How completely are randomized controlled trials of non-pharmacological interventions following concussion reported? A systematic review

Purpose:The study aimed to examine the reporting completeness of randomized controlled trials(RCTs)of non-pharmacological interventions following concussion.Methods:We searched MEDLINE,Embase,PsycInfo,CINAHL,and Web of Science up to May 2022.Two reviewers independently screened studies and assessed reporting completeness using the Template for Intervention Description and Replication(TIDieR),Consensus on Exercise Reporting Template(CERT),and international Consensus on Therapeutic Exercise aNd Training(i-CONTENT)checklists.Additional information was sought my study authors where reporting was incomplete.Risk of bias(ROB)was assessed with the Cochrane ROB-2 Tool.RCTs examining non-pharmacological interventions following concussion.Results:We included 89 RCTs(n=53 high ROB)examining 11 different interventions for concussion:sub-symptom threshold aerobic exercise,cervicovestibular therapy,physical/cognitive rest,vision therapy,education,psychotherapy,hyperbaric oxygen therapy,transcranial magnetic stimulation,blue light therapy,osteopathic manipulation,and head/neck cooling.Median scores were:TIDieR 9/12(75%;interquartile range(IQR)=5;range:5-12),CERT 17/19(89%;IQR=2;range:10-19),and i-CONTENT 6/7(86%;IQR=1;range:5-7).Percentage of studies completely reporting all items was TIDieR 35%(31/89),CERT 24%(5/21),and i-CONTENT 10%(2/21).Studies were more completely reported after publication of TIDieR(t_(87)=2.08;p=0.04)and CERT(t_(19)=2.72;p=0.01).Reporting completeness was not strongly associated with journal impact factor(TIDieR:rs=0.27;p=0.01;CERT:r_(s)=-0.44;p=0.06;i-CONTENT:r_(s)=-0.17;p=0.48)or ROB(TIDieR:rs=0.11;p=0.31;CERT:rs=0.04;p=0.86;i-CONTENT:rs=0.12;p=0.60).Conclusion:RCTs of non-pharmacological interventions following concussion demonstrate moderate to good reporting completeness,but are often missing key components,particularly modifications,motivational strategies,and qualified supervisor.Reporting completeness improved after TIDieR and CERT publication,but publication in highly cited journals and low ROB do not guarantee reporting completeness.

Application Effect of Feedforward Control in Outpatient Blood Specimen Management

Objective:To analyze the application effect of feedforward control in outpatient blood specimen management.Methods:1,200 patients who had their venous blood collected in outpatient phlebotomy room of our hospital's outpatient clinic from January 2021 to April 2021 were selected as study subjects and divided into 600 cases in the control group and 600 cases in the observation group.The two groups of patients were compared in terms of their satisfaction with the staff,the efficiency of the nurses and the quality of nursing care,turnaround time before specimen analysis,the rejection rate of the blood specimens,and the time of result reporting.Results:After the implementation of feedforward control,patients'satisfaction with staff,nurses work efficiency and quality of care,turnaround time before specimen analysis,specimen rejection rate,and result reporting time in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group(P<0.05).Conclusion:The application of feedforward control in the management of outpatient blood specimens has significant effect,which effectively improves patients'satisfaction,enhances the efficiency of nurses and the quality of nursing care,shortens the turnaround time of specimens before analysis and the reporting time of results,and reduces the rejection rate of specimens.

