Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Drug-Resistant Helicobacter pylori: Diagnosis and Evidence-Based Approach

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is the most common chronic bacterial infection, affecting approximately half of the world’s population. H. pylori is a Class I carcinogen according to the World Health Organization, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has linked it to 90% of stomach cancer cases worldwide. The overall pattern points to a yearly reduction in eradication rates of H. pylori with the likelihood of success further decreasing after each unsuccessful therapeutic effort. Antimicrobial resistance in Helicobacter pylori is a major public health concern and is a predominant cause attributed to eradication failure. As a result, determining H. pylori’s antibiotic susceptibility prior to the administration of eradication regimens becomes increasingly critical. Detecting H. pylori and its antimicrobial resistance has traditionally been accomplished by time-consuming culture and phenotypic drug susceptibility testing. The resistance of H. pylori to different antibiotics is caused by various molecular mechanisms, and advances in sequencing technology have greatly facilitated the testing of antibiotic susceptibility to H. pylori. This review will summarize H. pylori antibiotic resistance patterns, mechanisms, and clinical implications. We will also review the pros and cons of current antibiotic susceptibility testing methods. Along with a comparison of tailored susceptibility-guided regimens and empirical therapy based on the latest evidence, an evidence-based approach to such situations will be explored.
Navigating the challenges of bicuspid aortic valve-aortopathy

Bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) is a congenital heart defect that affects 0.5–2% of the general population with familial predominance. The modifications in hemodynamics and structure change at cellular level contribute to the dilation of aorta, resulting in bicuspid aortopathy, which can result in catastrophic aortic events. The American Heart Association recommends screening first-degree relatives of patients with bicuspid aortic valve and aortic root disease. BAV may or may not be associated with a syndrome, with the non-syndromic variety having a higher chance of predisposition to congenital and vascular abnormalities. Many genes have been implicated in the etiology of non-syndromic aortic aneurysm such as ACTA2, MYH11, FLNA, and SMAD3. Common diagnostic modalities include transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), transesophageal echocardiography (TEE), multi system computer tomography (MSCT), and cardiac MRI. Medical management reduces the rate of disease progression and surgical management is indicated based on the diameter of the ascending aorta, which differs in American and European guidelines. Our article aims to explore the current understanding of the pathophysiology, clinical aspects, and surgical management of bicuspid aortic valve disease. Additionally, we have included a discussion on the management of this condition in special populations, such as athletes and pregnant women, who require distinct treatment recommendations.
Effect of Infraorbital and/or Infratrochlear Nerve Blocks on Postoperative Care in Patients with Septorhinoplasty: A Meta-Analysis

Background and Objectives: Through a comprehensive meta-analysis of the pertinent literature, this study evaluated the utility and efficacy of perioperative infraorbital and/or infratrochlear nerve blocks in reducing postoperative pain and related morbidities in patients undergoing septorhinoplasty. Materials and Methods: We reviewed studies retrieved from the PubMed, SCOPUS, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane databases up to August 2023. The analysis included a selection of seven articles that compared a treatment group receiving perioperative infraorbital and/or infratrochlear nerve blocks with a control group that either received a placebo or no treatment. The evaluated outcomes covered parameters such as postoperative pain, the amount and frequency of analgesic medication administration, the incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting, as well as the manifestation of emergence agitation. Results: The treatment group displayed a significant reduction in postoperative pain (mean difference = −1.7236 [−2.6825; −0.7646], I2 = 98.8%), as well as a significant decrease in both the amount (standardized mean difference = −2.4629 [−3.8042; −1.1216], I2 = 93.0%) and frequency (odds ratio = 0.3584 [0.1383; 0.9287], I2 = 59.7%) of analgesic medication use compared to the control. The incidence of emergence agitation (odds ratio = 0.2040 [0.0907; 0.4590], I2 = 0.0%) was notably lower in the treatment group. The incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting (odds ratio = 0.5393 [0.1309; 2.2218], I2 = 60.4%) showed a trend towards reduction, although it was not statistically significant. While no adverse effects reaching statistical significance were reported in the analyzed studies, hematoma (proportional rate = 0.2133 [0.0905; 0.4250], I2 = 76.9%) and edema (proportional rate = 0.1935 [0.1048; 0.3296], I2 = 57.2%) after blocks appeared at rates of approximately 20%. Conclusions: Infraorbital and/or infratrochlear nerve blocks for septorhinoplasty effectively reduce postoperative pain and emergence agitation without notable adverse outcomes.
Association between Contrast-Enhanced Computed Tomography Radiomic Features, Genomic Alterations and Prognosis in Advanced Lung Adenocarcinoma Patients

