Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Highly Reliable GaN-MOSFETs with High Channel Mobility Gate by Selective-Area Crystallization

We realized the high reliability of normally-off GaN MOSFETs with high mobility SiO2/AlN/GaN stacked gate formed by newly selective-area crystallization using atomic layer deposition (ALD) method. By using this technique, the single crystalline AlN layer and amorphous AlN layer are selectively deposited in the gate region and in the access region, respectively. By introducing the single crystalline AlN into the SiO2/GaN interface, the channel mobility is enhanced from 105 to 490 cm2/Vs. In addition, the GaN MOSFETs also have superior long-term reliability with regard to time-dependent dielectric breakdown (TDDB) and high-temperature reverse bias (HTRB). In particular, expected HTRB lifetime of 0.1% failure under the drain voltage of 650 V is over 10 years, which is comparable to that of normally-on GaN FETs and normally-off GaN JFETs. These results show that the GaN MOSFETs with high mobility gate-recessed SiO2/AlN/GaN structure formed by selective-area crystallization technique are promising for practical power applications.
Fusion Versus Joint-Sparing Reconstruction for Patients With Flexible Flatfoot

Aims Passively correctible, adult-acquired flatfoot deformities (AAFD) are treated with joint-sparing procedures. Questions remain as to the efficacy of such procedures when clinical deformities are severe. In severe deformities, a primary fusion may lead to predictable outcomes, but risks nonunion. We evaluated pre- and postsurgical flexible AAFD patients undergoing joint-sparing or fusion procedures, comparing reoperation and complication rates. Methods We identified patients with flexible AAFD between January 1, 2001 and 2016. Exclusion criteria were incomplete medical record, rigid AAFD, and prior flatfoot surgery. Patient demographics, pre- and postsurgical radiographic measurements, surgery performed, and postoperative complications were evaluated by bivariate analysis, comparing joint-sparing versus fusion procedures. Results Of 239 patients (255 feet) (mean follow-up 62 ± 50 months), 209 (87%) underwent joint-sparing reconstructions, 30 (12.6%) underwent fusions. Fifty-four (24.1%) feet underwent joint-sparing reconstruction with reoperation versus 11 (35.5%) in fusion patients (P = .17). Radiographic improvement in talonavicular angle, talar first-metatarsal (anteroposterior view), and Meary’s angle was higher in fusion patients (P < .001, P < .001, and P = .003, respectively). Discussion More nonunion reoperations among fusion patients were offset by reoperations in joint-sparing patients. Fusion uniquely corrected Meary’s angle. Nonunion is of less concern for joint-sparing versus fusion for patients with severe flexible AAFD. Degree of deformity versus advantage of joint motion should improve decision making. Levels of Evidence: Level IV: Retrospective case series
Face masks for the prevention of COVID-19 - Rationale and design of the randomised controlled trial DANMASK-19.

INTRODUCTION The coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), progresses globally, and means to reduce the transmission are needed. In the community, the use of face masks is increasing world-wide, but documentation for the efficacy of this remedy is lacking. This trial investigates whether the use of face masks in the community will reduce wearers' risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection. METHODS This study will be a two-arm, unblinded, randomised controlled trial. We will include adults (>18 years of age) without prior confirmed COVID-19 or symptoms suggestive of COVID-19, who spend more than three hours per day outside the home with exposure to other people. A total of 6,000 participants are randomly assigned 1:1 to use face masks or not for a 30-day period during the pandemic. Participants will perform self-testing; quick test for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies (immunoglobulin M (IgM) and immunoglobulin G (IgG)) (the Livzon lateral flow test) and oropharyngeal/nasal swabs for viral detection using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The primary endpoint following the 30-day study period is the difference in the number of SARS-CoV-2-infected individuals between the two study groups as assessed by a positive nasopharyngeal swap, a positive antibody test or a hospital-based diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection. CONCLUSIONS We will study whether a face mask protects the wearer of the mask against SARS-CoV-2 infection. The findings are expected to apply to the present pandemic and to future viral outbreaks and to provide evidence for authority recommendations across the world. FUNDING This study was funded by Salling Fondene. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04337541.
Implicit bias against the Romas in Hungarian healthcare: taboos or unrevealed areas for health promotion?

