Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Geant 4 Studies of the scintillator crystals for the axial HPD-PET concept

The 3D Axial HPD-PET concept consists of axially oriented arrays of long and thin scintillator crystal bars read-out at both ends by a Hybrid Photon Detector. In the framework of feasibility studies various investigations are being performed about the characteristics of the crystals to be employed. The resolution in terms of the axial reconstruction of a single gamma ray σz and its energy σE/E depend on the physical and optical properties of the chosen scintillator, including its surface finish (coating/wrapping), and on the characteristics of the photodetectors. A comparison of computational studies carried out with Geant4 for YAP:Ce crystal bars of dimensions 3.2×3.2×100 mm and experimental results allows to evaluate the influence of the optical parameters of the crystal lateral surfaces on the light collection. The measurements of the effective light attenuation lengths and of the axial resolutions are well reproduced by the Geant4 results. With the thus validated simulations we show that a mechanical structuring of the crystal surface, which leads to pure surface absorption, would allow to significantly enhance the PET detector performance. This method to adjust the effective absorption length promises good reproducibility in the production of large numbers of crystals.
A Morphometric Anatomical Study Of The Ethmoidal Foramina On Dry Human Skulls A Morphometric Anatomical Study Of The Ethmoidal Foramina On Dry Human Skulls

Study of ethmoidal foramina are important in orbital surgeries, surgeries of anterior cranial fossa and in endonasal micro surgeries of ethmoidal region. The present study was undertaken to provide anaotomical morphometric data which will guide surgeons in locating these foramina during different surgeries. We measured the distances between all the ethmoidal foramina and the optic canal from the frontomaxillary suture. We also noted the number, location and presence or absence of these foraminas.
ANALYSIS OF THE CLINICAL TASKS PERFORMED BY THE VETERINARY SURGEONS OF KERALA

The study was conducted with the objctives of analyzing in detail the clinical tasks performed by the veterinary surgeons from three perspectives such as frequency of performance, level of importance and performance difficulty and to prioritize the tasks to facilitate curriculum development under Continuing Veterinary Education (CVE) programme. The data were obtained by using questionnaires from the 130 veterinary surgeons out of 764 veterinary surgeons working in Kerala. It was found that top priority was assigned to the tasks management of mastitis, udder and teat surgery and artificial insemination respectively under medical, surgical and gynecological tasks. However, 18 tasks each under medical and gynecology and 32 tasks under surgery were ranked according to priorities assigned by the respondents. The ranks assigned to these tasks can be the yardstick for incorporating them in the curriculum of CVE programme.
Fabrication and Characterization of Chitosan-Collagen Membrane from Barramundi ( Lates Calcarifer ) Scales for Guided Tissue Regeneration

Abstract Objectives The aim of this study was to evaluate the synthesis, mechanical strength, and morphology of chitosan–collagen membranes from barramundi scales for guided tissue regeneration technique. Materials and Methods Collagen was extracted from barramundi scales by immersion in acetic acid. The resulting wet collagen was later dried. The membrane was fabricated by mixing chitosan with collagen from barramundi scales. Membrane characterization parameters were measured using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and mechanical property. Results The FTIR spectrum showed the typical peak of the mixture of chitosan and collagen. The tensile strength and elongation at break of the membrane in dry condition were 0.28 MPa and 8.53%, respectively, while in the wet condition these were 0.12 MPa and 25.6%. The membrane porosity test result was 38.85%; SEM result showed a porous membrane surface with size varying around 16 to 100 µm. Conclusion The chitosan-collagen membrane from the barramundi scale showed the fibrous membrane surface that has ideal porous size as guided tissue regeneration membrane and the lower mechanical strength.
Parental Socialization of Child Gratitude and Links to Child Outcomes

Parental Socialization of Child Gratitude and Links to Child Outcomes Boglarka K. Vizy Research shows that the gratitude is associated with positive mental health in both adults and children. However, research on how gratitude is learned or socialized is limited. The goal of the proposed study was to examine parental socialization of gratitude and its relation to children’s gratitude to predict children’s positive affect, depressive symptoms, and social skills. A mediation model was tested to determine if children’s gratitude explained the link between mother socialization and child outcomes. It was expected that these indirect paths would be stronger for older children. Participants were 95 mother-child dyads who completed a battery of questionnaires and a video-recorded discussion task that was coded for socialization and understanding of gratitude. Using Hayes’ PROCESS, a moderated mediation model indicated that mother’s elaboration of gratitude during the discussion task was associated with higher levels of communication skills for children through children’s understanding of gratitude, with the path from children’s gratitude understanding to communication being moderated by child age. In other words, mothers’ socialization of gratitude led to a better understanding of gratitude for children, which then led to increased communication skills for older children specifically. These results are important because they provide evidence for the paths through which gratitude is socialized in children. As a result, this study may prompt further research and the development of gratitude interventions to increase gratitude understanding in children and ultimately, the overall well-being and social skills of individuals.
Impact of Social Isolation on Subsequent Peptic Ulcer Recurrence in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment: The Role of Change in Severity of Depression.

