Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Does Adherence to Domiciliary NIMV Decrease the Subsequent Hospitalizations Rates and Cost for Patients Diagnosed with COPD?

Abstract Domiciliary noninvasive mechanical ventilation (NIMV) is used for treating patients with hypercapnic chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We aimed to evaluate the association between adherence to the treatment and subsequent hospitalizations and costs. Data from 54 (27 adherent; 27 non-adherent) patients with COPD who were undergoing NIMV treatment at home for 6 months. We assessed adherence based on digitally recorded data and checked hospital records for clinical and laboratory data, rehospitalization rates, and costs during the following 6 months. Nocturnal NIMV usage, mean daily usage of the device, and time to first hospitalization were higher in the treatment-adherent group (p < .001, p < .001, and p=.006, respectively). The percentage of active smokers, device leaks above 30 L/min, length of hospital stay, rehospitalization rates, and costs were significantly higher in the treatment-non-adherent group (p = 05, p = 006, p = 004, p = 006, and p = 01, respectively). The most frequent reasons for not using NIMV in the treatment-non-adherent group were a decreased need, dry mouth, mask incompatibility, and gastrointestinal complaints. Adherence to NIMV treatment decreases the subsequent hospitalizations rates and noncompliance leads to complications. Findings of this study may help physicians in convincing patients diagnosed with COPD of the need for correct NIMV use to prevent hospitalizations and reduce the costs of COPD treatment.
Probabilistic Modeling and Inference for Obfuscated Cyber Attack Sequences

A key element in defending computer networks is to recognize the types of cyber attacks based on the observed malicious activities. Obfuscation onto what could have been observed of an attack sequence may lead to mis-interpretation of its effect and intent, leading to ineffective defense or recovery deployments. This work develops probabilistic graphical models to generalize a few obfuscation techniques and to enable analyses of the Expected Classification Accuracy (ECA) as a result of these different obfuscation on various attack models. Determining the ECA is a NP-Hard problem due to the combinatorial number of possibilities. This paper presents several polynomial-time algorithms to find the theoretically bounded approximation of ECA under different attack obfuscation models. Comprehensive simulation shows the impact on ECA due to alteration, insertion and removal of attack action sequence, with increasing observation length, level of obfuscation and model complexity.
How is Contrast Encoded in Deep Neural Networks?

Contrast is a crucial factor in visual information processing. It is desired for a visual system - irrespective of being biological or artificial - to "perceive" the world robustly under large potential changes in illumination. In this work, we studied the responses of deep neural networks (DNN) to identical images at different levels of contrast. We analysed the activation of kernels in the convolutional layers of eight prominent networks with distinct architectures (e.g. VGG and Inception). The results of our experiments indicate that those networks with a higher tolerance to alteration of contrast have more than one convolutional layer prior to the first max-pooling operator. It appears that the last convolutional layer before the first max-pooling acts as a mitigator of contrast variation in input images. In our investigation, interestingly, we observed many similarities between the mechanisms of these DNNs and biological visual systems. These comparisons allow us to understand more profoundly the underlying mechanisms of a visual system that is grounded on the basis of "data-analysis".
Receptive field center-surround interactions mediate context-dependent spatial contrast encoding in the retina

Antagonistic receptive field surrounds are a near-universal property of early sensory processing. A key assumption in many models for retinal ganglion cell encoding is that receptive field surrounds are added only to the fully formed center signal. But anatomical and functional observations indicate that surrounds are added before the summation of signals across receptive field subunits that creates the center. Here, we show that this receptive field architecture has an important consequence for spatial contrast encoding: the surround can control sensitivity to fine spatial structure by changing the way the center integrates visual information over space. The impact of the surround is particularly prominent when center and surround signals are correlated, as they are in natural stimuli. This role of the surround differs substantially from classic center-surround models and raises the possibility that the surround plays unappreciated roles in shaping ganglion cell sensitivity to natural inputs.
Brain Endothelial Erythrophagocytosis and Hemoglobin Transmigration Across Brain Endothelium: Implications for Pathogenesis of Cerebral Microbleeds

Peripheral endothelial cells are capable of erythrophagocytosis, but data on brain endothelial erythrophagocytosis are limited. We studied the relationship between brain endothelial erythrophagocytosis and cerebral microhemorrhage, the pathological substrate of MRI-demonstrable cerebral microbleeds. To demonstrate the erythrophagocytic capability of the brain endothelium, we studied the interactions between brain endothelial cells and red blood cells exposed to oxidative stress in vitro, and developed a new in vitro cerebral microbleeds model to study the subsequent passage of hemoglobin across the brain endothelial monolayer. Using multiple approaches, our results show marked brain endothelial erythrophagocytosis of red blood cells exposed to oxidative stress compared with control red blood cells in vitro. This brain endothelial erythrophagocytosis was accompanied by passage of hemoglobin across the brain endothelial monolayer with unaltered monolayer integrity. In vivo and confocal fluorescence microscopy studies confirmed the extravasation of RBC exposed to oxidative stress across brain endothelium. These findings, demonstrating erythrophagocytosis mediated by the brain endothelial monolayer and the subsequent passage of iron-rich hemoglobin in vitro and RBC in vivo, may have implications for elucidating mechanisms involved in the development of cerebral microbleeds that are not dependent on disruption of the microvasculature.
META-ANALYSIS INDICATES THAT ADD-ON DEVICES AND NEW ENDOSCOPES REDUCE COLONOSCOPY ADENOMA MISS RATE