Traditional Chinese medicine for acute mountain sickness prevention: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) for preventing acute mountain sickness(AMS).Methods: We included randomized controlled trials(RCTs) which evalueded the effect of TCM for preventing AMS, compared with a placebo, no treatment or acetazolamide. The literature was searched in 6major databases. RevMan 5.4 software was used for the meta-analysis. The relative risk for discrete variables and the mean difference for continuous variables with 95% confidence intervals(CIs) were applied to express the effect size. The risk of bias in the included studies was evaluated using the Cochrane risk assessment tool 2.0(RoB 2.0), and the evidence certainty was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment and the Development and Evaluation(GRADE) approach.Results: Twenty RCTs involving 3015 participants and 16 TCM patent drugs were included. The overall risk of bias in the majority of studies(15/20) was of some concerns. In terms of the AMS incidence,Rhodiola rosea(R. rosea, Hong Jing Tian) and Ginkgo biloba(G. biloba, Yin Xing Ye) were equivalent to the placebo/no treatment [RR(95% CI): 0.66(0.43-1.01), 0.82(0.63-1.06), respectively]. The AMS incidence in the G. biloba group was higher than that in the acetazolamide group [RR(95% CI): 2.92(1.69-5.06)]. In terms of improving the AMS symptom score on days 1 and 3 in the plateau, R. rosea and G. biloba were superior to the placebo or no treatment [MD(95% CI):-0.98(-1.71,-0.25),-2.05(-3.14,-0.95), respectively]. The other 14 Chinese patent medicines were evaluated in a single trial, and the majority of the results were negative. The subgroup analysis showed that the effect of R. rosea was related to the intervention time, way of ascending, and altitude.Conclusion: R. rosea and G. biloba were effective in improving AMS symptoms but had no effect in reducing the AMS incidence. There was insufficient evidence to support the use of other TCM patent drugs to prevent AMS. More randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trials are warranted to evaluate and screen effective Chinese patent medicines for AMS prevention.

Functional Sustainability of a Flight Dynamics Control System for Stable Hovering Flight of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle(UAV),such as in Agricultural Applications:Mathematical Modeling and Simulation

The simulation of a control system for the longitudinal axis of the rotary or fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles(UAVs)is demonstrated in this study.The control unit includes design considerations of two controllers to provide robust stability,tracking of the proposed linear dynamics,an adequate set of proportional-integral-derivative(PID)controller gains,and a minimal cost function.The PID control and linear quadratic regulator(LQR)with or without full-state-observer were evaluated.An optimal control system is assumed to provide fast rise and settling time,minimize overshoot,and eliminate the steady-state error.The effectiveness of this approach was verified by a linear model of the UAV aircraft in the semi-dynamic simulation platform of Matlab/Simulink,in which the open-loop system was assessed in terms of flight robustness and reference tracking.The experimental results show that the proposed controllers effectively improve the configuration of the control system of the plant,maintain the sustainability of the dynamic flight model stability,and diminish the flight controller errors.The LQR provides robust stability,but it is not optimal in the transient phase of particular plant output.The PID control system can adjust the controller’s gains for optimal hovering(or stable slow flight)and is especially useful for the tracking system.Finally,comparing aircraft stability using PID and LQR controllers shows that the latter has less overshoot and a shorter settling time;in addition,all proposed controllers can be practically deployed as one UAV’s system,which can be handled as an exemplary model of the UAV flight management system.

An Overview of Finite/Fixed-Time Control and Its Application in Engineering Systems

The finite/fixed-time stabilization and tracking control is currently a hot field in various systems since the faster convergence can be obtained. By contrast to the asymptotic stability,the finite-time stability possesses the better control performance and disturbance rejection property. Different from the finite-time stability, the fixed-time stability has a faster convergence speed and the upper bound of the settling time can be estimated. Moreover, the convergent time does not rely on the initial information.This work aims at presenting an overview of the finite/fixed-time stabilization and tracking control and its applications in engineering systems. Firstly, several fundamental definitions on the finite/fixed-time stability are recalled. Then, the research results on the finite/fixed-time stabilization and tracking control are reviewed in detail and categorized via diverse input signal structures and engineering applications. Finally, some challenging problems needed to be solved are presented.

