Mass excess estimations using artificial neural networks.

Mass excess knowledge is important to investigate the fundamental properties of atomic nuclei. It is a meaningful and important parameter for the determinations of nucleon binding energy, nuclear reaction Q value, energy threshold and plays an undeniable role in the theoretical calculations of a reaction cross-section value in terms of the quantities it affects. In this research, a new artificial neural network (ANN) based algorithm is proposed to determine the mass excess of nuclei. The experimental data, which were taken from the RIPL3 database have been used for training the ANN. Proton, neutron, and mass numbers have been chosen as the input parameters. The Levenberg-Marquardt (LM) algorithm has been employed for the training section. The correlation coefficients have been found as 0.99984, 0.99977, 0.99984, and 0.99983 for training, validation, and testing, respectively. To validate our ANN results, ANN findings have been given as input parameters on TALYS 1.95 code and 56Fe(p,x) nuclear reactions have been simulated. The obtained results were compared with the literature. In conclusion, the findings of this study point to the ANN as a recommended tool that can be used to calculate estimates of mass information.

Patients' intention to consume prescribed and non-prescribed medicines: A study based on the theory of planned behaviour in selected European countries.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE: Polypharmacy has a significant impact on patients' health with overall expenditure on over-the-counter (OTC) medicines representing a substantial burden in terms of cost of treatment. The aim of this study, which was conducted within the framework of a European Project funded by the European Union under the Seventh Framework Programme and was entitled OTC-SOCIOMED, was to report on possible determinants of patient behaviour regarding the consumption of medicines, and particularly OTCs, in the context of primary care. METHODS: A multicentre, cross-sectional study was designed and implemented in well-defined primary healthcare settings in Cyprus, the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Malta and Turkey. Patients completed a questionnaire constructed on the basis of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB), which was administered via face-to-face interviews. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The percentage of patients who had consumed prescribed medicines over a 6-month period was consistently high, ranging from 79% in the Czech Republic and 82% in Turkey to 97% in Malta and 100% in Cyprus. Reported non-prescribed medicine consumption ranged from 33% in Turkey to 92% in the Czech Republic and 97% in Cyprus. TPB behavioural antecedents explained 43% of the variability of patients' intention to consume medicines in Malta and 24% in Greece, but only 3% in Turkey. Subjective norm was a significant predictor of the intention to consume medicines in all three countries (Greece, Malta and Turkey), whereas attitude towards consumption was a significant predictor of the expectation to consume medicines, if needed. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSION: This study shows that parameters such as patients' beliefs and influence from family and friends could be determining factors in explaining the high rates of medicine consumption. Factors that affect patients' behavioural intention towards medicine consumption may assist in the formulation of evidence-based policy proposals and inform initiatives and interventions aimed at increasing the appropriate use of medicines.

Prophylactic misoprostol for the prevention of postpartum hemorrhage: a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) is one of the major preventable causes of maternal death in developing countries. Although the non-parenteral use of misoprostol is a big advantage especially in home births, its benefits in prevention of PPH is still debating. We aimed to assess the effect and side-effects of prophylactic oral, rectal or vaginal misoprostol on preventing postpartum hemorrhage comparing with no-treatment option. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In a randomized clinical trial, during uncomplicated vaginal delivery, 248 women were assigned to receive one of the five treatment protocols in the third stage of labor which was managed routinely by early cord clamping and controlled cord traction. Maternal hemoglobin and hematocrit values, the duration of the third stage, and the incidence of blood transfusion was recorded. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant differences between the antepartum and postpartum values of hemoglobin or hematocrit between the groups. The mean duration (11.8 ± 4.5 min) of the third stage of labor in oral+vaginal group was significantly shorter. Shivering was observed totally in 11 women and the differences were not significant between groups. CONCLUSIONS: Despite misoprostol has benefit in treatment of postpartum hemorrhage, it has no remarkable effect in prophylaxis of atony-induced postpartum hemorrhage.

Health literacy among adults: a study from Turkey.

Patients' health literacy is increasingly recognized as a critical factor affecting health communication and outcomes. We performed this study to assess the levels of health literacy by using Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine (REALM) and Newest Vital Sign (NVS) instruments. Patients (n = 456) at a family medicine clinic completed in-person interviews, REALM and NVS tests which were translated into the Turkish language by translation-back translation process. Additional questions regarding demographic characteristics were also collected. The mean scores (mean + or - standard error) for REALM and NVS were 60.29 + or - 0.32 and 2.60 + or - 0.08, respectively. The REALM test scores showed that 2.7% had inadequate (less than or equal to 6th grade), 38.6% marginal (7th to 8th grade) and 58.7% (greater than or equal to 9th grade) adequate health literacy. The NVS test score revealed a proportion of 28.1% had adequate health literacy. Educational attainment was the most important demographic characteristic found to be related to the health literacy. Reading and vocabulary skills were better than numerical capabilities. Female, primary school educated and poor economic condition participants and those who were older had the lowest scores in both the tests.

The perception of menopause and hormone therapy among women in Turkey.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the influence of sociodemographic characteristics and menopause perception on self-reported menopause-related symptoms among Turkish women and analyze their knowledge and attitudes towards menopause and hormone therapy. METHODS: This was a population-based, cross-sectional, descriptive study. A total of 1007 women were recruited while attending primary-care health clinics. Women who agreed to participate in the study gave written informed consent. Each woman completed a questionnaire and had an interview to investigate her current health problems. RESULTS: Various different problems were reported by 86% of the women, mainly hot flushes. The women who perceived menopause as a pathological period had more complaints. The level of education influenced a more positive perception of the menopause. Only 12% of women were taking a hormonal treatment. CONCLUSION: Different perceptions of menopause among Turkish women are influenced by many factors, including cultural differences, level of education, regular exercise, social factors, and impact of the media. These need to be considered when studying the frequency and characteristics of menopausal problems.

Should asymptomatic bacteriuria be screened in pregnancy?

The incidence of asymptomatic bacteriuria is reported as 2-14% during pregnancy. Fetal and maternal complications like acute pyelonephritis, hypertension, anemia, preterm labor, low-birth-weight infants and intrauterine growth retardation can be expected. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of asymptomatic bacteriuria during pregnancy and its relation to pregnancy complications. The study involved 270 pregnant women up to 32 gestational weeks during a 9-month period. At the initial visit, they were screened with urine culture in order to detect asymptomatic bacteriuria. A control group was formed in a retrospective manner from the first day of the study with 186 pregnant women who delivered in our clinic and who were not screened for asymptomatic bacteriuria. The incidence of asymptomatic bacteriuria was 9.31%. Escherichia coli accounted for 79%, which was the most frequent of the isolates. We observed recurrence and had to apply treatment again to 21.7% of the women. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive and negative predictive values of leucocyturia as a screening test for asymptomatic bacteriuria were 91.3%, 83.6%, 45.6% and 98.5%, respectively. We diagnosed preterm labor in six of 23 (26%) with asymptomatic bacteriuria and 16 in 163 (9.3%) women in the urine culture negative group. The ratio acute pyelonephritis in the group which was routinely screened and treated for asymtomatic bacteriuria was 0.5% while the prevalence was 2.1% in the nonscreened group. Considering the relatively high incidence of asymptomatic bacteriuria during pregnancy and the relevant complications, we propose to screen and treat asymptomatic bacteriuria routinely in all pregnant women.