Introduction A variety of add-on devices and new-generation endoscopes have the potential to detect lesions ‘hidden’ behind colonic folds. We measured the effect of these new modalities on colonoscopy’s lesions miss rates by a meta-analysis of data from individual studies. Materials and methods We performed literature searches in Medline and Cochrane Library for back-to-back randomized-controlled trials evaluating colonoscope add-on devices and new endoscopes in terms of lesions miss rates. The effect size on study outcomes is shown as relative risk (95% confidence interval). Results We identified nine tandem studies with 1594 patients: seven evaluating add-on devices (one with cap, two with Endocuff, one with Endorings, one with Third-Eye Retroscope, two with G-EYE endoscope) and two evaluating the full-spectrum endoscopy system (FUSE) in comparison with conventional colonoscopy (CC). Overall, adenoma miss rate (AMR) was significantly lower with add-on devices/FUSE [0.33 (0.22–0.50), P<0.00001] compared with CC, the effect being similar among the add-on devices [0.35 (0.22–0.57), P<0.0001] and the FUSE [0.26 (0.15–0.46), P<0.00001] studies, respectively. Advanced AMR and polyp miss rate (PMR) were also significantly lower using add-on devices/FUSE [0.30 (0.21–0.44), P<0.0001 and 0.31 (0.13–0.79), P=0.01, respectively]. Use of add-on devices/FUSE scope was associated with significantly lower AMR and PMR in the proximal colon and it was associated with shortening of the colonoscopy surveillance interval. Conclusion Our meta-analysis provides evidence that AMR, advanced AMR, and PMR are significantly lower using add-on to colonoscope devices and the full-spectrum endoscopy systems compared with CC. Heterogeneity among the included studies and the small number of detected advanced adenomas call for cautious interpretation of the results.
Reliability of upper airway assessment using CBCT

Background Upper airway analysis is an often-cited use of CBCT imaging by orthodontists; however, the reliability of airway measurements using this technology is not fully established. Objective To determine the intra-examiner and inter-examiner reliability of the complete process of volumetric and cross-sectional area assessments of the upper airway using CBCT imaging. Materials and Methods Six examiners of varying levels of education and clinical experience performed the steps necessary for airway analysis, including manual orientation, slice and threshold selection and measured nasopharyngeal, oropharyngeal, hypopharyngeal and total upper pharyngeal airway volumes in addition to minimum cross-sectional area on the CBCT images of 10 patients. All measurements were repeated after 4-weeks. Intra- and inter-examiner reliability was calculated using ICC and 95% CI. Results Threshold selection showed poor intra- and poor inter-examiner reliability, whereas minimum cross-sectional area showed moderate intra- and poor inter-examiner reliability. Intra-examiner reliability of volumetric measurements varied based on the region assessed with ICC ranging from 0.747 to 0.976, and was worst for hypopharynx and best for the oropharynx. Inter-examiner reliability of volume measurements was generally lower, with ICC ranging from 0.175 to 0.945, and was worst for nasopharynx and best for the oropharynx. Conclusions This study, for the first time, assessed the reliability of upper airway analysis with CBCT when all steps of image processing and measurement are performed by each examiner. Reliability improved with examiner experience, though was generally low for the hypopharynx and nasopharynx volumes and overall minimal cross-sectional area. The oropharyngeal volume was the only parameter to have excellent intra- and inter-examiner reliability.
Alternative EM Algorithms for Nonlinear State-Space Models

The expectation-maximization algorithm is a commonly employed tool for system identification. However, for a large set of state-space models, the maximization step cannot be solved analytically. In these situations, a natural remedy is to make use of the expectation-maximization gradient algorithm, i.e., to replace the maximization step by a single iteration of Newton's method. We propose alternative expectation-maximization algorithms that replace the maximization step with a single iteration of some other well-known optimization method. These algorithms parallel the expectation-maximization gradient algorithm while relaxing the assumption of a concave objective function. The benefit of the proposed expectation-maximization algorithms is demonstrated with examples based on standard observation models in tracking and localization.
Effects of object size and distance on reaching kinematics in patients with schizophrenia

