Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Intra‐operative assessment of pulmonary artery pressure by transoesophageal echocardiography

The clinical value of the estimation of systolic pulmonary artery pressure, based on Doppler assessment of peak tricuspid regurgitant velocity using transoesophageal echocardiography, is unclear. We studied 109 patients to evaluate the feasibility of obtaining adequate Doppler recordings, and compared Doppler estimates with values measured using a pulmonary artery catheter in a subset of 33 patients. Tricuspid regurgitation was evaluated at the mid‐oesophageal level at 0–120° using Doppler echocardiography. A Doppler signal was defined as adequate if there was a ≤ 20° alignment and a full envelope. Doppler estimates of systolic pulmonary artery pressure within 10 mmHg and 15% of the value recorded with the pulmonary artery catheter were considered to be in sufficient agreement. Adequate Doppler signals were obtained in 64/109 (59%) patients before and 54/103 (52%) after surgery. Doppler estimates by transoesophageal echocardiography were within 10 mmHg and 15% of values recorded with the pulmonary artery catheter in 28/33 (75%) patients and 22/31 (55%) patients, respectively. In 7 (21%) patients, the echocardiographic Doppler measurement exceeded the measured systolic pulmonary artery pressure by more than 30%. Our study indicates that estimation of the systolic pulmonary artery pressure using transoesophageal Doppler echocardiography is not a reliable and clinically useful method in anaesthetised patients undergoing mechanical ventilation.
The COMTval 158 met polymorphism is associated with symptom relief during exposure-based cognitive-behavioral treatment in panic disorder

Background: Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) represents a learning process leading to symptom relief and resulting in long-term changes in behavior. CBT for panic disorder is based on exposure and exposure-based processes can be studied in the laboratory as extinction of experimentally acquired fear responses. We have recently demonstrated that the ability to extinguish learned fear responses is associated with a functional genetic polymorphism (COMTval158met) in the COMT gene and this study was aimed at transferring the experimental results on the COMTval158met polymorphism on extinction into a clinical setting. Methods: We tested a possible effect of the COMTval158met polymorphism on the efficacy of CBT, in particular exposure-based treatment modules, in a sample of 69 panic disorder patients. Results: We present evidence that panic patients with the COMTval158met met/met genotype may profit less from (exposure-based) CBT treatment methods as compared to patients carrying at least one val-allele. No association was found with the 5-HTTLPR/rs25531 genotypes which is presented as additional material. Conclusions: We were thus able to transfer findings on the effect of the COMTval158met polymorphism from an experimental extinction study obtained using healthy subjects to a clinical setting. Furthermore patients carrying a COMT val-allele tend to report more anxiety and more depression symptoms as compared to those with the met/ met genotype. Limitations of the study as well as possible clinical implications are discussed. Trial registration: Clinical Trial Registry name: Internet-Versus Group-Administered Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Panic Disorder (IP2). Registration Identification number: NCT00845260, http://www.clinicaltrials. gov/ct2/show/ NCT00845260
No evidence for association of NOD2 R702W and G908R with colorectal cancer

Polymorphisms in nucleotide oligomerization domain 2 gene (NOD2) have been associated with increased susceptibility to Crohn's disease. Recently, possible association of the NOD2 variants R702W, G908R and 3020insC with colorectal cancer (CRC) has been studied among Polish, Greek, Finnish and New Zealand Caucasian CRC patients, but the results have been controversial. In the Polish study, 3020insC alone, and in the Greek study all the 3 variants, showed association with CRC. In a study from New Zealand, R702W appeared to increase CRC risk. In addition, the combined frequencies of the 3 variants were significantly elevated in CRC patients compared with healthy controls. We have previously shown that NOD2 3020insC is not associated with increased CRC risk in Finland. In the current study, we have genotyped the R702W and G908R in a population‐based series of 1,042 CRC patients and in 508 healthy controls to study the possible contribution of these variants to CRC predisposition. Of the CRC patients, 953 were successfully analyzed. R702W and G908R were equally, frequently seen in CRC patients and controls (R702W: 2.2% vs. 2.1%; G908R: 0.3% vs. 0.2%). No associations between NOD2 variants and clinical characteristics were observed. Our results indicate that NOD2 variants R702W, G908R and 3020insC do not predispose to CRC in Finland. Environmental or additional genetic factors may play a role in CRC development in NOD2 variant carriers. Further work is necessary to establish the possible role of NOD2 variants in CRC predisposition. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Changing Epidemiology of Autism.

