Tuberculosis–Diagnostic Expert System: An architecture for translating patients information from the web for use in tuberculosis diagnosis

Abstract Over 1.5–2 million tuberculosis deaths occur annually. Medical professionals are faced with a lot of challenges in delivering good health-care with unassisted automation in hospitals where there are several patients who need the doctor’s attention. To automate the pre-laboratory screening process against tuberculosis infection to aid diagnosis and make it fast and accessible to the public via the Internet. The expert system we have built is designed to also take care of people who do not have access to medical experts, but would want to check their medical status. A rule-based approach has been used, and unified modeling language and the client–server architecture technique were applied to model the system and to develop it as a web-based expert system for tuberculosis diagnosis. Algorithmic rules in the Tuberculosis–Diagnosis Expert System necessitate decision coverage where tuberculosis is either suspected or not suspected. The architecture consists of a rule base, knowledge base, and patient database. These units interact with the inference engine, which receives patient’ data through the Internet via a user interface. We present the architecture of the Tuberculosis–Diagnosis Expert System and its implementation. We evaluated it for usability to determine the level of effectiveness, efficiency and user satisfaction. The result of the usability evaluation reveals that the system has a usability of 4.08 out of a scale of 5. This is an indication of a more-than-average system performance. Several existing expert systems have been developed for the purpose of supporting different medical diagnoses, but none is designed to translate tuberculosis patients’ symptomatic data for online pre-laboratory screening. Our Tuberculosis–Diagnosis Expert System is an effective solution for the implementation of the needed web-based expert system diagnosis

Geochemical Assessment of Sediment Flux in a Sediment Core from a Tidal Flat in a Tropical Estuary

Sediment flux in estuaries is influenced by both natural processes and anthropogenic activities. Understanding the historical and current trends in sediment flux inputs and geochemical composition are essential for evaluating the estuary’s response to natural and human-induced changes and for developing effective environmental management strategies. The tropical Wouri Estuary in Cameroon receives water and sediment inputs from three main rivers draining urban, industrial, and agricultural areas, as well as different rock terrains. The complex inputs into the estuary can significantly affect sediment flux, consequently impacting the ecosystem. Thereby making an understanding of the temporal variations in sediment inputs in the estuary crucial. In this study, a 78 cm sediment core from the tidal flat of the Wouri Estuary was sampled at 5 cm intervals for qualitative grain size and color variation. The Loss on Ignition (LOI) technique was used to analyze organic matter content, and elemental composition was determined using wavelength-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WDXRF) spectroscopy. Lithological analysis revealed a transition from coarse sediment at the top to medium-fine sediment at the middle section and very fine sediments at depth, coinciding with a progressive increase in organic matter content from surface to depth. The lithological and organic matter content variations were interpreted to reflect changes in depositional energy, changing from low at depth to very high at the surface. Elemental concentrations of major and trace elements in the sediments were ratioed to their average Upper-Continental Crust abundance to determine the elemental Enrichment Factor (EF). Enrichment Factor analysis revealed consistent enrichment of As, Co, Sb, S, and Mo throughout the core, whereas Zn and U enrichment were confined to the surface and middle section, and Pb iv exhibited elevated levels near the surface despite not being generally enriched. Analysis of cross plots of the enriched elements and statistical analyses of correlation matrices, and principal component analysis indicated variations in the covariances of enriched elements at depth (20 – 78 cm) and at the surface (0 – 20 cm). Based on the marked abrupt and consistent changes in the covariation of the enriched elements, geogenic sources are attributed to enrichment at depth, while anthropogenic sources are suggested to dominate enrichment at the surface. Furthermore, the unique covariation of enriched elements towards the surface suggested two distinct sources of anthropogenic input. Anthropogenic activities such as metal smelting, port operations, and agricultural activities are suggested as the primary drivers for the concurrent enrichment of As and Co. Automobile emissions, coal combustions activities and lubricant waste are interpreted to be the likely sources of the simultaneous enrichment of Zn, Mo, and Sb. These findings underscore the dual role of natural and human-induced factors in shaping sediment flux and pollutant dynamics in estuarine systems

