Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The therapeutic effect of intra-articular facet joint injection with normal saline as a comparator for chronic low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Intra-articular facet joint injection (FJI) has been increasingly used as a treatment for chronic low back pain (LBP). Choice of the substance has been based on clinical experience with unclear evidence on marginal effectiveness of active substance over normal saline as a placebo control. This systematic review investigates the comparative effectiveness between normal saline and active substances on patient-reported outcomes (PROs). Methods Systematic search was conducted in five databases: PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, and CENTRAL for randomized controlled trials and observational studies of evaluating the PROs of FJI comparing active injected substances with normal saline as placebo in chronic LBP patients in the English language without publication date restriction. Quality assessment was performed using ROB2 and ROBINS-I. The meta-analysis was done using a random-effects model. Mean difference with 95% CIs of efficacy outcomes including pain, numbness, disability, quality of life were measured. Results Of 2,467 potential studies, three were included in the systematic review and meta-analysis (247 patients). Compared to other active substances, normal saline provided similar therapeutic effects on pain outcome within one hour (MD 2.43, 95% CI -11.61 to 16.50), at 1.0-1.5 months follow up (MD -0.63, 95% CI -7.97 to 6.72), and at 3 to 6 months (MD 1.90, 95% CI -16.03 to 19.83) as well as the quality of life at one and six months follow-up. Conclusions The short-term and long-term clinical improvements of intra-articular FJI using normal saline are comparable to the other active substances in LBP patients.
Potential-Assisted Deposition of Alkanethiols on Au: Controlled Preparation of Single- and Mixed-Component SAMs

The commonly used method of preparing RS/Au self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) involves a passive incubation process in a nonabsorbing solvent. Preparation of mixed-component SAMs is particularly problematic under these conditions. The time course of the open circuit potential in the passive adsorption experiment suggests that control of the deposition potential could lead to a faster and ultimately more complete SAM formation process. This is shown to be the case, as both C16 RS/Au SAMs and mixed C16/HOOCC15S/Au SAMs are shown to be readily prepared in approximately 15 min from 5 mM thiol solutions at potentials ranging from 200 to 600 mV (vs Ag/AgCl). The blocking properties of the resulting C16 SAMs are excellent. This technique provides access to mixed-composition SAMs otherwise inaccessible using deposition under open circuit conditions.
Particle Deposition from Natural Convection Enclosure Flow Onto Smooth Surfaces

ABSTRACT Deposition can be an important fate for airborne particles in indoor environments. The effects of particle size (diameters: 0.1, 0.5, 0.7, 1.3, and 2.5 μm), surface orientation, and surface-air-temperature difference (±10 K and ±1.5 K) on particle deposition velocity have been studied experimentally in a 1.22 m × 1.22 m × 1.22 m aluminum chamber. Monodispersed ammonium fluorescein particles were deposited onto the chamber surfaces under natural convection flow conditions and then extracted to determine particle deposition at seven locations along each surface. For horizontal surfaces, gravitational settling was the dominant factor for particle diameters greater than 1 μm. For vertical surfaces, several factors significantly influenced deposition. Excluding near-corner areas, the average deposition velocities on cool vertical walls varied from a maximum of 5.8 × 10−5 m s−1 for 0.1 μm particles (surface-to-air temperature difference of -10 K) to a minimum of 5.3 × 10−7 m s−1 for 1.3 μm particles (-.
SiH2 adsorption on the single dimer vacancy of the Si(100) surface

The energetic and structural properties of SiH2 adsorbed on the single dimer vacancy (SDV) of the Si(100)-c(4 × 2) surface have been studied by using empirical tight-binding (ETB) total energy calculations. The adsorptions of SiH2, SiH2 with a hydrogen adatom (SiH2+H) and SiH2 with two hydrogen adatoms (SiH2+2H) on the Si(100) surface with SDV structure have been studied. Three possible sites (A, B and C) are found in each case. Adsorbing of SiH2 or H on the SDV makes the structure of the SDV change. When a unit of SiH2 is adsorbed on the SDV, the A site is more stable than the B site. If SiH2+H or SiH2+2H is adsorbed on the SDV, the relative stability of the A site and B site reverses. The C site is found to be the least stable site in all cases.
Melhoria da qualidade de uva 'Bordô' para produção de vinho e suco de uva