Systematic Review of Web Application Security Vulnerabilities Detection Methods

In recent years, web security has been viewed in the context of securing the web application layer from attacks by unauthorized users. The vulnerabilities existing in the web application layer have been attributed either to using an inappropriate software development model to guide the development process, or the use of a software development model that does not consider security as a key factor. Therefore, this systematic literature review is conducted to investigate the various security vulnerabilities used to secure the web application layer, the security approaches or techniques used in the process, the stages in the software development in which the approaches or techniques are emphasized, and the tools and mechanisms used to detect vulnerabilities. The study extracted 519 publications from respectable scientific sources, i.e. the IEEE Computer Society, ACM Digital Library, Science Direct, Springer Link. After detailed review process, only 56 key primary studies were considered for this review based on defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. From the review, it appears that no one software is referred to as a standard or preferred software product for web application development. In our SLR, we have performed a deep analysis on web application security vulnerabilities detection methods which help us to identify the scope of SLR for comprehensively investigation in the future research. Further in this SLR considering OWASP Top 10 web application vulnerabilities discovered in 2012, we will attempt to categories the accessible vulnerabilities. OWASP is major source to construct and validate web security processes and standards.

Efficacy and Safety of Ginkgo Biloba Tincture(银杏叶酊) Combined with Conventional Medication in the Treatment of Cerebral Infarction: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Objective:To analyze the efficacy and safety of Ginkgo biloba tincture combined with conventional medication in the treatment of cerebral infarction by systematic evaluation.Methods:Searched the randomized controlled trials of Ginkgo biloba tincture in treating cerebral infarction.English literatures were searched from PubMed,EMbase,Cochrane Library and Web of Science,and Chinese literatures were searched from Chinese Biomedical Literature Database(CBM),China National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI),China Science and Technology Journal Database(VIP)and Wanfang Medical Database.At the same time,we searched dissertations,conference papers,and found relevant unpublished research results reports.Literature quality was evaluated using a"bias risk assessment tool"and Meta-analysis using RevMan 5.4 software(from the Cochrane Collaboration).A total of 29 literatures were retrieved,and finally 4 literatures meeting the standards were included.There were 455 samples involved,including 244 cases in the experimental group and 211 cases in the control group.Results:①Effectiveness analysis:The total effective rate of Ginkgo biloba tincture combined with routine treatment was better than that of the control group[RR=1.26,95%CI(1.07,1.47),P=0.005].The hematocrit of Ginkgo biloba tincture combined with conventional treatment was significantly better than that of conventional treatment alone(P<0.05),The neurological deficits of Ginkgo biloba tincture combined with routine therapy was significantly improved(P<0.05).After Ginkgo biloba tincture combined with conventional therapy,the scores of mini-mental state examination(MMSE),activity daily living scale(ADL)and MOSSF-36 quality of life scale were significantly better than those of the control group(P<0.05).②Safety analysis:3 articles reported the safety of medication.There was no obvious change in blood routine,liver and kidney function results and no adverse reactions in the experimental group and the control group.Conclusion:The above results indicated that Ginkgo biloba tincture combined with conventional treatment can improve the total effective rate of patients with cerebral infarction,and it is safe and has no adverse reactions.However,the number of literatures included in this study is small,and the quality of controlled trials is not good.It is still necessary to adopt clinical controlled trials with reasonable design,outcome indicators in line with international social norms and large sample content to further improve the evidence level of clinical research.

Systematic Evaluation and Meta-analysis of Efficacy and Safety of Zhichuanling Oral Liquid (止喘灵口服液) in the Treatment of Bronchial Asthma

Objective:To systematically evaluate the effectiveness and safety of Zhichuanling Oral Liquid(止喘灵口服液)in the treatment of bronchitis asthma.Methods:A systematic search of CNKI,Wanfang Data,VIP,CBM,Cochrane Library,PubMed,Embase and Web of Science was conducted to screen out randomized controlled trials of Zhichuanling Oral Liquid in the treatment of bronchial asthma.Meta-analysis and systematic evaluation of the included studies were conducted to finally included researches using the Cochrane Handbook 5.1 evaluation standard tool and RevMan 5.3 software.Results:Five studies were included,with a total sample size of 354 cases,176 in experimental group and 178 in control group.Meta-analysis showed that the total effective rate of Zhichuanling Oral Liquid combined with conventional treatment was better than that of conventional treatment alone(RR=1.27,95%CI[1.13-1.42],P<0.0001).Conclusion:Based on the existing data and methods,Zhichuanling Oral Liquid combined with conventional Western medicine in the treatment of bronchial asthma can improve the total effective rate.However,the quality of the included studies is not high and the number is small,so it is necessary to adopt clinical trial protocols with large samples,rigorous design and in line with international standards to improve the quality of evidence in the future.