Impact of Corporate Governance on the Performance of Selected Banks in Nigeria

The impact of corporate governance on the performance of selected banks in Nigeria has become a wide-reaching truism that the quality of corporate governance makes a significant difference to and has a chief effect on the performance of banks. Effective corporate governance requires a clear understanding of the respective role of the board and of senior management and their relationships with others in the corporate structure.This study aim to examine the relationship that exists between corporate governance and banks performance of selected commercial banks in Nigeria. Using regression analysis of 5 years ranging from 2014 – 2018. The stock performance being the response variable was captured by Market price per share (MPS) while the explanatory variables included Board Size (BS), Corporate Governance Disclosure Index (CGDI), Non-Executive Director (NED) and Number of Female Director (NUM) are the regressors used in achieving this objective. Descriptive analysis was used to ascertain the mean (1.64141; MPS, 2.658831; BS, 2.145323; NED, 1.127043; NUM 0.933143; CGDI) median, Maximum, Minimum. Correlation was carried out and a positive and strong relationship were generated.Post estimation diagnostic test of Hausman test and redundant fixed effect test were adopted in selecting the most appropriate model to capture the impact of corporate governance characteristics on stock performance of banks. The test indicated that random effect is not an appropriate model and non-normality of the variables will not encourage the use of ordinary effect, therefore, in estimating the parsimonious model of the variable, fixed effect will be an appropriate assumption. 86.78% of the stock performance of banks was accounted for by the explanatory variables.The work suggests that efforts should be made to improve corporate governance focus on the stock performance of deposit money banks since the stock performance is a measure of the wealth of shareholders. Also, the Central bank of Nigeria and other relevant authorities should also try to ensure that steps are taken for mandatory and absolute compliance with the code of corporate governance. Also, an effective legal framework should be developed that specifies the rights and obligations of a bank, its directors, shareholders, specific disclosure requirements and provide for effective enforcement of the law. Keywords: Performance, Corporate Governance, Banks, Measure and Shareholders. DOI: 10.7176/RJFA/11-16-12 Publication date:August 31st 202

Foreign Direct Investment Inflows and Oil Price Fluctuations in Developing Oil Exporting Countries: the Case of Nigeria

The study investigates the impact of oil price fluctuations on foreign direct investment inflows in developing oil exporting countries using Nigeria as a case study by ARDL method and VECM granger causality test to analyse the data spanning from 1970 to 2015. It was observed that oil price fluctuations do not favour foreign direct investment in Nigeria both in the long-run and short-run. This implies that as oil price changes foreign direct investment inflows falls. VECM granger causality test revealed that there is no direction of causality between oil price fluctuations and foreign direct investment inflows in Nigeria. We therefore concluded that oil price is not an important determinant of foreign direct investment inflows. The study recommends that government should take the advantage of times of positive change in the oil price to fix the needs to attract foreign direct investment inflows in the economy

Ocularhaemodynamics parameters of asymptomatic HAART experienced HIV-infected under-five children

