study, out of 150, 54.44 % were males (84) and 44 % were females (66). We observed that 71.33% of the slum dwellers have heard about diabetes. 35.33% has tobacco while 27.33% have alcohol every day. 20.66% are hypertensive and almost one fourth do not take medications. Approximately 60% knew the cause of diabetes. 72.33% did not know any signs & symptoms of diabetes. 35% did not know about modes of investigation while 40% did not know about complications.
Conclusion: Overall, the present study showed that awareness, attitude and knowledge was low in slum dwellers of Mumbai, India. In order to further prevent new cases and complications of diabetes, new schemes and policies of health awareness should be implemented at grass root level
ENTERIC FEVER IN TRAVELERS: AN UPDATED INSIGHT
Full text linkABSTRACTEnteric fever is a broad term used to represent typhoid and paratyphoid fever which is caused by S. typhi and S. paratyphi respectively. The mostcommon cause being S. typhi, overall. However, S. paratyphi is known to infect the travelers at a higher rate. Indian subcontinent being one of the mostendemic region, it is always beneficial for the travelers to get immunized while traveling to these areas. However, Vaccination to S. paratyphi is not yetavailable, hence travelers often fall prey to the disease. The morbidity is often high but mortality is very rare, especially due to first line treatment drugslike ceftriaxone, nalidixic acid and floroquinolones (if patients are sensitive to it). Recently, it was observed that Multi-drug resistance (Resistance to atleast ampicillin, chloramphenicol and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole]) was limited to Typhi isolates and was increased at an exponential rate. Hence,with increasing resistance to these drugs, developing vaccines or new drugs against these bacteria, remains an area of prime interest.Keywords: Salmonella typhi, Salmonella paratyphi, Enteric fever, Traveler
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Should Research be Made Compulsory in Medical School?
Full text linkABSTRACT
Healthcare decision-making is mostly reliant on evidence–based medicine. Building and upgrading skills in scientific reasoning and thinking amongst medical students has now became an important part of medical education. But due to unforeseen reasons, medical students in developing countries have no or very little opportunities to develop research skills and become evidence based physician-scientist. Moreover, there is also an alarming decline in the current number of physician-scientists, which also threatens the progress of translational medicine in the upcoming era. The compulsion of research work in residency, has no doubt, increased the quantity, but the quality has subsided. The only way, to improve the quality of research and medical evidence based health care, is by inculcating various research programs in school and motivating the professors and subsequently, the medical students. Many schools around the world have started various research training programs and the results are astonishing. Hence we suggest, instead of making research compulsory, there should be a location and school based research program which can help in developing interest.
KEYWORDS: Research, Medical Students, Medical School, Benefits.
INTRODUCTION
Health research plays a very important role in improving health care. Advances in disease surveillance, management and prevention, all rely heavily on quality research. Moreover, research influences health care policy [1].
With research, critical thinking skills of individuals are also greatly enhanced. In addition, research projects not only fosters analytical thinking and self-directed learning skills among students, but also improves their oral and written communication skills. Clinicians often incorporate the information from the clinical research trials into their own practices, which improves patient management and disease outcome [2].
For a long time, most of the developing world relied on western countries for their research findings and interpretation. However, this did not always help to curb the problems what the developing countries faced. Slow advances however, have been made in medical research in developing countries. Now, more funding, is also available [3]. Nevertheless, the quality of research is affected by lack of expertise in research skills. Problems are also seen in sharing and dissemination of results locally and incorporation of research findings in policy making either because of a lack of research findings understanding or its clinical implications by the health policy makers [4,5]. Moreover, medical students are also burn out with academic pressure, it becomes really difficult to work on research.
RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES
Currently, Indian medical students have very limited opportunities to participate in research. Though short-term scholarships (STS) by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY) provide research opportunities, there is no formal path for medical students in India to become physicians, scientists or academicians [6].
In the US, a special report was published in 2010, by The Commission on Education of Health Professionals for the 21st century, suggesting an urgent need of a new medical curriculum in order to raise its standards [7]. The outstanding American students generally apply at NIH funded Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) [8].
This program offers students with an opportunity to get a good feel for what a physician-scientist career entails through a funded MD/PhD. Also, different universities have different courses regarding to research activities in the United States [9-11].
In the U.K., students generally take a year course of Intercalated B. Sc. before entering into Medicine. This give them an experience of learning research [12-14].
The teaching fraternity in the western world is quite pro-active and understands the need of research. They further nurture the students and motivate them to work on researches. Hence, it is appropriate to say that western medical education system is more research oriented than that of developing countries.
