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Purpose: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) doubles the morbidity of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and leads to a 50% increase in mortality compared to the general population. This study aims to estimate the CVD incidence among RA patients in Saudi Arabia (SA), vital for assessing CVD burdens within this group. Patients and Methods: This retrospective study took place at two centers in the Eastern Province of SA, including all adult RA patients who visited the rheumatology clinic from 2016 to 2021 and were prescribed disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). CVD incidence was determined by the diagnosis of ischemic heart disease (IHD), stroke/transient ischemic attack (TIA), venous thromboembolism (VTE), heart failure (HF), and arrhythmia post-RA diagnosis. Additional data collected included demographics, CVD risk factors, comorbidities, RA-related factors, and medication usage. Results: The study comprised 651 patients, 80.5% of whom were females with an average age of 51. The overall CVD incidence was 11.2 per 1000 person-years, with males experiencing five times more incidents than females. The prevalence of CVD risk factors included 18.7% with hypertension, 7.8% with hyperlipidemia, 18.9% with diabetes, and 42.9% with obesity. Significant predictors of CVD were male gender and RA duration, with adjusted odds ratios (aOR) of 3.17 (95% CI 1.10 to 9.14, P=0.033) and 64.81 (95% CI 3.68 to 1140.6, P=0.004), respectively. Conclusion: This unique study from SA examined the CVD incidence in RA patients, identifying long disease duration and male gender as significant predictors. Effective reduction of CVD risk in RA patients requires aggressive management of modifiable risk factors and regular risk assessments.
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PURPOSE: This article investigates caregivers' perceived experience as part of the first implementation of LENA Start for Arab American families in New York City, with particular attention to the children's bilingual status as heritage speakers raised in marginalized communities within the United States. METHOD: A qualitative analysis of a semistructured focus group interview conducted with five Arab American mothers who participated in the program was conducted to explore parents' perception and experience of the program using Glaserian grounded theory analysis. RESULTS: Parents reported more talking and reading with their children after participation, but the recorded data showed the changes were not significant. Parents reported that they benefited from the program by gaining a sense of belonging and embracing bilingualism while facing systemic barriers to passing on their heritage language. Parents as a group displayed a range of feelings including fear, trust, appreciation, motivation, and internalized supremacy of Western practices. They also engaged in a range of actions and commitments (i.e., self-reflection, self-growth, and progress) in association with the program. The components reported to be most critical were outside of the scope of the manualized program, such as service delivery in Arabic, a trusting and mutually respectful relationship, and attentiveness to sociopolitical and cultural factors. CONCLUSION: The findings highlight the need for a holistic analysis of parent educational programs in marginalized communities to include qualitative methods that engage with the social, political, and cultural realities of families.
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Árabes , Pais , Criança , Feminino , Humanos , Estados Unidos , Mães , Emoções , Grupos FocaisRESUMO
INTRODUCTION: African American English (AAE) has never been examined through neurophysiological methods in investigations of dual-language variety processing. This study examines whether contrastive and non-contrastive morphosyntactic features in sentences with and without AAE constructions elicit differing neural and/or behavioral responses in bidialectal speakers of AAE and Mainstream American English (MAE), compared to monodialectal MAE speakers. We compared electroencephalographic (EEG) and behavioral (grammatical acceptability judgment) data to determine whether two dialects are processed similarly to distinct languages, as seen in studies of bilingual codeswitching where the P600 event related potential (ERP) has been elicited when processing a switch between language varieties. METHODS: Bidialectal AAE-MAE speakers (n = 15) and monodialectal MAE speakers (n = 12) listened to sentences in four conditions, while EEG was recorded to evaluate time-locked brain responses to grammatical differences between sentence types. The maintained verb form in the present progressive tense sentences (e.g., The black cat lap/s the milk) was the morphosyntactic feature of interest for comparing P600 responses as an indicator of error detection. Following each trial, responses and reaction times to a grammatical acceptability judgment task were collected and compared. RESULTS: Findings indicate distinct neurophysiological profiles between bidialectal and monodialectal speakers. Monodialectal speakers demonstrated a P600 response within 500-800ms following presentation of an AAE morphosyntax feature, indicating error detection; this response was not seen in the bidialectal group. Control sentences with non-contrasting grammar revealed no differences in ERP responses between groups. Behaviorally, bidialectal speakers showed greater acceptance of known dialectal variation and error (non-contrastive) sentence types compared to the monodialectal group. CONCLUSIONS: ERP and behavioral responses are presented as preliminary evidence of dual-language representation in bidialectal speakers. Increased consideration of AAE language processing would enhance equity in the study of language at large, improving the work of clinicians, researchers, educators and policymakers alike.
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Negro ou Afro-Americano , Idioma , Humanos , Potenciais Evocados/fisiologia , Julgamento , Linguística , Estados UnidosRESUMO
PURPOSE: In this commentary, we offer a critique of "A Viewpoint on Accent Services: Framing and Terminology Matter" (Grover et al., 2022). We argue that the authors' proposal to rename and reframe accent modification lacks criticality, which actually hinders-rather than advances-the movement toward equitable, culturally sustaining, and emancipatory practices. METHOD: We offer an analysis of the shortfall between the authors' calls for linguistic justice in "A Viewpoint on Accent Services" and the actual changes they proposed. We break down major gaps in criticality, reflexivity, practice, and vision and discuss their potential for undercutting meaningful progress as it relates to linguistic justice. RESULTS: We found that the frameworks for the pursuit of equity, cultural sustenance, and emancipatory practices were misrepresented in the article in such a way that suggests that these goals could be achieved through superficial changes in terminology and attitudes. "A Viewpoint on Accent Services" upholds a power-neutral frame of operation that does not address the deeper systemic forces that make accent modification problematic. The lack of criticality toward accent intervention fosters complacency toward real transformation. CONCLUSION: We advocate for a serious and critical interrogation of accent practices and commitment to an emancipatory practice that addresses linguistic discrimination above all else. We emphasize the need to decenter standardized languages and to co-envision linguistic liberation using critical methods in scholarship, pedagogy, clinical practice, and policy.
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Idioma , Linguística , HumanosRESUMO
This study aims investigate the relationship between expenditure on higher education and economic development in Saudi Arabia. which has invested in higher education and knowledge creation since its independence as part of the sustainable development process. Accordingly, this study aims at conducting an initial survey of the policies of expenditure on higher education in Saudi Arabia and then developing a standard model in which the results of this investment will be measured in achieving the economic development in Saudi Arabia for a period of forty years from (1978) until (2017). Based on econometric instruments; the study model did not succeed in finding a relationship between investment in higher education and economic development in Saudi Arabia.