Effectiveness of breathing exercise on the duration of labour: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Prolonged labour intensifies labour pain, and failure to address labour pain may lead to abnormal labour and augments the usage of operative interventions. Prolonged labour is common among women, resulting in maternal morbidity, increased caesarean section (CS) rates, and postpartum complications. It may bring forth negative birth experiences that may increase the preference for CS. There is a dearth of evidence concerning the effectiveness of breathing exercises on the duration of labor. As per our knowledge, this is the first systematic review and meta-analysis on the effect of breathing exercises on the duration of labor. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to appraise the evidence concerning the effectiveness of breathing exercises on the duration of labour. Methods: Electronic databases MEDLINE, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), EMBASE, Web of Science, SCOPUS, and ClinicalKey were searched for randomized controlled trials, quasi-experimental studies published in the English language between January 2005 to March 2022 that reported on the effectiveness of breathing exercises on the duration of labour. Duration of labour was the primary analysed outcome. The secondary outcomes assessed were anxiety, duration of pain, APGAR scores, episiotomy, and mode of delivery. Meta-analysis was done using RevMan v5.3. Results: The reviewed trials involved 1418 participants, and the study participants ranged from 70 to 320. The mean gestational weeks of the participants among the reported trials was 38.9 weeks. Breathing exercise shortened the duration of the intervention group's second stage of labour compared with the control group. Conclusions: Breathing exercise is a beneficial preventive intervention in shortening the duration of second stage of labour. Registration: The review protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42021247126).

The effect of various nanoparticle coating on the frictional resistance at orthodontic wire and bracket interface: A systematic review.

This systematic review was aimed to test the null hypothesis that coating of orthodontic wires with nanoparticles does not affect the frictional properties at bracket--wire interface. Electronic database searches were performed up to September 2020. In vitro studies were considered for reviewing process. Study selection, data extraction, risk of bias assessment was performed during reviewing process. Only qualitative analyses of included literature were done due to the presence of heterogeneity among the studies. Out of 1,068 retrieved records, nine studies satisfied the inclusion criteria and included in this review. Studies were assessed at low risk to high risk of bias according to certain parameters. Wide variety of nanoparticles were used for surface coating of orthodontic wires of variable sizes, shapes, and materials like stainless steel, NiTi, and TMA and placed into the slots of different types of orthodontic brackets to evaluate the alteration in frictional and other mechanical properties. Most of the studies clearly indicate that coating with nanoparticles decreases the friction between wire and bracket interface under specified in vitro conditions. Furthermore, among the nine included studies, only two considered evaluation of effect of coated brackets on frictional and other mechanical properties and results were heterogeneous. The null hypothesis is rejected and it is concluded that the wires coated with nanoparticles might offer a novel opportunity to substantially reduce frictional resistance at bracket--wire interface during tooth movement. Further studies are necessary to strengthen the evidence regarding effect of coated brackets on frictional properties.

Mahua oil-based polyurethane/chitosan/nano ZnO composite films for biodegradable food packaging applications.

Biodegradable food packaging films were fabricated from Mahua oil-based polyurethane (PU) and chitosan (CS), incorporated with different proportions of zinc oxide nanoparticles. The structure and properties of the solvent-cast films were evaluated. PU/CS with 5% nano ZnO composite film showed improved tensile strength and stiffness. The incorporation of zinc oxide nanoparticles enhanced the antibacterial properties, barrier properties and hydrophobicity of the film. The weight loss of PU/CS/5% nano ZnO biodegradable film was 86% after 28 days in the soil. The shelf life period of carrot pieces wrapped with the composite film was extended up to 9 days. The film containing zinc oxide nanoparticles was effective in reducing the bacterial contamination when compared to the commercial polyethylene film. In essence, the composite film possessed all desirable characteristics to be considered as a food packaging material that has been fabricated from low environmental impact bio-polyol based polyurethane.