So should Research be made as a compulsory subject in Undergraduate level as well? Well, compulsion will surely increase the numbers of publications, but the quality would be hampered. Hence, I suggest that instead of making the research work as a compulsory subject, there should be ground level programs at Government, MCI, State University and Institutional level which includes offering funds for the research projects, encouraging the students by giving certificates and awards etc. Moreover, professors should take keen interest in teaching the students who really want to learn.
Furthermore, the academic journals should encourage the medical students to publish their articles without any article processing or publication fees. These steps will definitely be helpful in developing keen interest towards research among medical students.
REFERENCES
J. N. Lavis, A. D. Oxman, R. Moynihan, and E. J. Paulsen, "Evidence-informed health policy 1–Synthesis of findings from a multi-method study of organizations that support the use of research evidence," Implementation Science, vol. 3, no. 1, p. 1, 2008.
K. Fairhurst and G. Huby, "From trial data to practical knowledge: qualitative study of how general practitioners have accessed and used evidence about statin drugs in their management of hypercholesterolaemia," BMJ, vol. 317, no. 7166, pp. 1130–1134, 1998.
R. Sadana, C. D'Souza, A. A. Hyder, and Chowdhury, "Importance of health research insouth asia," Bmj, vol. 328, no. 7443, pp. 826–830, 2004.
M. Hennink and R. Stephenson, "Using research to inform health policy: barriers and strategies in developing countries," Journal of health communication, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 163–180, 2005.
N. Rehan, "Medical research in pakistan.," Journal of the College of Physicians and Surgeons–Pakistan: JCPSP, vol. 13, no. 11, p. 617, 2003.
N. S. Dangayach, U. P. Kulkarni, T. S. Panchabhai, and Others, "Mentoring medical student research through studentships and fellowships: reflections from india," Journal of postgraduate medicine, vol. 55, no. 2, p. 152, 2009.
J. Frenk, L. Chen, Z. A. Bhutta, J. Cohen, N. Crisp,T. Evans, H. Fineberg, P. Garcia, Y. Ke, P. Kelley, and Others, "Health professionals for a new century: transforming education to strengthen health systems in an interdependent world," The lancet, vol. 376, no. 9756, pp. 1923–1958, 2010.
N. I. of General Medical Sciences, "Medical scientist training program." Available from: "https://www. nigms.nih.gov/Training/InstPredoc/ Pages/PredocOverview-MSTP.aspx", July 2015.
D. T. Laskowitz, R. P. Drucker, J. Parsonnet, P. C. Cross, and N. Gesundheit, "Engaging students in dedicated research and scholarship during medical school: the long-term experiences at duke and stanford," Academic Medicine, vol. 85, no. 3, pp. 419–428, 2010.
M. Boninger, P. Troen, E. Green, J. Borkan, C. LanceJones, A. Humphrey, P. Gruppuso, P. Kant, J. McGee, M. Willochell, and Others, "Implementation of a longitudinal mentored scholarly project: an approach at two medical schools," Academic Medicine, vol. 85, no. 3, pp. 429–437, 2010.
J. Parsonnet, P. A. Gruppuso, S. L. Kanter, and M. Boninger, "Required vs. elective research and in-depth scholarship programs in the medical student curriculum," Academic Medicine, vol. 85, no. 3, pp. 405–408, 2010.
D. G. Eaton and Y. H. Thong, "The bachelor of medical science research degree as a start for clinician-scientists," Medical education, vol. 19, no. 6, pp. 445–451, 1985.
C. McManus, P. Richards, and B. C. Winder, "Intercalated degrees, learning styles, and career preferences: prospective longitudinal study of UK medical students," BMJ, vol. 319, no. 7209, pp. 542–546, 1999.
S. J. K. Park, M. M. S. Liang, T. Sherwin, and C. N. J. McGhee, "Completing an intercalated research degree during medical undergraduate training: barriers, benefits and postgraduate career profiles," The New Zealand Medical Journal (Online), vol. 123, no. 1323, 2010
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Welcome to volume 2 of Journal of Medical Research and Innovation
Full text linkIt is my pleasure to introduce the first issue of volume 2 from Journal of Medical Research and Innovation (JMRI). The entire JMRI team is excited to begin our second year journey of publishing good quality-research from across all the medical-related disciplines, all the way from the bench to the bedside. Although we have some quite interesting things planned for 2018, in this Foreword, we will have a look back over some important highlights from volume 1 and some achievements of JMRI from the year 2017
Artificial Intelligence in Medicine: Revolutionizing Healthcare for Improved Patient Outcomes
Full text linkIntroduction: Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a groundbreaking technology with the potential to transform various sectors, and the field of medicine is no exception. With its ability to process vast amounts of data and perform complex tasks, AI has begun to revolutionize healthcare, offering promising avenues for diagnosis, treatment, and patient care. In this editorial article, we will explore the significant impact of AI in medicine, highlighting its potential benefits and the challenges that lie ahead.