Background/Objective Patients with schizophrenia not only have psychiatric symptoms, but also have movement problems, which might also be associated with their reduced quality of life. Little is known about how to improve their movement performance for patients. Manipulating object size and distance is common in occupational therapy practice to evaluate and optimize reaching performance in patients with physical disabilities, but effects of the manipulation in patients with schizophrenia remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine whether object size and distance could change performance of reaching kinematics in patients with mild schizophrenia. Methods Twenty-nine patients with mild schizophrenia and 15 age- and gender-matched healthy controls were required to reach for, as quickly as possible, a small or large object that was placed at a near or far distance. We measured movement time, peak velocity, path length ratio, percentage of time to peak velocity, and movement units to infer movement speed, forcefulness, spatial efficiency (directness), control strategies, and smoothness. Results Patients’ reaching movements were slower (p = .017) and less direct (p = .007) than those of controls. A larger object induced faster (p = .016), more preprogrammed (p = .018), and more forceful (p = .010) movements in patients. A farther object induced slower, more feedback dependent, but more forceful and more direct movements (all p < .001). Conclusion The results of kinematic deficiencies suggest the need of movement training for patients with mild schizophrenia. Occupational therapists may grade or adapt reaching activities by changing object size and distance to enhance movement performance in patients with schizophrenia.
Multimodal First Impression Analysis with Deep Residual Networks

People form first impressions about the personalities of unfamiliar individuals even after very brief interactions with them. In this study we present and evaluate several models that mimic this automatic social behavior. Specifically, we present several models trained on a large dataset of short YouTube video blog posts for predicting apparent Big Five personality traits of people and whether they seem suitable to be recommended to a job interview. Along with presenting our audiovisual approach and results that won the third place in the ChaLearn First Impressions Challenge, we investigate modeling in different modalities including audio only, visual only, language only, audiovisual, and combination of audiovisual and language. Our results demonstrate that the best performance could be obtained using a fusion of all data modalities. Finally, in order to promote explainability in machine learning and to provide an example for the upcoming ChaLearn challenges, we present a simple approach for explaining the predictions for job interview recommendations.
Tract-Specific White Matter Correlates of Age-Related Reward Devaluation Deficits in Macaque Monkeys

Aim: Cognitive aging is known to alter reward-guided behaviors that require interactions between the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and amygdala. In macaques, OFC, but not amygdala volumes decline with age and correlate with performance on a reward devaluation (RD) task. The present study used diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) methods to investigate whether the condition of the white matter associated with amygdala-OFC connectivity changes with age and relates to reward devaluation. Methods: Diffusion-, T1- and T2-weighted MRIs were acquired from adult and aged bonnet macaques. Using probabilistic tractography, fractional anisotropy (FA) estimates from two separate white matter tracts associated with amygdala-OFC connectivity, the uncinate fasciculus (UF) and amygdalofugal (AF) pathways, were obtained. Performance measures on RD and reversal learning (RL) tasks were also acquired and related to FA indices from each anatomical tract. Results: Aged monkeys were impaired on both the RD and RL tasks and had lower FA indices in the AF pathway. Higher FA indices from the right hemisphere UF pathway correlated with better performance on an object-based RD task, whereas higher FA indices from the right hemisphere AF were associated with better performance on an object-free version of the task. FA measures from neither tract correlated with RL performance. Conclusions: These results suggest that the condition of the white matter connecting the amygdala and OFC may impact reward devaluation behaviors. Furthermore, the observation that FA indices from the UF and AF differentially relate to reward devaluation suggests that the amygdala-OFC interactions that occur via these separate tracts are partially independent.
Cognitive behavioural psychotherapy graduates in Ireland: a follow-up survey of graduates from an Irish university

Background Training in cognitive behavioural psychotherapy (CBT) is expensive both for the students and their funding bodies. Objectives It is important to know how graduates of CBT courses are putting their skills to use, and whether they are continuously updating those skills to achieve best practice. We also wanted to discover the similarities and differences between CBT trainees in the United Kingdom and in the Republic of Ireland (courses in the United Kingdom being analogous to those in Ireland in content and participants). Method An internet survey, derived from previous postal questionnaires, was used to enquire into the practice, experience, and continuing professional development of graduates from the CBT courses at Trinity College Dublin. Results Most MDT professions were represented in the graduates, preponderantly psychiatrists and mental health nurses, but also including social workers and occupational therapists. Most participants believed that the course had enhanced their careers, and almost half had changed job since graduating. Half said that CBT was now the main focus of their job, but others reported lack of resources, funding, time, and other duties impeded their ability to conduct CBT with clients. However, most participants engaged in continuous professional development regarding CBT, and received CBT clinical supervision. Discussion There was a difference in the proportion of the different professions undertaking this course compared with the United Kingdom and our response rate here was significantly lower. As in UK surveys, participants who may have been supported and funded to undertake the training may not afterwards be supported in implementing their skills in the workplace. The broader implications of this are discussed.
Effects of Different Treatment Methods on the Clinical and Urodynamic State of Perimenopausal Women with Stress Urinary Incontinence