Simple Summary The introduction of targeted therapy has completely changed the treatment options for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Non-invasive methods to assess mutational status, as well as novel prognostic biomarkers for lung cancer, are thus warranted to improve the management of advanced NSCLC, including adenocarcinoma, and move toward personalized therapy. Radiomics aims to extract high-dimensional features from clinical images in order to find any association with specific clinical endpoints. The aim of this study is to investigate the role of CT radiomics for non-invasive prediction of prognosis and identification of actionable genomic alterations in advanced lung adenocarcinoma patients. Findings from this study support a possible role of CT radiomics in the clinical management of patients with advanced lung cancer; moreover, its findings can contribute to design robust validation studies. Abstract Non-invasive methods to assess mutational status, as well as novel prognostic biomarkers, are warranted to foster therapy personalization of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This study investigated the association of contrast-enhanced Computed Tomography (CT) radiomic features of lung adenocarcinoma lesions, alone or integrated with clinical parameters, with tumor mutational status (EGFR, KRAS, ALK alterations) and Overall Survival (OS). In total, 261 retrospective and 48 prospective patients were enrolled. A Radiomic Score (RS) was created with LASSO-Logistic regression models to predict mutational status. Radiomic, clinical and clinical-radiomic models were trained on retrospective data and tested (Area Under the Curve, AUC) on prospective data. OS prediction models were trained and tested on retrospective data with internal cross-validation (C-index). RS significantly predicted each alteration at training (radiomic and clinical-radiomic AUC 0.95–0.98); validation performance was good for EGFR (AUC 0.86), moderate for KRAS and ALK (AUC 0.61–0.65). RS was also associated with OS at univariate and multivariable analysis, in the latter with stage and type of treatment. The validation C-index was 0.63, 0.79, and 0.80 for clinical, radiomic, and clinical-radiomic models. The study supports the potential role of CT radiomics for non-invasive identification of gene alterations and prognosis prediction in patients with advanced lung adenocarcinoma, to be confirmed with independent studies.
Time of Formation of Ramgarh Crater, India - Constraints from Geological Structures

Introduction: Among the four impact craters known in India, the ring-like structure at Ramgarh (centered at 25 o 20 / N, 76 o 37 / E) with a diameter of ~5.5 km is the least well established as an impact crater [1]. The structure is formed in consolidated sediments that include flat-lying sandstone, shale along with minor limestone of the Neoproterozoic Vindhyan Supergroup [2]. The structure is suggested to be a meteorite impact crater by many workers [3-13] though some questions exist [14]. The evidence favoring an impact origin are (a) shape of the crater [1, 15], which is similar to Arizona Crater, USA [16], (b) occurrence of a small central peak inside the crater [1, 11], (c) multiply striated joint surfaces in quartzite occurring on crater’s rim [11], (d) possible PDFs in quartz grains under microscope [11-13], (e) occurrence of magnetic spherules both inside and outside of the crater, and on crater’s rim [5, 12, 17], and (f) high abundances of Co, Ni, and Co/Cr and Ni/Cr ratios of these spherules [17]. Only limited studies of satellite imagery [1, 11, 15] and geological structure [5, 11, 12] of Ramgarh Crater exist. No detailed study is available relating the geology of this crater to the regional deformation of the target rocks. Existing structural maps of this crater [2, 18, 19] are also different from each other. Moreover, no information exists on the time of formation of this crater. We have, therefore, examined in detail the available remote sensing images of this crater and conducted field observations to understand the time of formation of this crater in relation to regional geology and deformation of the target-rocks. Field observations: During our geological field work in November’2007 (S.M. and A.D.), we mostly concentrated on the central peak inside the crater, the deformation of sandstone along the crater rim and fault systems transecting the crater. Fig.1. (a) View of ~6m central uplift, with an ancient temple on its top (arrow), and another ancient temple at the far right side of the image; (b) extremely fractured sandstone in central uplift (image 20 cm wide). The central uplift [1, 11] is a small conical shaped peak situated at the central part of the crater beside Bandewra Temple (25 o 19.9 / N, 76 o 37.5 / E) and has a present height of ~6m (Fig. 1a). This peak consists of sandstone having more than one set of fracture, among which NE-SW trending fracture dipping moderately toward SE is most prominent (Fig. 1b). The sandstone on the crater’s rim shows gentle to moderate titled beds around the crater's rim dipping away from the crater (average ~42 o , 15-67 o , number of data ~200) in most of the cases, with a few relict exposures showing subvertical to vertical dips particularly along the northern portion of the crater’s rim (Fig. 2).
ASE R

