An Anatomy Massive Open Online Course as a Continuing Professional Development Tool for Healthcare Professionals

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) remain a novel and under-evaluated learning tool within anatomical and medical education. This study aimed to provide valuable information by using an anatomy MOOC to investigate the demographic profile, patterns of engagement and self-perceived benefits to healthcare professionals. A 21-item survey aimed at healthcare professionals was embedded into the Exploring Anatomy: The Human Abdomen MOOC, in April 2016. The course attracted 2711 individual learners with 94 of these completing the survey, and 79 of those confirming they worked full- or part-time as healthcare professionals. Variations in use across healthcare profession (allied healthcare professional, nurse or doctor) were explored using a Fisher’s exact test to calculate significance across demographic, motivation and engagement items; one-way ANOVA was used to compare self-perceived benefits. Survey data revealed that 53.2% were allied healthcare professionals, 35.4% nurses and 11.4% doctors. Across all professions, the main motivation for enrolling was to learn new things in relation to their clinical practice, with a majority following the prescribed course pathway and utilising core, and clinically relevant, material. The main benefits were in relation to improving anatomy knowledge, which enabled better support for patients. This exploratory study assessing engagement and self-perceived benefits of an anatomy MOOC has shown a high level of ordered involvement, with some indicators suggesting possible benefits to patients by enhancing the subject knowledge of those enrolled. It is suggested that this type of learning tool should be further explored as an approach to continuing professional, and interprofessional, education

African Communitarianism and Difference

There has been the recurrent suspicion that community, harmony, cohesion, and similar relational goods as understood in the African ethical tradition threaten to occlude difference. Often, it has been Western defenders of liberty who have raised the concern that these characteristically sub-Saharan values fail to account adequately for individuality, although some contemporary African thinkers have expressed the same concern. In this chapter, I provide a certain understanding of the sub-Saharan value of communal relationship and demonstrate that it entails a substantial allowance for difference. I aim to show that African thinkers need not appeal to, say, characteristically Euro-American values of authenticity or autonomy to make sense of why individuals should not be pressured to conform to a group’s norms regarding sex and gender. A key illustration involves homosexuality

Is the Public willing to help the Nigerian Police during the Boko Haram crisis? A look at moderating factors.

This paper sought the opinion of 200 Nigerians on their willingness to cooperate with the Police during the Boko Haram crisis. Public perceptions of Police effectiveness during the crisis, residence location, gender and religious affiliation were used as moderators. Data was analysed using an explanatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling. Results indicated a strong association between perceived effectiveness and willingness to report to the Police with respondents who question the effectiveness of the Police being less likely to be willing to report criminal activity about Boko Haram. Further to this, the impact of religion on willingness to report was at least partially mediated by perceived effectiveness of the Police with the results showing that Christian respondents perceived the Police as less effective. Females and those living in the North were significantly less willing to report criminal activity to the Police The findings are then discussed in relation to the BH crises and directions for future research are given

A genetic cause of Alzheimer disease: mechanistic insights from Down syndrome

Down syndrome, caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21, is associated with a greatly increased risk of early onset Alzheimer disease. It is thought that this risk is conferred by the presence of three copies of the gene encoding amyloid precursor protein (APP), an Alzheimer risk factor, although the possession of extra copies of other chromosome 21 genes may also play a role. Further study of the mechanisms underlying the development of Alzheimer disease in Down syndrome could provide insights into the mechanisms that cause dementia in the general population

Why Are Outcomes Different for Registry Patients Enrolled Prospectively and Retrospectively? Insights from the Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF).

Background: Retrospective and prospective observational studies are designed to reflect real-world evidence on clinical practice, but can yield conflicting results. The GARFIELD-AF Registry includes both methods of enrolment and allows analysis of differences in patient characteristics and outcomes that may result. Methods and Results: Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and ≥1 risk factor for stroke at diagnosis of AF were recruited either retrospectively (n = 5069) or prospectively (n = 5501) from 19 countries and then followed prospectively. The retrospectively enrolled cohort comprised patients with established AF (for a least 6, and up to 24 months before enrolment), who were identified retrospectively (and baseline and partial follow-up data were collected from the emedical records) and then followed prospectively between 0-18 months (such that the total time of follow-up was 24 months; data collection Dec-2009 and Oct-2010). In the prospectively enrolled cohort, patients with newly diagnosed AF (≤6 weeks after diagnosis) were recruited between Mar-2010 and Oct-2011 and were followed for 24 months after enrolment. Differences between the cohorts were observed in clinical characteristics, including type of AF, stroke prevention strategies, and event rates. More patients in the retrospectively identified cohort received vitamin K antagonists (62.1% vs. 53.2%) and fewer received non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (1.8% vs . 4.2%). All-cause mortality rates per 100 person-years during the prospective follow-up (starting the first study visit up to 1 year) were significantly lower in the retrospective than prospectively identified cohort (3.04 [95% CI 2.51 to 3.67] vs . 4.05 [95% CI 3.53 to 4.63]; p = 0.016). Conclusions: Interpretations of data from registries that aim to evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of patients with AF must take account of differences in registry design and the impact of recall bias and survivorship bias that is incurred with retrospective enrolment. Clinical Trial Registration: - URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier for GARFIELD-AF (NCT01090362)

Fly-by-Pi: open source closed-loop control for geotechnical centrifuge testing applications