OBJECTIVES To examine the association between social isolation, change in the severity of depression, and subsequent recurrence of peptic ulcer disease (PUD) in older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). METHODS Older adults (≥55 years) with MCI and H. pylori-infected PUD (N=2,208) were recruited between 2010 and 2014 from twelve hospitals in the People's Republic of China. H. pylori was eradicated and PUD was cleared in 2,015 participants by the end of 2014; 1,900 of these were followed for up to 36 months. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to assess how PUD recurrence, varied with social engagement levels and changes in depression severity. Multivariate Cox-proportional hazard models were used to examine associations between social isolation, changes in depression severity, and PUD recurrence. RESULTS PUD recurrence was more prevalent in socially isolated (10.8%) than in socially engaged participants (5.5%). However, the rates of PUD were lower in socially isolated individuals without (absence of) depression (7.2%) and those with decreased depression (8.2%), whereas socially isolated individuals with unchanged and increased depression had substantially higher rates of PUD (16.3% and 17.8%, respectively; the social isolation by depression group for PUD recurrence was significant (p<0.001). Specifically, although social isolation was associated with PUD recurrence during the 36-month follow-up period (HR:2.665 [1.602, 4.518]), it did not increase PUD recurrence risk in participants without depression or with reduced depression. However, in participants with unchanged or increased depression, PUD recurrence was more likely to occur in socially isolated (HR:1.587 [1.125, 2.588]; HR:1.886 [1.012, 3.522] respectively) than in socially engaged participants. CONCLUSIONS Social isolation is associated with a greater risk of PUD recurrence; however, the absence of or decreased severity of depression may alter this relationship.
Length of Hospital Stay for Osteoarthritic Primary Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries in New Zealand

This study aims to explore the length of stay (LOS) of publicly funded osteoarthritic primary hip and knee replacement surgeries in New Zealand. Patients with osteoarthritis who underwent publicly funded primary hip and knee replacement surgery in 2005–2017 were included. We have identified 53,439 osteoarthritic primary hip replacements and 50,072 osteoarthritic primary knee replacements. LOS has been reduced by almost 40% over the last 13 years. Logistic regression showed that women, Māori, Pacific and Asian patients, older patients, people with more comorbidities and those having opiates on discharge and patients in earlier years were more likely to have extended LOS following hip replacements and knee replacements. Regional differences were noted in LOS between the Waitemata District Health Board (DHB) compared to Tairāwhiti DHB where patients were the most likely to have a LOS of more than 5 days after hip and knee replacements. LOS after hip and knee replacements has been reduced dramatically. Women, Māori, Pacific and Asian patients, older patients and people with more comorbidities are more likely to have extended LOS. Patients dispensed opiates on discharge had a longer LOS. There are great geographical variations in LOS for primary hip and knee surgeries in New Zealand.
Estimating Biomechanical Time-Series with Wearable Sensors: A Systematic Review of Machine Learning Techniques

Wearable sensors have the potential to enable comprehensive patient characterization and optimized clinical intervention. Critical to realizing this vision is accurate estimation of biomechanical time-series in daily-life, including joint, segment, and muscle kinetics and kinematics, from wearable sensor data. The use of physical models for estimation of these quantities often requires many wearable devices making practical implementation more difficult. However, regression techniques may provide a viable alternative by allowing the use of a reduced number of sensors for estimating biomechanical time-series. Herein, we review 46 articles that used regression algorithms to estimate joint, segment, and muscle kinematics and kinetics. We present a high-level comparison of the many different techniques identified and discuss the implications of our findings concerning practical implementation and further improving estimation accuracy. In particular, we found that several studies report the incorporation of domain knowledge often yielded superior performance. Further, most models were trained on small datasets in which case nonparametric regression often performed best. No models were open-sourced, and most were subject-specific and not validated on impaired populations. Future research should focus on developing open-source algorithms using complementary physics-based and machine learning techniques that are validated in clinically impaired populations. This approach may further improve estimation performance and reduce barriers to clinical adoption.
Meta-Analysis of the RDoC Social Processing Domain across Units of Analysis in Children and Adolescents