: The impact of tourism development on financial development via its effects on economic growth and country openness in Southern African countries for the period 1995 to 2019 was examined relying on pooled mean group-based estimation of panel ARDL regression, and the results lend supports to the tourism-led financial development hypothesis in these countries in the long-run. The findings infer that the development of the travel and tourism sector can spur financial development as the former by contributing to output, employment and income warrant an enhanced role of the financial sector.
Population dynamics of Senegal.

This book carefully analyzes data that varies widely in quality and level of coverage to examine recent changes in fertility and mortality rates in Senegal. The introductory chapter gives an overview of the geographic historical educational and economic setting in Senegal. The following chapter presents an overview of national and regional population trends and migration. Fertility and mortality trends are discussed in subsequent separate chapters. It is suggested that Senegals small fertility decline is unlike patterns of fertility decline among other sub-Saharan countries. Senegal has experienced fertility decline due to delayed marriage which is still linked to fertility. Botswana Kenya and Zimbabwe as examples of countries with greater progress toward fertility decline experienced a decline in teenage marriages as well as an increase in nonmarital fertility. Fertility decline in these countries is associated with increased use of modern contraception. It is expected that fertility decline in Senegal will occur due to further increases in primary and secondary school enrollment of women and greater urbanization. In rural areas declines will be achieved through later age at marriage which has already occurred in urban areas. The impact of modern contraception has not yet appeared. Child mortality has declined in Senegal since the late 1940s. Child mortality decline has been particularly rapid and sharp in rural areas. The speed and extent of child mortality declines varied by region. The western grand region historically has had the lowest probability of dying before the age of 5 years. Improved health programs in rural areas are linked to the speed of fertility decline in rural areas. Since the 1990s immunization programs were emphasized more in urban areas. Recent economic stagnation and the implementation of structural adjustment policies did not have the expected large impact on mortality. Adult mortality was negatively related to socioeconomic status and improved with increased wealth.
Low density development: impacts on physical activity and associated health outcomes: evidence review

The two major questions driving this report, are whether low density development is impacting the health and wellbeing of residents and if so, whether there is an optimal level of density that could be recommended. Hence, the main purpose of this report was to explore what, if any, health impacts are associated with continuing to build low density detached housing on the urban fringe and whether there is an optimal level of density that could be recommended? It was commissioned by the Victorian Division of the Heart Foundation specifically to examine the impact of low density housing development on cardiovascular health outcomes and risk factors. It seeks to answer a number of key questions: 1. What is the relationship between low density development and physical activity levels (including walking, cycling and access to public transport)? 2. What is the relationship between low density development and physical inactivity (or sedentary behaviour) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) health outcomes? 3. What are unintended health and physical activity consequences of low density development? 4. What is the threshold at which the health consequences associated with lower density housing are minimised and /or avoided (i.e., what is optimal)?
Disease Neuroimaging Initiative Hippocampal Atrophy in the Alzheimer's Comparing 3T and 1.5T MRI for Mapping