Background: This study was designed to investigate the clinical effects of different treatment methods on stress urinary incontinence (SUI) in perimenopausal women, and to evaluate urodynamic characteristics. Methods: Seventy-two menopausal female patients with stress urinary incontinence were included in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University from January 2016 to July 2017. The cases were divided into 3 groups of 24 each, depending on the treatment received. Group A patients received treatment with electrical stimulation combined with biofeedback; those in group B received conventional pelvic floor muscle exercise therapy; and those in group C did not have any treatment. Relevant clinical parameters of urination were determined including pelvic floor muscle strengths, urine dynamics indexes and ICS quality of life survey scores; results were averaged in each group for comparisons among the three groups before and after the 60-day study period. Results: After treatment for 60 days, both group A and B patients displayed a clear improvement in their urinary incontinence, pelvic floor muscle strength, leakage times, frequency of urination, urine dynamics index and ICS scores (P<0.05), with group A showing the most improvement. Women in group C showed no significant difference before and after the 60-day study period (P>0.05). Conclusion: Both the method of electrical stimulation combined with biofeedback, and conventional pelvic floor muscle exercises could help perimenopausal women with stress urinary incontinence; however, electrical stimulation combined with biological feedback seems to bring about better clinical effects.
Maternal Obesity Affects Cardiac Remodeling and Recovery in Women with Peripartum Cardiomyopathy

Abstract Objective To examine the association between maternal obesity on left ventricular (LV) size and recovery in women with peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM). Study Design This was a prospective analysis of 100 women enrolled within 13 weeks of PPCM diagnosis and followed for a year in the Investigation of Pregnancy Associated Cardiomyopathy study. Adiposity was defined by standard body mass index (BMI) definitions for under/normal weight, overweight, and obesity. Demographic, clinical, and biomarker variables were compared across weight categories. Outcomes LV end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD) and ejection fraction were measured at entry, 6, and 12 months postpartum. Multivariable regression models examined the relationship between adiposity, LV size, and leptin levels with cardiac recovery at 6 and 12 months postpartum. Results Obese and nonobese women had similar LV dysfunction at entry. Obese women had greater LV size and less LV recovery at 6 and 12 months postpartum. BMI was positively associated with leptin and ventricular diameter. Greater BMI at entry remained associated with less ventricular recovery at 6 months (p = 0.02) in adjusted race-stratified models. LVEDD at entry predicted lower ejection fraction at 6 months (p < 0.001) and similarly at 12 months. Conclusion Obese women with PPCM had greater cardiac remodeling, higher leptin levels, and diminished cardiac recovery.
Detection of HIV transmission clusters from phylogenetic trees using a multi-state birth–death model

HIV patients form clusters in HIV transmission networks. Accurate identification of these transmission clusters is essential to effectively target public health interventions. One reason for clustering is that the underlying contact network contains many local communities. We present a new maximum-likelihood method for identifying transmission clusters caused by community structure, based on phylogenetic trees. The method employs a multi-state birth–death (MSBD) model which detects changes in transmission rate, which are interpreted as the introduction of the epidemic into a new susceptible community, i.e. the formation of a new cluster. We show that the MSBD method is able to reliably infer the clusters and the transmission parameters from a pathogen phylogeny based on our simulations. In contrast to existing cutpoint-based methods for cluster identification, our method does not require that clusters be monophyletic nor is it dependent on the selection of a difficult-to-interpret cutpoint parameter. We present an application of our method to data from the Swiss HIV Cohort Study. The method is available as an easy-to-use R package.
Two-year postnatal outcome of 263 cases of fetal ventriculomegaly

Abstract Objectives: To find out the outcome of fetal ventriculomegaly (VM) in terms of survival at birth and after two years and to evaluate the antenatal factors which influence the postnatal outcome. Method: We performed a 10-year prospective, observational study (2008–2018) including all prenatally detected fetal VM. Two years follow up of all live born was done to observe their survival, physical morbidity, and developmental delay. Results: Fetal VM was seen in 263/648 (40.6%) cases with central nervous system malformation. VM was severe in 85.9% and was associated with other anomalies in 56.3% of the cases. Total 40.3% cases with VM were live born. The outcome at birth and was poorest with severe VM (40.7%) and when VM was associated with multiple defects (30%). Only 23.6% survived beyond two years of age. There was developmental delay in 24.2% cases. Logistic regression showed that, the presence of associated defect and severe VM were significant poor prognostic factors for survival at birth (p = .001) and after two years of age (p = .002). Conclusions: In a low resource setup the problems associated with fetal VM were compounded by late referral. The knowledge of the outcome in existing setup provides data for realistic counselling to the couple.