This article reviews epidemiological studies of autism and related disorders. Study designs and sample characteristics are summarized. Currently, conservative prevalence estimates are: 13/10000 for autistic disorder, 21/10000 for pervasive developmental disorders not otherwise specified, 2.6/10000 for Asperger disorder, and 2/100000 for childhood disintegrative disorder. Newer surveys suggest that the best estimate for the prevalence of all autistic spectrum disorders is close to 0.6%. A detailed analysis of time trends in rates of pervasive developmental disorders in then provided. It is concluded that most of the increase is accounted for by changes in diagnostic concepts and criteria, and by improved identification. Whether or not there is, in addition to these factors, a true increase in the incidence of the disorder cannot be examined from available data.
[Estimation of plasma vitamin A, C and E levels in patients with metabolic syndrome].

UNLABELLED Metabolic syndrome (MS) is a coexistence of metabolic risk factors affecting development of cardiovascular diseases. In the pathogenesis of MS there participate reactive oxygen species which are excessively produced in such elements of MS as hyperglycemia, insulin resistance and obesity. Vitamins A, C and E are an important part of the non-enzymatic antioxidative barrier in humans. The aim of the study was to estimate plasma vitamin A, C and E levels in patients with symptoms of MS. MATERIAL AND METHODS The study included 68 patients with symptoms of MS according to International Diabetes Federation criteria (2005), 37 men and 31 women, aged 34-65 years (mean age 57, 76 +/- 8, 29 years). The control group consisted of 24 healthy individuals without MS, 18 men and 6 women, aged 49-67 (mean age 58, 5 +/- 5, 6 years). Plasma vitamin A, C and E levels were estimated in patients and the control group with spectrophotometry using T60V spectrophotometer (PG Instruments). RESULTS The plasma vitamin A, C and E levels were significantly lower (p < 0.05) in MS patients than in the healthy individuals without symptoms of MS. The most significant differences in the level of antioxidative vitamins in both groups were related to vitamin C and vitamin E. CONCLUSIONS The decreased level of vitamins A, C and E points to the weakening of antioxidative barrier in patients with MS.
An Axiomatic Approach to Proportionality Between Matrices

Given a matrix p ≥ 0 what does it mean to say that a matrix f (of the same dimension), whose row and column sums must fall between specific limits, is "proportional to" p? This paper gives an axiomatic solution to this question in two distinct contexts. First, for any real "allocation" matrix f. Second, for any integer constrained "apportionment" matrix f. In the case of f real the solution turns out to coincide with what has been variously called biproportional scaling and diagonal equivalence and has been much used in econometrics and statistics. In the case of f integer the problem arises in the simultaneous apportionment of seats to regions and to parties and also in the rounding of tables of census data.
Blind Image Quality Assessment: Exploiting New Evaluation and Design Methodologies

The great content diversity of real-world digital images poses a grand challenge to automatically and accurately assess their perceptual quality in a timely manner. In this thesis, we focus on blind image quality assessment (BIQA), which predicts image quality with no access to its pristine quality counterpart. We first establish a large-scale IQA database—the Waterloo Exploration Database. It contains 4, 744 pristine natural and 94, 880 distorted images, the largest in the IQA field. Instead of collecting subjective opinions for each image, which is extremely difficult, we present three test criteria for evaluating objective BIQA models: pristine/distorted image discriminability test (D-test), listwise ranking consistency test (L-test), and pairwise preference consistency test (P-test). Moreover, we propose a general psychophysical methodology, which we name the group MAximum Differentiation (gMAD) competition method, for comparing computational models of perceptually discriminable quantities. We apply gMAD to the field of IQA and compare 16 objective IQA models of diverse properties. Careful investigations of selected stimuli shed light on how to improve existing models and how to develop next-generation IQA models. The gMAD framework is extensible, allowing future IQA models to be added to the competition. We explore novel approaches for BIQA from two different perspectives. First, we show that a vast amount of reliable training data in the form of quality-discriminable image pairs (DIPs) can be obtained automatically at low cost. We extend a pairwise learning-torank (L2R) algorithm to learn BIQA models from millions of DIPs. Second, we propose a multi-task deep neural network for BIQA. It consists of two sub-networks—a distortion identification network and a quality prediction network—sharing the early layers. In the first stage, we train the distortion identification sub-network, for which large-scale training samples are readily available. In the second stage, starting from the pre-trained early layers and the outputs of the first sub-network, we train the quality prediction sub-network using a variant of stochastic gradient descent. Extensive experiments on four benchmark IQA databases demonstrate the proposed two approaches outperform state-of-the-art BIQA models. The robustness of learned models is also significantly improved as confirmed by the gMAD competition methodology.
A multi-center study comparing dual acid-etched and machined-surfaced implants in various bone qualities.