Aiming the production of wine and grape juice of better quality, the objective of this study was to increase the ratio of total soluble solids / titratable acidity (TSS / TA), known as flavor, of the grape 'Bordo' by the use of plant growth regulators and to evaluate the effects of these products on the other chemical and physical characteristics of the fruit. The work was conducted during two crop seasons, 2009/2010 and 2010/2011 in Bocaiuva do Sul, PR, Brazil. The physical variables analyzed were: length and width of clusters, berries diameter, number of berries per cluster, cluster and berries weight, and number of seeds per berry. The chemical variables were: soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity (TTA), pH and TSS / TTA. The application of GA3 at 100 mg L-1 provided the improvement of fruit quality for wine and grape juice production, as well as the improvement of fruits development.
Hydrogen Peroxide Scrubber for the Control of Nitrogen Oxides

A parametric study was performed to determine the effects of hydrogen peroxide on the absorption of oxides of nitrogen in alkaline solutions. The initial NO:NO2 ratio was 1:0, 1:1, or 0:1, and the initial concentration of nitrogen oxides in air was 1,000 ppmv. The NO:NO2 ratio had a major influence on overall removal efficiency by alkaline solutions with or without H2O2. Removal efficiencies were relatively high when this ratio was 1:1 or 0:1, but was much lower when this ratio was 1:0. Addition of up to 1-g/L H2O2 improved NOx removal for all initial NO:NO2 ratios tested.
A rare complication of cerebral venous thrombosis during simple percutaneous coronary intervention

Abstract Rationale: Cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), although rare, are associated with high in-hospital morbidity and mortality rates. Cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) is an uncommon cause of CVAs compared with arterial disease but is associated with favorable outcomes in most cases. We present a rare case of CVT following a simple PCI procedure with stent implantation, which has not been previously reported in the literature. Patient concerns: A 78-year-old woman with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and coronary artery disease received simple PCI with stent implantation. After PCI, she developed a throbbing headache with nausea and vomiting, with her blood pressure increasing to 190/100 mmHg. Drowsiness, disorientation, and neck stiffness were noted. Neurological complication due to the PCI procedure was highly suspected. Diagnosis: Noncontrast brain computed tomography was performed along with emergency neurological consultation, and the patient was diagnosed as having acute CVT. Interventions: The patient was treated with anti-intracranial pressure therapy and anticoagulation therapy through low-molecular-weight heparin and was subsequently treated with warfarin. Outcomes: After treatment, the patient's symptoms and signs gradually subsided, and her clinical condition improved. She was discharged with full recovery thereafter. Lessons: A case of acute CVT, a rare, and atypical manifestation of venous thromboembolism and CVA, complicated simple PCI with stent implantation. During PCI, identifying patients with a high risk of a CVA is critical, and special care should be taken to prevent this devastating complication.
Effects of acupuncture on postoperative recovery and extubation time

Abstract Background: This systematic review protocol aims to provide evidence of the efficacy and safety of acupuncture on postoperative recovery and extubation time. Methods: The following 11 electronic databases will be searched from inception: The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, MEDLINE, EMBASE, AMED, CINAHL, 1 Chinese database (CNKI), and 5 Korean databases (OASIS, DBpia, RISS, KISS, NDSL). Only randomized controlled trials of acupuncture treatment for postoperative recovery after surgery will be included for review. The selection of the studies, data extraction, and management will be performed independently by 3 researchers. Methodological quality, including the risk of bias, will be assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias assessment tool. Results and Conclusions: Our systematic review will provide evidence of the efficacy of acupuncture on postoperative recovery and extubation time. This evidence will provide useful information to practitioners and patients in the field of surgery and complementary medicine. PROSPERO registration number: 2020 CRD42020168411
Bispectral index monitoring of the clinical effects of propofol closed-loop target-controlled infusion