The Roma or Gipsy population is the largest ethnic minority both in Europe and Hungary with a 10-15 years lower life expectancy and significantly worse health indicators than majority populations. The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate a sensitive and controversial topic: the perspectives of healthcare staff about the presence and impacts of implicit bias in the Hungarian healthcare system towards Roma patients. Therefore, between June 2017 and May 2018 semi-structured interviews were conducted involving 13 healthcare professionals. Interview transcripts were coded and thematically analysed. The presence and occasional manifestation of prejudices against the Romas were noted by the interviewees, most commonly in the form of longer waiting time, comments or other meta-communicative tools. Study participants appeared to exclude a direct relationship between health providers' implicit bias and the lower quality of health services or the worse health status of Roma patients. However, as reported, indirect negative effects may occur in cases where a patient refrains from seeking care due to previous perceived or experienced discrimination. As barriers to effective patient-provider communication and cooperation, differences in culture, health-seeking behaviour and gaps between health literacy levels were emphasized. In terms of prevention, enhancing anti-discriminatory attitudes from early childhood within the families, the role of media in conveying unbiased information, increasing health awareness of the Roma people as well as educating healthcare providers on culture-related issues may be beneficial. Stress and burnout of healthcare professionals also need to be addressed as these may impact on the enactment of unconscious biases.
The usability of Juniperus virginiana L. as a biomonitor of heavy metal pollution in Bishkek City, Kyrgyzstan

Uncontrolled and unplanned urbanization and industrialization due to increase of population and rapid industrial development have created severe environmental problems in Kyrgyzstan during the last few decades. In this study, Juniperus virginiana, a dioecious species, was employed in order to make assessment of the heavy metal pollution rate in the area and of the heavy metal pollution impact on the mineral nutrient status of the plant. For this study, leaf (washed and unwashed) and bark samples of J. virginiana, and its co-located soil samples were collected from eight different stations, all in the capital of Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek, in 2012 vegetation period. The standard procedures were used and the determinations of heavy metal and nutrient element contents (Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Pb and Zn) in all samples were done using inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy. According to our measurements, J. virginiana was found to be capable of accumulating a considerable amount of metals and the mineral nutrient uptake pattern was altered because of metal deposition in the plant, which showed a contamination risk in the area.
A Sensitive and Specific Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry Assay for Simultaneous Quantification of Salivary Melatonin and Cortisol: Development and Comparison With Immunoassays

Melatonin and cortisol are clinically important for diagnosing sleep and mood disorders. We developed and validated a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) assay for simultaneous measurement of salivary melatonin and cortisol concentrations according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines. Additionally, we compared the LC-MS/MS assay with immunoassays, ELISA (Direct Salivary Melatonin Elisa EK-DSM, Bühlmann Laboratories AG, Schönenbuch, Switzerland) and electrochemiluminescence immunoassay (Cortisol II, Roche, Mannheim, Germany), using 121 saliva samples. The LC-MS/MS assay exhibited good performance in terms of linearity, precision, accuracy, limit of detection, lower limit of quantification, extraction recovery, carry-over, and matrix effect. The LC-MS/MS assay and immunoassays showed strong correlation (Pearson’s r=0.910 for melatonin, r=0.955 for cortisol), but demonstrated a significant mean bias of 23.2% (range 54.0–143.7%) for melatonin and 48.9% (range 59.7–184.7%) for cortisol. Our LC-MS/MS assay provided more sensitive and reliable salivary melatonin and cortisol quantification results compared with immunoassays.
Automated detection of early-stage ROP using a deep convolutional neural network

Background/Aim To automatically detect and classify the early stages of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) using a deep convolutional neural network (CNN). Methods This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in a referral medical centre in Taiwan. Only premature infants with no ROP, stage 1 ROP or stage 2 ROP were enrolled. Overall, 11 372 retinal fundus images were compiled and split into 10 235 images (90%) for training, 1137 (10%) for validation and 244 for testing. A deep CNN was implemented to classify images according to the ROP stage. Data were collected from December 17, 2013 to May 24, 2019 and analysed from December 2018 to January 2020. The metrics of sensitivity, specificity and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve were adopted to evaluate the performance of the algorithm relative to the reference standard diagnosis. Results The model was trained using fivefold cross-validation, yielding an average accuracy of 99.93%±0.03 during training and 92.23%±1.39 during testing. The sensitivity and specificity scores of the model were 96.14%±0.87 and 95.95%±0.48, 91.82%±2.03 and 94.50%±0.71, and 89.81%±1.82 and 98.99%±0.40 when predicting no ROP versus ROP, stage 1 ROP versus no ROP and stage 2 ROP, and stage 2 ROP versus no ROP and stage 1 ROP, respectively. Conclusions The proposed system can accurately differentiate among ROP early stages and has the potential to help ophthalmologists classify ROP at an early stage.
ONS Guidelines™ for Cancer Treatment-Related Lymphedema.