AI-Driven Diagnosis
One of the most remarkable applications of AI in medicine is its capacity to assist in accurate and efficient diagnosis. By leveraging machine learning algorithms, AI systems can analyze medical imaging, such as X-rays, MRIs, and CT scans, with a level of precision that rivals human experts. Studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of AI in detecting various conditions, including lung cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and neurological disorders, leading to earlier and more accurate diagnoses.
For instance, a study published in Nature Medicine by McKinney et al. revealed that an AI model trained on a large dataset of mammograms outperformed radiologists in breast cancer detection. The AI system achieved a lower false-negative rate and reduced the number of false positives, thereby potentially reducing unnecessary biopsies [1]. Similarly, a study by Esteva et al., showed that a deep learning algorithm outperformed dermatologists in diagnosing skin cancer based on images [2]. Such advancements in AI-driven diagnosis hold immense promise for improving patient outcomes and reducing healthcare costs.
Personalized Treatment and Precision Medicine
AI has also opened doors to personalized treatment strategies, enabling healthcare professionals to tailor therapies to individual patients. By analyzing vast amounts of patient data, including genetic information, medical history, and treatment outcomes, AI algorithms can identify patterns, predict responses to specific treatments, and recommend personalized interventions. This approach, known as precision medicine, has the potential to revolutionize disease management.
An example of AI's impact on precision medicine is showcased in the work of Poplin et al. The study demonstrated how a deep learning algorithm could predict the onset of cardiovascular events by analyzing electronic health records. The algorithm outperformed traditional risk models by incorporating a broader range of patient data, allowing for more accurate and timely interventions to prevent adverse events [3]. Similarly, Obermeyer et al., demonstrated that an AI model outperformed traditional methods in predicting acute kidney injury in hospitalized patients [4] while a study by Che et al., demonstrated the effectiveness of an AI model in predicting sepsis, allowing for early intervention and improved patient outcomes [5].
Enhanced Clinical Decision-Making and Workflow
AI has the capacity to enhance clinical decision-making by assisting healthcare providers in analyzing complex data and generating evidence-based recommendations. AI systems can process and interpret vast amounts of medical literature, patient records, and clinical guidelines, providing healthcare professionals with timely insights and decision support. This augmentation of human expertise can lead to more accurate diagnoses, improved treatment plans, and enhanced patient care.
A notable example is the work of Rajkomar et al., published in The New England Journal of Medicine. The authors developed an AI algorithm capable of predicting patient deterioration within the next few hours, based on electronic health record data. By alerting healthcare providers in advance, this AI system helped to prevent adverse events and facilitated proactive interventions [6].
Drug Discovery and Clinical Research
The drug discovery and development process is notoriously expensive and time-consuming. AI has the potential to accelerate this process by analyzing vast amounts of biomedical literature, genomic data, and clinical trial outcomes. Machine learning models can identify potential drug targets, predict drug toxicity, and optimize drug formulations. In fact, a study by Aliper et al., demonstrated that an AI system outperformed human researchers in designing new drugs to target age-related diseases [7].
Virtual Assistants and Telemedicine
AI-powered virtual assistants and chatbots are transforming the way patients interact with healthcare providers. These virtual assistants can provide instant medical advice, answer queries, and triage patients based on their symptoms. Furthermore, telemedicine platforms integrated with AI algorithms can enhance remote patient monitoring, enabling healthcare professionals to monitor patients' vital signs and provide timely interventions [8,9].
Challenges and Ethical Considerations
While the potential benefits of AI in medicine are substantial, it is important to address the challenges and ethical considerations associated with its implementation. Privacy and data security remain critical concerns when handling vast amounts of patient data. Maintaining patient confidentiality and ensuring secure data sharing frameworks must be prioritized to protect patient privacy.
Moreover, the need for transparency and interpretability of AI algorithms is vital to build trust between healthcare professionals and AI systems. Understanding how AI arrives at its recommendations or diagnoses is crucial for healthcare providers to make informed decisions and ensure accountability.
Conclusion: Artificial intelligence holds tremendous potential to revolutionize healthcare and improve patient outcomes. From enhancing diagnostic accuracy to enabling personalized treatment strategies and augmenting clinical decision-making, AI is transforming the field of medicine. However, to fully realize the benefits, it is essential to address the challenges surrounding privacy, data security, and algorithm transparency. By leveraging the power of AI responsibly, healthcare providers can usher in a new era of precision medicine, advancing the quality and effectiveness of patient care
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