Objective: This meta-analysis advances a framework to understand correspondence among units of analysis of the social processing construct within Research Domain Criteria (RDoC). Method: As requested for this special issue, eligible studies cited an RDoC-initiative paper or mentioned RDoC in the abstract, title, or keywords were empirical and peer reviewed, and described a correlation or regression analysis (r, β, or odds ratio) between two different units of analysis in the social processing domain in youth. We examined the frequency (descriptive statistics) and magnitude of correspondence between unit-pairs (random effects models), and predefined moderators (meta-regression). Results: Eight of the twenty-eight possible unit-by-unit pairs were identified, with subjective-by-behavior units being the most common. Of those, only subjective-by-circuit had significant correspondence between units. Moderator analysis revealed that the age and diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder moderated correspondence between subjective-by-circuit units of analysis, and that a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder moderated correspondence between subjective-by-gene units of analysis. Younger ages and inclusion of either diagnostic group reduced correspondence. Conclusions: These findings indicate that the RDoC initiative has generated limited research within the social processing domain across units of analysis in youth to date. Moreover, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)-funded studies do not appear to be biased toward supporting the RDoC framework. However, the limited number of included studies precludes the generalizability of these findings and underscores the need for further research. Despite this, results suggest that the NIMH model for providing standard batteries of measurement tools may effectively reduce spurious correlations between subjective-by-behavior units of analysis.
Demographic Factors of Nasal Bone Fractures and Social Reflection.

INTRODUCTION The nose is the most protruding central part of the face, and nasal bone fractures are the most common of facial bone fractures, leading up to 39%. Despite its high frequency, not many studies handled the etiology of nasal bone fractures, leading to the necessity of a recent demographic study. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 1111 patients diagnosed with nasal bone fracture from 2013 to 2018 at our institute were evaluated. A retrospective review of the various demographic and etiologic characteristics was done. RESULTS Numerous factors associated with nasal bone fractures were analyzed. Male patients were 3.3 times greater than the number of female patients, and twenties were the most common age range. Violence was the overall most common cause of injury, while slip down was the most common cause for females. Upon monthly distribution, the highest incidence of nasal bone fractures occurred in September, followed by March and December. The authors further divided the patients by time zone of the fractures, and male patients were most commonly injured from midnight to 3 AM, while female patients were 6 PM to 9 PM. CONCLUSION Our findings represent a recent urban data of various etiologic factors of nasal bone fracture. The concept of school violence has been widely used since 1990s, and our data reflects that violence of the youth is a serious issue of the society. The mechanism of injury differed among sexes and age groups, and such discrepancies will aid physicians to better understand facial bone fracture patients and educate them in the future.
Impact of Stereotactic Ventriculocisternostomy on Delayed Cerebral Infarction and Outcome After Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Background and Purpose— Delayed cerebral infarction (DCI) is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH). Stereotactic catheter ventriculocisternostomy (STX-VCS) and fibrinolytic/spasmolytic lavage is a new method for DCI prevention. Here, we assess the effects of implementing STX-VCS in an unselected aSAH patient population of a tertiary referral center. Methods— Retrospective cohort study of all consecutive aSAH patients admitted to a neurosurgical referral center during a 7-year period (April 2012 to April 2019). Midterm STX-VCS was introduced and offered to patients at high risk for DCI. We compared the incidence and burden of DCI, neurological outcome, and the use of induced hypertension and endovascular rescue therapy in this consecutive aSAH population 3.5 years before versus 3.5 years after STX-VCS became available. Results— Four hundred thirty-six consecutive patients were included: 222 BEFORE and 214 AFTER. Fifty-seven of 214 (27%) patients received STX-VCS. Stereotactic procedures resulted in one (2%) subdural hematoma. Favorable neurological outcome at 6 months occurred in 118 (53%) patients BEFORE and 139 (65%) patients AFTER (relative risk, 0.79 [95% CI, 0.66–0.95]). DCI occurred in 40 (18.0%) patients BEFORE and 17 (7.9%) patients AFTER (relative risk, 0.68 [95% CI, 0.57–0.86]), and total DCI volumes were 8933 (100%) and 3329 mL (36%), respectively. Induced hypertension was used in 97 (44%) and 30 (15%) patients, respectively (relative risk, 0.55 [95% CI, 0.46–0.65]). Thirty (13.5%) patients BEFORE versus 5 (2.3%) patients AFTER underwent endovascular rescue therapies (relative risk, 0.17 [95% CI, 0.07–0.42]). Conclusions— Selecting high-risk patients for STX-VCS reduced the DCI incidence, burden, and related mortality in a consecutive aSAH patient population. This was associated with an improved neurological outcome.
Adaptive Learning for Robust Radial Basis Function Networks