PURPOSE Lymphedema is a chronic condition that may result from cancer-related surgery. The incidence of lymphedema varies greatly; however, patients remain at risk for life and may experience decreased quality of life and functional capacity. Providing recommendations for an evidence-based guideline for care of cancer treatment-related lymphedema will help to improve outcomes for patients with this chronic condition. METHODOLOGIC APPROACH A panel of healthcare professionals with patient representation convened to develop a national clinical practice guideline on prospective surveillance, risk reduction, and conservative treatment of lymphedema. Systematic reviews of the literature were conducted and the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation) methodology approach was used to assess the evidence. FINDINGS The panel made multiple recommendations for patients who are at risk for or experiencing lymphedema. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING Early diagnosis and treatment of lymphedema may mitigate symptoms. This evidence-based guideline supports patients, clinicians, and other healthcare professionals in clinical decision making. SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL CAN BE FOUND AT&NBSP;HTTPS //onf.ons. org/supplementary-material-ons-guidelines-cancer-treatment-related-lymphedema.
Fatigue‐induced change in T‐system excitability and its major cause in rat fast‐twitch skeletal muscle in vivo

Using mechanically skinned rat muscle fibres, we investigated (i) transverse tubular‐system (T‐system) excitability after high‐intensity contractions, and (ii) the mechanisms underlying the fatigue‐induced alteration of the T‐system excitability. T‐system excitability estimated by using skinned fibres, which is highly regulated by T‐system Na+‐K+‐ATPase, was decreased after muscle contractions, but was fully restored by treatment with dithiothreitol. The S‐glutathionylation of Na+–K+‐ATPase in whole muscle was increased after muscle contractions and also occurred under very low ATP conditions in rested but not stimulated fibres. In conclusion, T‐system excitability was decreased after high‐intensity exercise due at least in part to the S‐glutathionylation of Na+–K+‐ATPase, which may be enhanced by contraction‐induced ATP depression.
Assessment of causality of natriuretic peptides and atrial fibrillation and heart failure: a Mendelian randomization study in the FINRISK cohort

Abstract Aims Natriuretic peptides are extensively studied biomarkers for atrial fibrillation (AF) and heart failure (HF). Their role in the pathogenesis of both diseases is not entirely understood and previous studies several single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at the NPPA-NPPB locus associated with natriuretic peptides have been identified. We investigated the causal relationship between natriuretic peptides and AF as well as HF using a Mendelian randomization approach. Methods and results N-terminal pro B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) (N = 6669), B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) (N = 6674), and mid-regional pro atrial natriuretic peptide (MR-proANP) (N = 6813) were measured in the FINRISK 1997 cohort. N = 30 common SNPs related to NT-proBNP, BNP, and MR-proANP were selected from studies. We performed six Mendelian randomizations for all three natriuretic peptide biomarkers and for both outcomes, AF and HF, separately. Polygenic risk scores (PRSs) based on multiple SNPs were used as genetic instrumental variable in Mendelian randomizations. Polygenic risk scores were significantly associated with the three natriuretic peptides. Polygenic risk scores were not significantly associated with incident AF nor HF. Most cardiovascular risk factors showed significant confounding percentages, but no association with PRS. A causal relation except for small causal betas is unlikely. Conclusion In our Mendelian randomization approach, we confirmed an association between common genetic variation at the NPPA-NPPB locus and natriuretic peptides. A strong causal relationship between natriuretic peptides and incidence of AF as well as HF at the community-level was ruled out. Therapeutic approaches targeting natriuretic peptides will therefore very likely work through indirect mechanisms.
Changing to improve? Organizational change and change-oriented leadership in hospitals

Purpose This paper aims to fill gaps in one’s knowledge of the impact of organizational change on two outcomes relevant to hospital service quality (performance obstacles and physician job satisfaction) and in one’s knowledge of the role of middle manager change-oriented leadership in relation to the same outcomes. Further, the authors aim to identify how physician participation in decision-making is impacted by organizational change and change-oriented leadership, as well as how it mediates the relationships between these two variables, performance obstacles and job satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a cross-sectional survey design including data from Norwegian hospital physicians ( N = 556). A hypothetical model was developed based on existing theory, confirmatory factor analysis was carried out in order to ensure the validity of measurement concepts, and the structural model was estimated using structural equation modelling. Findings The organizational changes in question were positively related to performance obstacles both directly and indirectly through participation in decision-making. Organizational change was also negatively related to job satisfaction, both directly and indirectly. Change-oriented leadership was negatively related to performance obstacles, but only indirectly through participation in decision-making, whereas it was positively related to job satisfaction both directly and indirectly. Originality/value The authors developed a theoretical model based on existing theory, but to their knowledge no other studies have tested these exact relationships within one model. These findings offer insights relevant to current and ongoing developments in the healthcare field and to the question of how hospitals may deal with continuous changes in ways that could contribute positively towards outcomes relevant to service quality.
A New Method to Correlate Human Body Model and Transmission Line Pulse Based on RC Thermal Equivalent Model