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials of Xianling Gubao Capsule as Adjuvant Treatment of Osteoporotic Fracture

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness and safety of Xianling Gubao(XLGB) Capsule in the treatment of osteoporotic fracture(OF). METHODS: Published articles from eight Chinese and English databases were searched from inception to August 2017. Clinical trials were selected according to inclusion criteria and exclusion criteria. Risk evaluation tool was used to assess the quality of studies. Data was extracted and meta-analysis was performed by RevMan5.3 software. RESULTS: A total of 229 articles were searched, and 27 were included for study with 2292 samples,including 1152 cases in the experiment group and 1140 cases in the control group. For patients with four limbs OF,XLGB Capsule combined with manipulation reposition with plaster external fixation can shorten healing time of fracture[MD=–0.77, 95% CI(–1.25, –0.30)], increase bone mineral density(BMD) [MD=0.17, 95% CI(0.10, 0.25)], blood calcium content [MD=0.52, 95% CI(0.38, 0.64)], phosphorous content in serum [MD=0.28, 95% CI(0.21, 0.35)], and alkaline phosphatase content [SMD=–5.24, 95% CI(–3.45, –2.42)]. In the treatment of spine OF, XLGB Capsule had no significant effects on reducing re-fracture rate of non-surgical vertebral body, but it could postpone the interval time of refracture of non-surgical vertebral bodies [RR=0.71, 95% CI(0.23, 2.18)]. Combined treatment with XLGB Capsule could improve clinical effective rate [RR=1.17, 95% CI(1.11, 1.23)]. Both alone and combined application of XLGB Capsule could increase BMD and calcitonin content of patients with spine OF. Combined application of calcium or medicine that regulating calcium metabolism was faster in reducing Cobb angle of centrum kyphosis than application alone [MD=–2.68,95% CI(–3.72, –2.12)]. Alone or combined application showed no significant effects on osteoporotic pain. The adverse reactions reported in the study were mainly the digestive system damage. CONCLUSIONS: XLGB Capsule alone or combine with other western medicine had better efficacy in treating OF than western medicine treatment alone. However,there was potential bias in the included studies, so the conclusion still needed further high quality randomized controlled trials to improve the evidence level.

Controllable thermal rectification design for buildings based on phase change composites

Phase-change material(PCM)is widely used in thermal management due to their unique thermal behavior.However,related research in thermal rectifier is mainly focused on exploring the principles at the fundamental device level,which results in a gap to real applications.Here,we propose a controllable thermal rectification design towards building applications through the direct adhesion of composite thermal rectification material(TRM)based on PCM and reduced graphene oxide(rGO)aerogel to ordinary concrete walls(CWs).The design is evaluated in detail by combining experiments and finite element analysis.It is found that,TRM can regulate the temperature difference on both sides of the TRM/CWs system by thermal rectification.The difference in two directions reaches to 13.8 K at the heat flow of 80 W/m^(2).In addition,the larger the change of thermal conductivity before and after phase change of TRM is,the more effective it is for regulating temperature difference in two directions.The stated technology has a wide range of applications for the thermal energy control in buildings with specific temperature requirements.

Association between glucose levels of children with type 1 diabetes and parental economic status in mobile health application