This article addresses the robust estimation of the output layer linear parameters in a radial basis function network (RBFN). A prominent method used to estimate the output layer parameters in an RBFN with the predetermined hidden layer parameters is the least-squares estimation, which is the maximum-likelihood (ML) solution in the specific case of the Gaussian noise. We highlight the connection between the ML estimation and minimizing the Kullback–Leibler (KL) divergence between the actual noise distribution and the assumed Gaussian noise. Based on this connection, a method is proposed using a variant of a generalized KL divergence, which is known to be more robust to outliers in the pattern recognition and machine-learning problems. The proposed approach produces a surrogate-likelihood function, which is robust in the sense that it is adaptive to a broader class of noise distributions. Several signal processing experiments are conducted using artificially generated and real-world data. It is shown that in all cases, the proposed adaptive learning algorithm outperforms the standard approaches in terms of mean-squared error (MSE). Using the relative increase in the MSE for different noise conditions, we compare the robustness of our proposed algorithm with the existing methods for robust RBFN training and show that our method results in overall improvement in terms of absolute MSE values and consistency.
Timing of Calorie Restriction in Mice Impacts Host Metabolic Phenotype with Correlative Changes in Gut Microbiota

Aberrant feeding patterns whereby people eat more frequently throughout the day and with a bias toward late-night eating are prevalent in society today. However, whether restriction of food to daytime in comparison to nighttime, coupled with restricted calorie intake, can influence gut microbiota, metabolism, and overall health requires further investigation. We surveyed the effects of the shift in feeding time on gut microbiota and metabolic phenotype in calorie-restricted mice and found that avoiding eating during the rest period may generate more beneficial effects in mice. This work strengthens the evidence for using “when to eat” as an intervention to improve health during calorie restriction. ABSTRACT Calorie restriction (CR) is accompanied by self-imposed daily restriction of food intake and an extended fasting period between meals. The impact of restricting feeding to the dark or light phase on the effects of CR remains elusive. Here, light-fed CR mice showed physiological changes, such as muscle loss, concomitant with changes in the gut microbiota structure and composition. After switching to ad libitum access to food, light-fed mice had a period of food-craving behavior and short-lived physiological changes, while dark-fed mice displayed lasting changes in fat accumulation, glucose metabolism, intestinal barrier function, and systemic inflammatory markers. Moreover, the gut microbiota was modulated by when the food was consumed, and the most abundant Lactobacillus operational taxonomic unit (OTU) promoted by CR was enhanced in dark-fed mice. After switching to ad libitum feeding, the gut microbiota of dark-fed mice returned to the state resembling that of mice fed normal chow ad libitum, but that of light-fed mice was still significantly different from the other two groups. Together, these data indicate that for CR, restricting food consumption to the active phase brought better metabolic phenotype associated with potentially beneficial structural shifts in the gut microbiota. IMPORTANCE Aberrant feeding patterns whereby people eat more frequently throughout the day and with a bias toward late-night eating are prevalent in society today. However, whether restriction of food to daytime in comparison to nighttime, coupled with restricted calorie intake, can influence gut microbiota, metabolism, and overall health requires further investigation. We surveyed the effects of the shift in feeding time on gut microbiota and metabolic phenotype in calorie-restricted mice and found that avoiding eating during the rest period may generate more beneficial effects in mice. This work strengthens the evidence for using “when to eat” as an intervention to improve health during calorie restriction.
Implementation and Long-Term Outcomes of Organisational Health Literacy Interventions in Ireland and The Netherlands: A Longitudinal Mixed-Methods Study

Organisational Health Literacy (OHL)-interventions are needed to overcome health inequality. OHL-interventions have successfully identified communication barriers at the organisational level, but evidence is limited on the extent to which this leads to sustainable organisational change. This study aims to assess the implementation fidelity, moderators (barriers and facilitators), and long-term impact of OHL-interventions in hospitals in Ireland and The Netherlands. We used a longitudinal mixed-methods approach to assess two similar OHL-interventions in one Irish and three Dutch hospitals. The OHL-interventions concerned the improvement of navigation and implementation of health literacy-friendly communication throughout organisations. Participants were 24 hospital employees and 40 older adults who use hospital services. At six, eight, and eighteen months, we assessed the level of implementation, barriers and facilitators, and impact through questionnaires and in-depth semi-structured interviews. After older adults and professionals had identified a number of communication problems, we found that professionals had successfully implemented OHL-interventions to promote navigation and comprehensible communication. Limited resources and variation in organisational structures and procedures were perceived as barriers to implementation. The participation of service users, leadership support, and a stepwise implementation of interventions were perceived to facilitate implementation. In the long term, the OHL-interventions led to system-wide improvements, as shown by better embedding of health literacy policies, enhanced patient engagement, provision of plain language training and comprehensible information. Findings were similar for the two countries. Embedded OHL-interventions resulted in sustainable and system-wide health literacy changes in all four hospitals. Following implementation, OHL-interventions have the potential to promote health equity and empowerment among health service users.