BACKGROUNDANDPURPOSE: PriorMRimagingstudies,primarilyat1.5T,establishedhippocampalatrophyasabiomarkerforAlzheimer disease. 3T MR imaging offers a higher contrast and signal-to-noise ratio, yet distortions and intensity uniformity are harder to control. We appliedourautomatedhippocampalsegmentationtechniqueto1.5Tand3TMRimagingdata,todeterminewhetherhippocampalatrophy detection was enhanced at 3T. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed baseline MR imaging data from 166 subjects from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative-1 (37 with Alzheimer disease, 76 with mild cognitive impairment, and 53 healthy controls) scanned at 1.5T and 3T. Using multiple linear regression, we analyzed the effect of clinical diagnosis on hippocampal radial distance, while adjusting for sex. 3D statistical maps were adjusted for multiple comparisons by using permutation-based statistics at a threshold of P (cid:2) . 01. RESULTS: Bilaterally signiﬁcant radial distance differences in the areas corresponding to the cornu ammonis 1, cornu ammonis 2, and subiculum were detected for Alzheimer disease versus healthy controls and mild cognitive impairment versus healthy controls at 1.5T and more profoundly at 3T. Comparison of Alzheimer disease with mild cognitive impairment did not reveal signiﬁcant differences at either ﬁeld strength. Subjects who converted from mild cognitive impairment to Alzheimer disease within 3 years of the baseline scan versus nonconvertersshowedsigniﬁcantdifferencesintheareacorrespondingtocornuammonis1oftherighthippocampusat3Tbutnotat1.5T. CONCLUSIONS: While hippocampal atrophy patterns in diagnostic comparisons were similar at 1.5T and 3T, 3T showed a superior signal-to-noise ratio and detected atrophy with greater effect size compared with 1.5T.
Brussels Studies , Collection générale

Using conventional relational data (residential migrations, commutes to and from the workplace) and less conventional relational data (mobile telephony calls), the space in and around the Brussels-Capital Region is partitioned into groups of closely inter-related places using a mathematical community detection method. The partitions obtained lead to strong spatial structures, while neither the distance nor the characteristics of the places are taken into account in this method. This article illustrates how large databases (big data) and their specific methods provide new opportunities for urban analyses (delimitation of urban borders, formalisation of intra-urban structures), and remind us here that no structure may be interpreted without a thorough understanding of data, the tools used and regional and urban theories. A l’aide de données relationnelles conventionnelles (migrations résidentielles, navettes de travail) et moins conventionnelles (appels de téléphonie mobile), l’espace dans et autour de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale est partitionné en groupes de lieux fortement inter-reliés à l’aide d’une méthode mathématique de détection de communautés. Les partitions obtenues conduisent à des structures spatiales fortes alors que ni la distance ni les caractéristiques des lieux ne sont prises en compte par la méthode. Cet article illustre comme les grandes bases de données (big data) et leurs méthodes spécialement dédiées offrent de nouvelles opportunités pour les analyses urbaines (délimitation des bordures urbaines, formalisation des structures intra-urbaines) et donnent ici l’occasion de rappeler qu’aucune structure ne peut s’interpréter sans la maîtrise des données, des outils utilisés mais aussi des théories régionales et urbaines. Aan de hand van conventionele (woonmigraties en woon-werkverplaatsingen) en minder conventionele (mobiele telefoongesprekken) relationele gegevens wordt de ruimte in en rond het Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest opgedeeld in groepen van plaatsen, die nauw met elkaar verbonden zijn, op basis van een wiskundige methode voor de detectie van gemeenschappen. De verkregen indelingen (partities) leiden tot sterke ruimtelijke structuren, hoewel de methode geen rekening houdt met de afstand en de karakteristieken van de plaatsen. Dit artikel licht toe dat de grote databanken (big data) en hun speciaal daarvoor bestemde methodes nieuwe mogelijkheden voor stadsanalyses (afbakening van de stadsranden en formalisering van de intrastedelijke structuren) aanreiken en een kans bieden om eraan te herinneren dat geen enkele structuur geïnterpreteerd kan worden zonder de gegevens, gebruikte instrumenten maar ook de regionale en stedelijke theorieën te kennen. Cartography of interaction fields in and around Brussels: commuting, moves an. Brussels Studies , Collection générale 17
Statistically Downscaled Temperature Scenarios over China