BACKGROUND The glycemic control of children with type 1 diabetes(T1D)may be influenced by the economic status of their parents.AIM To investigate the association between parental economic status and blood glucose levels of children with T1D using a mobile health application.METHODS Data from children with T1D in China's largest T1D online community,Tang-TangQuan■.Blood glucose levels were uploaded every three months and parental economic status was evaluated based on annual household income.Children were divided into three groups:Low-income(<30000 Yuan),middle-income(30000-100000 Yuan),and high-income(>100000 yuan)(1 Yuan=0.145 United States Dollar approximately).Blood glucose levels were compared among the groups and associations were explored using Spearman’s correlation analysis and multivariable logistic regression.RESULTS From September 2015 to August 2022,1406 eligible children with T1D were included(779 female,55.4%).Median age was 8.1 years(Q1-Q3:4.6-11.6)and duration of T1D was 0.06 years(0.02-0.44).Participants were divided into three groups:Low-income(n=320),middle-income(n=724),and high-income(n=362).Baseline hemoglobin A1c(HbA1c)levels were comparable among the three groups(P=0.072).However,at month 36,the low-income group had the highest HbA1c levels(P=0.036).Within three years after registration,glucose levels increased significantly in the low-income group but not in the middle-income and high-income groups.Parental economic status was negatively correlated with pre-dinner glucose(r=-0.272,P=0.012).After adjustment for confounders,parental economic status remained a significant factor related to pre-dinner glucose levels(odds ratio=13.02,95%CI:1.99 to 126.05,P=0.002).CONCLUSION The blood glucose levels of children with T1D were negatively associated with parental economic status.It is suggested that parental economic status should be taken into consideration in the management of T1D for children.

Essentials of Nursing Care in Randomized Controlled Trials of Nurse-Led Interventions in Somatic Care: A Systematic Review

Background: Nursing practice has to contribute to evidence pointing out why there is a need for more nurse-designed randomized control trials (RCTs) focusing on evidence-based practice (EBP). How far this EBP has progressed in different health aspects is usually established by systematic reviews of RCTs. Nurse-led RCTs exist but no study has addressed the essentials of nursing care. Aim: The aim was therefore to determine the essentials of nurses’ interventions by means of nurse-led RCTs in somatic care focusing on the stated context, goals, content, strategies as well as the nurse’s role related to effectiveness. Methods: A systematic review was realized according to Cochrane review assumptions to identify, appraise and synthesize all empirical evidence meeting pre-specified eligibility criteria. The PRISMA statement guided the data extraction process (n = 55) from PubMed and CINAHL. Results: Of the RCTs in somatic care, 71% showed a positive effectiveness of nurse-led interventions, of which the nurse had a significant role with regard to being the main responsible in 67% of the studies. Also, 47% of the RCTs presented a theoretical standpoint related to the nurse-led interventions and most prominent were international evidence-based guidelines. Goals were found to have either a patient-centered or a professional-centered ambition. Strategies were based on patient-directed initiatives, nurse-patient-directed initiatives or nurse-directed initiatives, while contents were built upon either a patient-nurse interaction or a nursing management plan. Conclusions: This review underlines the necessity of a holistic view of a person, as nurse-led RCTs comprising a patient-centered ambition, patient-directed initiative and patient-nurse interaction plan showed beneficial nursing care effectiveness, particularly if theory-based. In a nurse-led RCT, a basic theoretical perspective is advantageous as well as to elucidate the role of the nurse in relation to the estimated effects.

Randomized controlled trials on Roy adaptation model nursing in patients with acute myocardial infarction in china: a systematic review

Objective:This study was to evaluate the quality of the randomized controlled trials on Roy adaptation model nursing in individuals suffering from acute myocardial infarction in China.Methods:We systematically searched the Cnki,Wanfang and Vipdatabases,to get randomized controlled trials on Roy adaptation model nursing in individuals suffering from acute myocardial infarction.The search period was from inception to October 2020.According to the Cochrane risk bias assessment tool,the quality of the studies included was appraised.Results:A total of 55 studies were retrieved,and 11 were eventually included in the study.Among the studies included,the first study was published in 2008.The overall quality of the 11 studies included was relatively low.Conclusions:The overall quality of the randomized controlled trials on Roy adaptation model nursing in individuals suffering from acute myocardial infarction was not high,which would hinder the evidence transformation as well as clinical practice.