BACKGROUND A major reason for the success of modern dental implant systems has been the development of implant designs that enhance direct bone-implant interface. Surface roughness has been a factor in this success and different systems have utilized very different implant surface roughness. The major purpose of this study was to evaluate 2 similar implants with different surface roughness characteristics. METHODS Two similarly designed, screw-type, commercially pure titanium implants, one dual acid-etched (DAE) and the other machined-surfaced (MS), were compared in this prospective, randomized-controlled, multi-center study, in which a total of 97 patients were enrolled at a private dental practice or a university dental clinic. Both implant types were placed in each patient using a 2-stage approach with a conventional 4- to 6-month healing period. Implants supported fixed prostheses, hybrid prostheses, and overdentures as dictated by the individual patient's need. All of the cases were followed using clinical and radiographic examinations. Criteria of success were the absence of peri-implant radiolucency, mobility, and persistent signs or symptoms of pain or infection. RESULTS Of the 432 implants (247 dual acid-etched, 185 machined-surfaced), 36 implants (12 dual acid-etched and 24 machined-surfaced) have failed. The pre-loading integration success rate of the dual acid-etched implants (95.0%) was statistically higher (P < 0.01) than the success rate of the machined-surfaced implants (86.7%). At 36 months, the cumulative success rates (CSR) are 95.0% for the dual acid-etched implants and 86.7% for the machined-surfaced implants. CONCLUSIONS The difference in success rates is most likely attributed to the acid-etched surface characteristics. The greatest performance difference is observed in the conditions of poor quality or soft bone where the 3-year post-loading CSR are 96.8% (dual acid-etched) and 84.8% (machined-surfaced).
Neuroendocrine Whiplash: Slamming the Breaks on Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids Following Repetitive Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in Rats May Worsen Outcomes

Sport-related concussion is an increasingly common injury among adolescents, with repetitive mild traumatic brain injuries (RmTBI) being a significant risk factor for long-term neurobiological and psychological consequences. It is not uncommon for younger professional athletes to consume anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) in an attempt to enhance their performance, subjecting their hormonally sensitive brains to potential impairment during neurodevelopment. Furthermore, RmTBI produces acute neuroendocrine dysfunction, specifically in the anterior pituitary, disrupting the hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal axis, lowering cortisol secretion that is needed to appropriately respond to injury. Some AAS users exhibit worse symptoms post-RmTBI if they quit their steroid regime. We sought to examine the pathophysiological outcomes associated with the abrupt cessation of the commonly abused AAS, Metandienone (Met) on RmTBI outcomes in rats. Prior to injury, adolescent male rats received either Met or placebo, and exercise. Rats were then administered RmTBIs or sham injuries, followed by steroid and exercise cessation (SEC) or continued treatment. A behavioral battery was conducted to measure outcomes consistent with clinical representations of post-concussion syndrome and chronic AAS exposure, followed by analysis of serum hormone levels, and qRT-PCR for mRNA expression and telomere length. RmTBI increased loss of consciousness and anxiety-like behavior, while also impairing balance and short-term working memory. SEC induced hyperactivity while Met treatment alone increased depressive-like behavior. There were cumulative effects whereby RmTBI and SEC exacerbated anxiety and short-term memory outcomes. mRNA expression in the prefrontal cortex, amygdala, hippocampus, and pituitary were modified in response to Met and SEC. Analysis of telomere length revealed the negative impact of SEC while Met and SEC produced changes in serum levels of testosterone and corticosterone. We identified robust changes in mRNA to serotonergic circuitry, neuroinflammation, and an enhanced stress response. Interestingly, Met treatment promoted glucocorticoid secretion after injury, suggesting that maintained AAS may be more beneficial than abstaining after mTBI.
Ovarian Reserve Markers to Identify Poor Responders in the Context of Poseidon Classification

It is well-known that poor ovarian reserve is a cause of infertility, poor response to gonadotrophin stimulation and poor success rate after in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles. Some years ago a consensus was elaborated on precise criteria which can lead to a correct identification of poor responders (the Bologna criteria). More recently, the POSEIDON group has proposed a new stratified classification of patients with low prognosis, also with the aim of providing clinical indications for the management of these patients. A literature search was carried out for studies that investigated the ability of ovarian reserve markers, in particular AMH and AFC, to predict poor ovarian response in IVF cycles; secondly, studies regarding the Bologna criteria and their prognostic value were analyzed and available literature on POSEIDON classification was reported. The most recent markers of ovarian reserve (serum AMH and ultrasound AFC) have shown to provide a direct and accurate measurement of ovarian follicle pool. These markers have generally shown comparable predictive power for ovarian response and a number of retrieved oocytes in IVF cycles. “Abnormal ovarian reserve test” is a very important parameter both in the Bologna criteria and in the POSEIDON classification. Several studies have already been published about the reproductive outcome of patients defined as poor responders according to the ESHRE Bologna criteria: all of them agree on the poor IVF outcome and low pregnancy rate of these patients. Instead, being the POSEIDON classification of very recent publication, the efficacy of the POSEIDON approach in improving management and outcomes of POR patients has yet to be tested and validated with future prospective clinical trials. Prediction of poor response may help clinicians choose the stimulation protocol with the aim of gaining patient compliance and cost reduction, and many efforts have been made by researchers in this sense, including the formulation of the Bologna criteria and of the POSEIDON classification, in which the ovarian reserve markers (AMH and AFC) play a fundamental role.
An Overlay Multicast Protocol for Multimedia Applications in Mobile Ad Hoc Networks