This work proposes a new method to estimate the correlation between human body model (HBM) and transmission line pulse (TLP) based on RC thermal equivalent model to obtain the normalized critical temperature. Gate-grounded nMOS (ggnMOS) devices with uniform current distribution are used to verify the proposed equivalent equations. Further, the detailed discussion for the distinction between frequently used energy equivalence and the proposed equivalent method is compared. In addition, correlation factor (CF) between HBM and TLP is also analyzed and summarized.
Neural Network-Based Alzheimer’s Patient Localization for Wireless Sensor Network in an Indoor Environment

The number of older adults with Alzheimer’s disease is increasing every year. The associated memory problems cause many difficulties for Alzheimer’s patients and their caretakers; patients may even become lost in familiar surroundings. In this article, a proposed localization system based on a wireless sensor network (WSN) and backpropagation based artificial neural network (BP-ANN) was practically implemented to detect and determine the position of an Alzheimer’s patient in an indoor environment. The proposed system consisted of four ZigBee-based XBee S2C anchor nodes and one mobile node carried by the Alzheimer’s patient. The received signal strength indicator (RSSI) of the anchor nodes was collected by the mobile node using a laptop supported by X-CTU software. The obtained RSSI values were used as input for training, testing, and validation processes of the BP-ANN, while two-dimension (2D) locations (x and y) were used as the output of the ANN. The results showed that the obtained mean localization errors were 0.964 and 0.921m for validation and testing phases, respectively, after applying the ANN. Based on a comparison with state-of-the-art technology, we deduced that the proposed ANN method outperformed other techniques in previous studies in terms of mean localization error.
M-GAN: Retinal Blood Vessel Segmentation by Balancing Losses Through Stacked Deep Fully Convolutional Networks

Until now, the human expert segments retinal blood vessels manually in fundus images to inspect human retinal-related diseases, such as diabetic retinopathy and vascular occlusion. Recently, many studies were conducted for automatic retinal vessel segmentation from fundus images through supervised and unsupervised methods to minimize user intervention. However, most of them lack in segmentation robustness and cannot optimize loss functions so that results of the segmentation have made lots of fake or thin branches. This article proposes a new conditional generative adversarial network called M-GAN to conduct accurate and precise retinal vessel segmentation by balancing losses through stacked deep fully convolutional networks. It consists of a newly designed M-generator with deep residual blocks for more robust segmentation and an M-discriminator with a deeper network for more efficient training of the adversarial model. In particular, a multi-kernel pooling block is added between the stacked layers to support the scale-invariance of vessel segmentations of different sizes. The M-generator has down-sampling layers to extract features and up-sampling layers to make segmented retinal blood vessel images from the extracted features. The M-discriminator also has a deeper network similar to the down-sampling of the M-generator, but the final layer is constructed as a fully connected layer for decision making. We conduct pre-processing of the input image using automatic color equalization (ACE) to make the retinal vessels of the input fundus image more clear and perform post-processing that makes the vessel branches smooth and reduces false-negatives using a Lanczos resampling method. To verify the proposed method, we used DRIVE, STARE, HRF, and CHASE-DB1datasets and compared the proposed M-GAN with other studies. We measured accuracy, the intersection of union (IoU), F1 score, and Matthews correlation coefficient (MCC) for comparative analysis. Results of comparison proved that the proposed M-GAN derived superior performance than other studies.
Species-specific phenological responses to long-term nitrogen fertilization in an alpine meadow

Aims Long-term nitrogen (N) fertilization has profound impacts on community structure and ecosystem function, but little is known about its effects on plant phenology. Furthermore, no published study has examined effects of N chemical forms on plant phenology. Methods in an alpine meadow on the Tibetan Plateau, we monitored reproductive phenology of six common plant species after 8 years of fertilization with different N chemical forms (addition of 7.5 g N m−2 yr−1 in the forms of ammonium, nitrate and ammonium nitrate), with no N addition as the control. Important Findings Eight years of N fertilization affected plant reproductive phenology, and such effects depended on the species, N form and phenological phase. Fertilization with ammonium generally delayed, advanced or did not change flowering and fruiting phases of the alpine plants. Furthermore, fertilization with ammonium affected the temporal dispersion of reproductive phenology among the six species, especially among the late-flowering species. This could reduce the overlap of flowering and fruiting and increase phenological complementarity. Fertilization with nitrate only delayed the senescence phase of Elymus nutans, and fertilization with ammonium nitrate did not affect reproductive phenology of the six alpine plants. N fertilization with any form increased the overlap in senescence among the six species. We conclude that long-term N fertilization can cause shifts in plant phenology and such effects depend on N chemical forms. Our results also suggest that phenological complementarity could be a mechanism underlying resource partitioning and thus species coexistence in the face of changing N availability with different chemical forms.