Acupoint injection for asthma:Systematic review of randomized controlled trials

Objective:To assess the effectiveness and safety of acupoint injection for the treatment of asthma.Methods:Six electronic databases were searched for randomized controlled trials(RCTs)of acupoint injection for asthma.Two authors extracted data and assessed methodological quality independently using the Cochrane Collaboration Risk of Bias tool.Data were evaluated using RevMan v5.2.Results:Eighteen RCTs involving 1913 participants with asthma were identified.Overall methodological quality of the RCTs was classified as unclear risk of bias.Western medicine(12 RCTs)was injected most frequently into acupoints,followed by Chinese herbal medicine(four RCTs),vitamins(one RCT),and Chinese herbal medicine combined with Western medicine(one RCT).Four RCTs used only one acupoint[ST36(two RCTs),BL13,CV22],whereas the other RCTs selected multiple acupoints(among which BL13 was used most frequently).One RCT reported mortality,no RCT reported quality of life,15 RCTs reported the symptom improvement rate,one RCT reported asthma control test(ACT)data,one RCT reported the duration of asthma,three RCTs reported the mean time that asthma was controlled(MTAC),and 13 RCTs reported lung-function tests(LFTs).Some RCTs showed acupoint injection may improve the attack time of asthma,MTAC,and LFTs.Five RCTs reported the outcome of adverse events and showed no significant differences between the acupoint injection group and control group.Conclusions:The findings suggest that acupoint injection may be effective for improving ACT data,duration of asthma,MTAC and LFTs.However,the evidence is insufficient owing to the poor methodological quality of the RCTs.

Real-Time Control System Adopted to Energy Storage for Smart Grid Low Wind Applications:A Part of Distributed Renewables in Smart City

In this paper,extensive efforts have been undertaken to design and develop a control system,which is incorporated with an energy storage device that can store energy from low-voltage renewable sources.The developed device acts as a storage element,which can be used to charge small-scale batteries,cellular devices,and other applications in remote places where the grid connection is not available.The circuit is developed using a case-by-case analysis.In order to solve the low output voltage problem,a bipolar junction transistor-metal oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor(BJT-MOSFET)based switch control technology with the Arduino microcontroller has been implemented.The developed control system is extremely efficient in charging batteries through a supercapacitor for low-voltage sources.In this research,a small-scale 200-W portable vertical axis wind turbine is used at a wind speed of 3 m/s.The result shows the efficiency of the proposed system as compared with the conventional systems.The proposed system can be an important tool of the latest distributed energy generation technology which is an important part of a smart city.Lastly,the limitations and future scopes of the development of the control device are discussed for the future barrier.An important future scope identified is to integrate the Internet of Things based mobile interface for remote monitoring for any kind of pandemic situation like COVID-19.Now,it is high time to get our smart city concept aligned with the post COVID pandemic situation and get us prepared smartly for similar future occurrences.

Prevalence,awareness and control of hypertension in Malaysia from 1980-2018:A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND Hypertension is a common public health problem worldwide and is a well-known risk factor for increased risk of cardiovascular diseases,contributing to high morbidity and mortality.However,there has been no systematic review and meta-analysis of a multiethnic population such as that of Malaysia.AIM To determine the trend in prevalence,awareness and control rate of hypertension in Malaysia.METHODS Systematic searches were conducted in six databases(PubMed,Scopus,Ovid,CINAHL,Malaysian Medical Repository and Malaysia Citation Index)for articles published between 1980 and 2018.Two authors reviewed the studies and performed quality assessment and data extraction independently.Pooled estimates of hypertension prevalence,awareness and control rate were calculated using the DerSimonian-Laird random-effects model.Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed.RESULTS We included 56 studies involving a total of 241796 participants.The overall pooled prevalence of hypertension aged≥18 years was 29.7%.The prevalence of hypertension was the lowest in the 1980s(16.2%,95%confidence interval(CI):13.4,19.0),increasing up to 36.8%(95%CI:6.1,67.5)in the 1990s,then decreasing to 28.7%(95%CI:21.7,35.8)in the 2000s and 26.8%(95%CI:21.3,32.3)in the 2010s.The prevalence of awareness was 51.4%(95%CI:46.6,56.3),while 33.3%(95%CI:28.4,38.2)of those on treatment had achieved control of their blood pressure.CONCLUSION In Malaysia,three in ten adults aged≥18 years have hypertension,while four in ten adults aged≥30 years have hypertension.Five out of ten people are aware of their hypertension status and only one-third of those under treatment achieved control of their hypertension.Concerted efforts by policymakers and healthcare professionals to improve awareness and control of hypertension should be of high priority.