Overlay multicast has gained much attention in recent years as an alternative method to network layer multicast, especially for mobile ad hoc networks(MANETs). In this paper, we propose a new overlay multicast protocol to achieve simplicity of deployment, rapid adaptation of overlay structure when nodes move, and reduced delay. In our algorithm, to join or leave a multicast group, it is only sufficient for a member node to inform its first upstream member node. This updates the tree structure more rapidly when nodes move. In addition, join and leave delays are reduced and this makes the protocol suitable for multimedia multicasting in MANETs. Simulation results compared to that of ODMRP and ODOMP show that when the number of member nodes increases, our protocol outperforms ODOMP and when speed of nodes is high, it outperforms both ODOMP and ODMRP in terms of delivery ratio.
Portable Devices to Induce Lucid Dreams—Are They Reliable?

One of the main current challenges in lucid dreaming (LD) research is to develop a simple and reliable way to induce it (Stumbrys et al., 2012). This is because, for most people, LD is very pleasurable but also very rare (LaBerge and Rheingold, 1990; Mota-Rolim et al., 2013). Along with its recreational nature, LD also has potential clinical applications, such as the treatment of recurrent nightmares in post-traumatic stress disorder (Aurora et al., 2010; Mota-Rolim and Araujo, 2013; Morgenthaler et al., 2018). This has attracted the attention of high-tech companies, which have been launching portable LD induction devices commercially available to the general public. This equipment captures electroencephalographic (EEG) activity for the online detection of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the sleep stage associated with typical dreaming (Aserinsky and Kleitman, 1953; Dement and Kleitman, 1957; for review, see Hobson et al., 2000). To induce lucidity, most devices provide visual, auditory, and/or tactile stimuli as sensory cues, which can become incubated into the dream content to alert dreamers that they are dreaming but without waking them up (LaBerge et al., 1981a; LaBerge and Levitan, 1995). Other devices provide transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) of the frontal cortex (Voss et al., 2014). Here we review 10 such devices: DreamLight, NovaDreamer, Aurora, Remee, REM-Dreamer, ZMax, Neuroon, iBand, LucidCatcher, and Aladdin (Figure 1). Open in a separate window Figure 1 Up: Internal views of (A) REM-Dreamer sleeping mask and (B) LucidCatcher headband (images reproduced with permission from ELI Company and Luciding Inc). Down: Table comparing the devices. Stim, Stimulus; REM detect, online REM sleep detection; tech info, technological information; sci test, scientifically tested; L, light; S, sound; V, vibration; EM, eye movement; A, accelerometer; T, temperature; P, pulse oximeter; tACS, transcranial alternating current stimulation. Neuroon, iBand, Aurora, and Aladdin electrodes are placed on Fp1/Fp2 referenced to FpZ; ZMax electrodes are placed on AF7/AF8 referenced to FpZ; and LucidCatcher electrodes are placed on Fp1/Fp2 referenced to TP9/TP10.
Brain Structural Alterations in Left-Behind Children: A Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Parental migration has caused millions of children left behind, especially in China and India. Left-behind children (LBC) have a high risk of mental disorders and may present negative life outcomes in the future. However, little is known whether there are cerebral structural alterations in LBC in relative to those with parents. This study is to explore the effect of parental migration on brain maturation by comparing gray matter volume (GMV) and fractional anisotropy (FA) of LBC with well-matched non-LBC. Thirty-eight LBC (21 boys, age = 9.60 ± 1.8 years) and 30 non-LBC (19 boys, age = 10.00 ± 1.95 years) were recruited and underwent brain scans in 3.0 T MR. Intelligence quotient and other factors including family income, guardians’ educational level and separation time were also acquired. GMV and FA were measured for each participant and compared between groups using 2-sample t-tests with atlas-based analysis. Compared to non-LBC, LBC exhibited greater GMV in emotional and cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical circuits, and altered FA in bilateral superior occipitofrontal fasciculi and right medial lemniscus (p < 0.05, Cohen’s d > 0.89, corrected for false-discovery rate). Other factors including family income, guardians’ educational level and separation time were not associated with these brain changes. Our study provides empirical evidence of altered brain structure in LBC compared to non-LBC, responsible for emotion regulation and processing, which may account for mental disorders and negative life outcome of LBC. Our study suggests that absence of direct biological parental care may impact children’s brain development. Therefore, public health efforts may be needed to provide additional academic and social/emotional supports to LBC when their parents migrate to seeking better economic circumstances, which has become increasingly common in developing countries.