Abstract Background: To investigate whether closed-loop systems under bispectral index anesthesia depth monitoring can reduce the intraoperative propofol dosage. Methods: All randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on reducing propofol dosage under closed-loop systems were collected, and the literature was screened out, the abstracts and full texts were carefully read, and the references were tracked, data extraction and quality evaluation were conducted on the included research, and the RevMan5.3 software was used for meta-analysis. The main results were propofol and the incidence of adverse reactions such as hypertensive hypotension and postoperative cognitive dysfunction. A total of 879 cases were included in 8 articles, including 450 occurrences in the closed-loop system group and 429 cases in the open-loop system group. Results: Compared with manual control, closed-loop systems under bispectral index anesthesia depth monitoring reduced the dose of propofol (MD: −0.62, 95% CI: −1.08–−0.16, P = .008), with heterogeneity (I2 = 80%). Closed-loop systems significantly reduced the incidence of abnormal blood pressure (MD: −0.02, 95%CI: −0.05–0.01, P = .15, I2 = 74%) and postoperative cognitive dysfunction (MD: −0.08, 95% CI: −0.14 −0.01, P = .02, I2 = 94%). Conclusion: Bispectral index monitoring of propofol closed-loop target-controlled infusion system can reduce the amount of propofol, reduce the incidence of adverse reactions such as hypertensive or hypotension and postoperative cognitive dysfunction.
A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Arteriosclerosis has genetic correlation. Many studies have shown that angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AT1R) gene A1166C polymorphism is highly associated with arteriosclerosis, but there is no evidence-based basis. The purpose of this study is to systematically evaluate the relationship between AT1R gene A1166C polymorphism and arteriosclerosis. Methods: The search time is set from the establishment of the database in December 2020 in this study. The search database include China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang, VIP and China Biology Medicine disc (CBM), PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library. The subjects are observational studies on the relationship between AGTR1 A1166C polymorphism and arteriosclerosis (including case-control study, cross-sectional study, and cohort study). The language is limited to English and Chinese. The data of the included study are extracted and the literature quality is evaluated by 2 researchers independently. The data are statistically analyzed by Stata 16.0 software. Results: This study will use pulse wave velocity as an index to evaluate arteriosclerosis to explore the relationship between AT1R gene A1166C polymorphism and arteriosclerosis. Conclusion: This study will provide evidence-based medicine for elucidating the genetic tendency of arteriosclerosis. Ethics and dissemination: Private information from individuals will not be published. This systematic review also does not involve endangering participant rights. Ethical approval will not be required. The results may be published in a peer-reviewed journal or disseminated at relevant conferences. OSF Registration number: DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/V6E2Y Abbreviations: AT1R = angiotensin II type 1 receptor, PWV = pulse wave velocity.
Modeling of Heat Uptake and Release with Embedded Phase-Change Materials in Monolithic Microfluidized Bed Reactors

An innovative process concept for biomass gasification is proposed, which involves a combination of gasification and combustion reactions in a monolithic structured reactor by using high-temperature phase-change materials to intensify the process heat management. In this paper we specifically look at the heat transport problem, dynamics of which drives the overall dynamics of the proposed process concept. Exploiting the large “separation of scales” between the axial and radial coordinates, we have addressed the modeling problem at the corresponding scales with a simplified, one-dimensional dynamic model in the reactor (axial) scale and a detailed dynamic finite element method (FEM) model at the channel (radial) scale. This contribution relates to the latter model, wherein we have investigated the effect of various controlling physical parameters as well and geometrical and configurational aspects. Finally, we identify ways in which such a process concept may be optimized.
Interaction of "long" open-chain polyazaalkanes with hydrogen and copper(II) ions

The series of polyazaalkanes 1,16-dimethyl-hexaazahexadecane, 1,19-dimethyl-heptaazanonadecane, 1,22-dimethyl-octaazadocosane, 1,25-dimethyl-nonaazapentacosane, and 1,28-dimethyl-decaazaoctacosane have been synthesized and characterized. Their protonation behavior has been studied potentiometrically at 298.15 K in 0.15 mol dm −3 NaClO 4 as well as by 13 C NMR spectroscopy. A protonation pattern that minimizes electrostatic repulsions between polyammonium sites has been found
A Comparison of Screening and Refined Exposure Models for Evaluating Toluene Air Emissions from a Washing Machine

ABSTRACT Residential clothes washing machines are potential air emission sources for volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has a screening model to predict the potential inhalation exposure to VOC emissions from a washing machine into room air. They also have a refined exposure model that can be extrapolated to evaluate a washing machine. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the screening and refined models and to compare their predictions to experimental results for toluene-contaminated tap water. This study identified a number of important results and it explained why the models over predicted as well as the models’ limitations. The Exposure and Fate Screening Tool (EFAST) Consumer Exposure Module (CEM) screening model predicted the peak concentration was 340% of the experimental result and that 90% of the toluene mass was emitted. The refined Simulation Tool Kit for Indoor Air Quality and Inhalation Exposure (IAQX) model predicted the peak concentration was 35% higher than the experimental value, the Time Weighted Average (TWA)-30 min concentration was 45% higher, and about 30% of the toluene mass was emitted. The screening model provided a quick, conservative exposure result with several limitations. The refined model provided a better estimate of the potential exposure but it required more input data and effort.
SIMULTANEOUS DETERMINATION OF PARACETAMOL, PSEUDOEPHEDRINE HYDROCHLORIDE, AND DEXTROMETHORPHAN HYDROBROMIDE IN TABLETS USING MULTIVARIATE CALIBRATION METHODS COUPLED WITH HPLC-DAD