Adding Chinese herbal medicine to probiotics for irritable bowel syndrome-diarrhea:A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Objective:This study assessed whether Chinese herbal medicine(CHM)combined with probiotics/synbiotics for irritable bowel syndrome-diarrhea(IBS-D)was more effective and safer than probiotics/synbiotics alone.Methods:Ten databases were searched for randomized control trials(RCTs)of IBS-D as diagnosed by Manning or Rome criteria.Trials comparing probiotics and probiotics with CHM were included.The Cochrane risk of bias(ROB)was evaluated for each trial.RevMan 5.3 was used to conduct a meta-analysis.Results:Twenty-six RCTs were included(25 Chinese,1 English),involving 2045 participants.Metaanalysis was conducted on two outcomes:overall symptom improvement and relapse.CHM combined with live Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus preparations reduced relapse rate(RR 0.28,95%CI 0.15e0.52,3 trials,n?205)compared with probiotics alone.The subgroup analysis showed the benefit of CHM prescriptions based on soothing liver and invigorating spleen(1.28,1.14e1.44,3,244),invigorating spleen and resolving dampness(1.20,1.03e1.41,2,128),or warming and invigorating spleen and kidney formulae(1.27,1.09e1.46,2,210)combined with triple Bifidobacterium preparations than the same probiotics alone which improved overall symptoms for IBS-D.There was unclear bias in almost domains of ROB.Most studies had a high risk of bias due to lack of blinding of investigator and participants,and selective reporting.Conclusions:This study showed that CHM combined with probiotics may reduce relapse rate by 72%,and improve overall symptoms of IBS-D(as diagnosed by Rome II and III)compared to probiotics alone.From the limited subgroup analysis,only soothing liver and invigorating spleen formulae,represented by Tongxie Yaofang,added to triple Bifidobacterium preparations may be superior to the single preparations in terms of overall symptoms.However,due to the poor methodological quality and small sample size of the trials,these findings must be interpreted with caution.

Call for Papers:Special Issue on "Recent Advances and New Directions in Switched Control Systems" ——Jounal of Control Theory and Application

Recently, switched control systems have been attracting much attention m the control community because the problems are not only academically challenging for the inherent complexity, but also of practical importance due to its wide ranges of applications in nature, engineering, and social sciences.

Locus of Control Theory,Productivity,Job Satisfaction,and Procrastination:A Systematic Literature Review in the Organizational Context of the 21st Century

Locus of control theory,which was developed by Rotter,suggests that there are two main types of peoples’behaviors when attributing their failure or success of their life events:external locus of control and internal.The way that individuals act is determined by their expectations of their specific behaviors and the value that they add to these expectations.For instance,people who fit in the internal category are more likely to attribute their life events to their own behaviors,skills,and attitudes,while people who fit in the external category,tend to attribute their acts to fate,chance,and other exterior factors that are out of their control.The aim of this systematic literature review was to define the fundamental concept of LOC theory,to investigate major findings of the theory in accordance with LOC and procrastination,job satisfaction,and performance and lastly,to discuss the practical use of the theory in the organizational context.

A Machine Learning-Based Web Application for Heart Disease Prediction

This work leveraged predictive modeling techniques in machine learning (ML) to predict heart disease using a dataset sourced from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in the US. The dataset was preprocessed and used to train five machine learning models: random forest, support vector machine, logistic regression, extreme gradient boosting and light gradient boosting. The goal was to use the best performing model to develop a web application capable of reliably predicting heart disease based on user-provided data. The extreme gradient boosting classifier provided the most reliable results with precision, recall and F1-score of 97%, 72%, and 83% respectively for Class 0 (no heart disease) and 21% (precision), 81% (recall) and 34% (F1-score) for Class 1 (heart disease). The model was further deployed as a web application.