Geotechnical centrifuges are valuable instruments for physical modelling of complex geotechnical problems in a controlled laboratory setting. In comparison to full-scale testing, scaled models are cost effective to construct and instrument and, when tested in a geotechnical centrifuge at increased centrifugal accelerations, are capable of replicating full-scale stress–strain soil behaviour. Centrifuge modellers require specialised hardware and instruments capable of functioning under high accelerations. Such hardware is costly, nearly always purpose built, and often rely on commercial, closed-source data acquisition systems, hardware and control systems. This paper demonstrates a novel and versatile, low cost, open source logger and control system that works in parallel alongside existing centrifuge hardware. This solution, termed Fly-by-Pi, was developed using the Raspberry Pi microcomputer. The system provides closed-loop control of linear actuators with the ability to operate in either cyclic, monotonic, or static load- or displacement-control. The control mechanism can be reprogrammed according to experimental requirements, even during flight in the centrifuge. Three independent experiments are described which included the Fly-by-Pi controller as a key component in their operation. Based on the experience gained during these experiments, the authors encourage wide-spread adoption of open-sourced hardware solutions in extreme testing environments

Fly-by-Pi : open source closed-loop control for geotechnical centrifuge testing applications

Geotechnical centrifuges are valuable instruments for physical modelling of complex geotechnical problems in a controlled laboratory setting. In comparison to full-scale testing, scaled models are cost effective to construct and instrument and, when tested in a geotechnical centrifuge at increased centrifugal accelerations, are capable of replicating full-scale stress–strain soil behaviour. Centrifuge modellers require specialised hardware and instruments capable of functioning under high accelerations. Such hardware is costly, nearly always purpose built, and often rely on commercial, closed-source data acquisition systems, hardware and control systems. This paper demonstrates a novel and versatile, low cost, open source logger and control system that works in parallel alongside existing centrifuge hardware. This solution, termed Fly-by-Pi, was developed using the Raspberry Pi microcomputer. The system provides closed-loop control of linear actuators with the ability to operate in either cyclic, monotonic, or static load- or displacement-control. The control mechanism can be reprogrammed according to experimental requirements, even during flight in the centrifuge. Three independent experiments are described which included the Fly-by-Pi controller as a key component in their operation. Based on the experience gained during these experiments, the authors encourage wide-spread adoption of open-sourced hardware solutions in extreme testing environments.The UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Global Challenges Fund under the Wind Africa project.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ohxpm2021Civil Engineerin

Unsustainable anthropogenic mortality threatens the long-term viability of lion populations in Mozambique

Anthropogenic mortality is a pervasive threat to global biodiversity. African lions (Panthera leo) are particularly vulnerable to these threats due to their wide-ranging behaviour and substantial energetic requirements, which typically conflict with human activities, often resulting in population declines and even extirpations. Mozambique supports the 7th largest lion population in Africa, which is recovering from decades of warfare, while ongoing conflicts and broad-scale socio-economic fragility continue to threaten these populations. Moreover, there are concerns that Mozambique represents a regional hotspot for targeted poaching of lions which fuels a transnational illegal wildlife trade. This study aimed to quantify the longitudinal impact of anthropogenic mortality on lion populations in Mozambique. Using national population estimates and monitoring records, we performed forward simulation population viability modelling incorporating detection-dependent population trends and varying scales of anthropogenic mortality. Between 2010–2023, 326 incidents of anthropogenic mortality involving 426 lions were recorded. Bushmeat bycatch and targeted poaching for body parts were the greatest proximate causes of lion mortality (i.e., 53% of incidents), increasing significantly over time and acting as cryptic suppressors of regional population recovery, followed by legal trophy hunting (i.e., 33%), and retaliatory killing (i.e., 13%). Our findings suggest that resilience to anthropogenic threats is largely a function of lion population size as well as resource and management capacity. For instance, projections suggest that the lion population in Niassa Special Reserve will likely remain stable despite comparatively high levels of anthropogenic mortality, although further escalation may precipitate decline. Conversely, the lion population in Limpopo National Park is projected to become extirpated by 2030 without the buffering effect of its neighbouring source population in Kruger National Park. These unsustainable levels of anthropogenic mortality threaten the long-term viability of lion populations in Mozambique, requiring urgent national-level action and public-private partnerships to support site security, monitoring, and policy enforcement

Percutaneous radiofrequency lesions adjacent to the dorsal root ganglion alleviate spasticity and pain in children with cerebral palsy: pilot study in 17 patients

BACKGROUND: Cerebral palsy (CP) may cause severe spasticity, requiring neurosurgical procedures. The most common neurosurgical procedures are continuous infusion of intrathecal baclofen and selective dorsal rhizotomy. Both are invasive and complex procedures. We hypothesized that a percutaneous radiofrequency lesion of the dorsal root ganglion (RF-DRG) could be a simple and safe alternative treatment. We undertook a pilot study to test this hypothesis. METHODS: We performed an RF-DRG procedure in 17 consecutive CP patients with severe hip flexor/adductor spasms accompanied by pain or care-giving difficulties. Six children were systematically evaluated at baseline, and 1 month and 6 months after treatment by means of the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM) and a self-made caregiver's questionnaire. Eleven subsequent children were evaluated using a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for spasticity, pain and ease of care. RESULTS: A total of 19 RF-DRG treatments were performed in 17 patients. We found a small improvement in muscle tone measured by MAS, but no effect on the GMFM scale. Despite this, the caregivers of these six treated children unanimously stated that the quality of life of their children had indeed improved after the RF-DRG. In the subsequent 11 children we found improvements in all VAS scores, in a range comparable to the conventional treatment options. CONCLUSION: RF-DRG is a promising new treatment option for severe spasticity in CP patients, and its definitive effectiveness remains to be defined in a randomised controlled trial