Objectives: Study aimed at evaluating the impacts of HAART on retinal blood flow of a symptomatic HAART - experienced HIV-infected underfive children.Method: Ethical approval and patient consents were obtained before commencement of the study in the selected hospitals. Thirty asymptomatic HAARTexperienced HIV-infected children and three seronegative children aged 0-5 year-old fulfilled conditions for ocular ultrasonography among 60 convenience sampled under-fives. Ocular ultrasonography was done on the patients in supine position with eyes closed as instructed by the radiologist. Maximum velocity (Vmax), pulsatility index (PI), resistive index (RI), optic nerve diameter, lens thickness and axial diameter were measured. Results of HAART-experienced children were not compared with the control children because of unequal size. Data were analysed by using ANOVA and level of significance was considered at p<0.05. Results: Vmax of blood flow in central retinal artery (CRA) of asymptomatic HAART - experienced HIV infected children was 12.2cm/s while that of seronegative children was 13.4 cm/s. The PI and RI of blood flow in CRA of asymptomatic HAARTexperienced HIV-infected children were 0.8 and 0.5 respectively while those of the seronegative children were 0.6 and 0.4 respectively. Reduced Vmax of blood flow of CRA was significantly associated with both increased PI and RI of asymptomatic HAARTexperienced HIV-infected underfive children.Discussion: Vmax of CRA of asymptomatic HAART-experienced HIV-infected children was reduced because of their increased PI and RI suggesting an increased resistance to blood flow in asymptomatic HAART experienced HIVinfected children.Conclusion: Reduced Vmax of blood flow to CRA was significantly associated with increased PI and RI of asymptomatic HAARTexperienced HIV-infected children.Keywords: Ophthalmic artery, Central retina artery, maximum velocity, Seropositive children, HAAR

Investigation of Temporal Variation in Sediment Deposition within the Tropical Wouri Estuary Cameroon using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy

In this study, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) was employed to qualitatively analyze organic and mineral components of the sediment core collected from the Wouri Estuary. The FTIR spectra revealed distinct transmittance corresponding to different organic and mineral phases, allowing for the characterization of sediment composition. The FTIR spectra showed changes and variation progressively from the bottom to the top. These sediments are proxies for time this can be inferred to say deposition in the Wouri Estuary has always changed

Determinants of Dividend Policy in Nigerian Manufacturing Firms

Dividend policy is becoming an area of concern to different stakeholders including the researchers in recent time. Although there are existing literatures on Determinants of Dividend Policy in Nigeria, this study wishes to contribute to existing study by viewing determinants of dividend policy with a focus on listed food and beverages and cement firms in Nigeria. Dividend per Share is used as dependent variable while Return on Capital employed, Earnings per Share and Tangible Asset growth rate are used as the independent variables.Panel Data were sourced from annual report and account of the selected five (5) companies to cover a period of eight (8) years(2008 to 2015). Panel least square was employed to estimate the model built for the study. The result shows that Return on Capital employed has no significant relationship with dividend policy; Earnings per Share and Tangible Asset growth rate have significant relationship with dividend policy of firms. Moreso, only Earning per Share out of the three explanatory variables exhibit positive relationship with dividend per share while others have negative relationship. It is strongly recommended that firms should pursue effective dividend policy that will motivate investors to commit more resources in the company, and to also ensure that reasonable proportion of profit is also retained for future growth without detriment to shareholders wealth maximisation. Keywords: dividend policy, returns on capital employed, earnings per share and tangible asset growth rate

DPOAEs in Children With Sickle Cell Disease

The purpose of this study was to investigate distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) in young normal-hearing children with sickle cell disease (SCD). It was hypothesized that the prevalence of DPOAEs and response amplitudes would be lower than those in children with normal hemoglobin due to suspected compromised cochlear function as a result of vaso-occlusive events characteristic of SCD. Twenty African-American children with SCD and 15 African-American children with normal hemoglobin participated. Distortion product OAEs were evoked by thirteen primary tone pairs with f2 frequencies ranging from 1000 to 4500 Hz. The primary tones were presented at and L1 and L2 levels of 70 and 60 dB SPL (high) and 50 and 40 dB SPL (low), respectively. The findings of this study were completely unexpected and contrary to our original hypotheses. The likelihood of detecting a DPOAE response was not related to the clinical status of the children. Distortion product OAE amplitudes were significantly larger for children with SCD (p = .01). Educational Objectives: After completing this article the reader will (1) have a basic knowledge of the audiometric complications of sickle cell disease and (2) appreciate the differences in DPOAEs between young normal-hearing children with sickle cell DPOAEs in Children With Sickle Cell Disease 3 disease and young normal-hearing children with normal hemoglobin