Abstract Monthly mean temperatures at 562 stations in China are estimated using a statistical downscaling technique. The technique used is multiple linear regressions (MLRs) of principal components (PCs). A stepwise screening procedure is used for selecting the skilful PCs as predictors used in the regression equation. The predictors include temperature at 850 hPa (T), the combination of sea-level pressure and temperature at 850 hPa (p+T) and the combination of geo—potential height and temperature at 850 hPa (H+T). The downscaling procedure is tested with the three predictors over three predictor domains. The optimum statistical model is obtained for each station and month by finding the predictor and predictor domain corresponding to the highest correlation. Finally, the optimum statistical downscaling models are applied to the Hadley Centre Coupled Model, version 3 (HadCM3) outputs under the Special Report on Emission Scenarios (SRES) A2 and B2 scenarios to construct local future temperature change scenarios for each station and month. The results show that (1) statistical downscaling produces less warming than the HadCM3 output itself; (2) the downscaled annual cycles of temperature differ from the HadCM3 output, but are similar to the observation; (3) the downscaled temperature scenarios show more warming in the north than in the south; (4) the downscaled temperature scenarios vary with emission scenarios, and the A2 scenario produces more warming than the B2, especially in the north of China.
Influence of acidity on liquid–liquid phase transitions of mixed secondary organic aerosol (SOA) proxy–inorganic aerosol droplets

Abstract. The phase state and morphology of aerosol particles play a critical role in determining their effect on climate. While aerosol acidity has been identified as a key factor affecting multiphase chemistry and phase transitions, the impact of acidity on the phase transition of multicomponent aerosol particles has not been extensively studied in situ. In this work, we employed aerosol optical tweezers (AOT) to probe the impact of acidity on the phase transition behavior of levitated aerosol particles. Our results revealed that higher acidity decreases the separation relative humidity (SRH) of aerosol droplets mixed with ammonium sulfate (AS) and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) proxy, such as 3-methylglutaric acid (3-MGA), 1,2,6-hexanetriol (HEXT) and 2,5-hexanediol (HEXD) across aerosol pH in atmospheric conditions. Phase separation of organic acids was more sensitive to acidity compared to organic alcohols. We found the mixing relative humidity (MRH) was consistently higher than the SRH in several systems. Phase-separating systems, including 3-MGA / AS, HEXT / AS and HEXD / AS, exhibited oxygen-to-carbon ratios (O:C) of 0.67, 0.50 and 0.33, respectively. In contrast, liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS) did not occur in the high-O:C system of glycerol / AS, which had an O:C ratio of 1.00. Additionally, the morphology of 42 out of the 46 aerosol particles that underwent LLPS was observed to be a core–shell structure. Our findings provide a comprehensive understanding of the pH-dependent LLPS in individual suspended aerosol droplets and pave the way for future research on phase separation of atmospheric aerosol particles.
Simultaneous design of robust gain‐scheduled static output‐feedback controller and scaling matrices for linear parameter varying systems with inexact scheduling parameters

This article presents a design method of the robust gain‐scheduled static output‐feedback controller exploiting inexact measured scheduling parameters for multi‐affine linear parameter‐varying systems with structured uncertainty blocks. Performance scaling matrices are introduced in the design process to reduce conservatism. By introducing auxiliary variables and properly utilizing projection lemma, a parameter‐dependent linear matrix inequality with a single line search parameter is derived to synthesize the static output‐feedback controller gains and scaling matrices simultaneously. Based on vertices of the convex polytope covering the admissible region of scheduling parameters and inexact ones, the given parameter‐dependent synthesis condition is further expressed as a set of linear matrix inequalities at the vertices of the polytope to guarantee the robustness against inaccurate scheduling parameters. Several examples show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.