A new method using high performance liguid chromatography (HPLC) with diode array detection (DAD) was developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of paracetamol (PAR), pseudoephedrine hydrochloride (PSE), and dextromethorphan hydrobromide (DEX) in tablets. The spectrochromatograms of these compounds give the severely overlapping spectrochromatogram. This makes the use of univariate calibration impossible. Therefore, PLS and PCR were used to analyze the three-way data recorded by HPLC-DAD. These multivariate calibration methods were tested by analyzing the synthetic mixtures of PAR, PSE, and DEX. The recoveries were in the range of 96.1–100.2% and 97.1–100.4%, relative error of prediction (REP%) in the range of 0.5–6.7 and 0.8–7.0% were obtained for PLS and PCR, respectively. These methods were also applied to real samples containing the three drugs, and recoveries in the range of 99.0–106.0% and 99.6–106.3% were obtained for PLS and PCR, respectively. The results obtained by PLS and PCR statistically compared with the results obtained by the classical HPLC method. It was found that there were no significant differences between the means and the standard deviations of the results obtained by the multivariate calibration methods and classical method. HPLC-multivariate calibration methods have several advantages over the classical HPLC method. These advantages are the use of a simple mobile phase and shorter analysis time. Also, these methods do not require the internal standard and the gradient elution.
Synthesis and Formation of a Supramolecular Nematic Liquid Crystal in Poly(p-phenylene−sulfoterephthalamide)−H2O

The formation of lyotropic solutions in water has yet to be reported for polyaramides. In this work, we investigate the synthesis and properties of a water-soluble polyaramid via the inclusion of a sulfonated monomer in the backbone of the polymer chain. Using sulfonated terephthalic acid (sTA) together with a diamine and a diisocyanate enables us to produce a lyotropic water-soluble polyaramid poly(p-phenylene−sulfoterephthalamide). Two different synthetic routes are presented: (1) the reaction between sTA and p-phenylene diisocyanate (PPDI) and (2) the reaction of activated sTA using triphenyl phosphite and p-phenylenediamine (PPD). Polymers with various molar masses up to 15 000 g mol-1 using both methods have been obtained. We have examined the optimal reaction conditions for the synthesis of these polymers, in particular the effect of reaction temperature, concentration of monomers and reactants, type of counterions, and solvents. The polymers obtained are mostly soluble in water, up to high concent.
Environmental Monitoring in Wireless Sensor Networks using Structured Matrix Completion

Environmental monitoring is an important application of wireless sensor networks (WSNs). However, due to the limited number of sensors, the global distribution of the sensed physical environmental parameter with a high resolution in the monitoring area cannot be accurately obtained. In this paper, a structured matrix completion based method is proposed to obtain the global distribution of selected environmental parameter with partial sensors. By arranging the data into an enhanced matrix exhibiting Hankel structure, the inherent correlation among data in the monitoring area can be further exploited to improve the accuracy of data estimation. Furthermore, an efficient algorithm based on alternating direction method of multipliers is described to solve the resulting problem. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can estimate the global distribution of the environmental parameter and achieves better estimation accuracy compared with the existing methods.
A secure task-offloading framework for cooperative fog computing environment

Fog computing architecture allows the end-user devices of an Internet of Things (IoT) application to meet their latency and computation requirements by offloading tasks to a fog node in proximity. This fog node in turn may offload the task to a neighboring fog node or the cloud-based on an optimal node selection policy. Several such node selection policies have been proposed that facilitate the selection of an optimal node, minimizing delay and energy consumption. However, one crucial assumption of these schemes is that all the networked fog nodes are authorized part of the fog network. This assumption is not valid, especially in a cooperative fog computing environment like a smart city, where fog nodes of multiple applications cooperate to meet their latency and computation requirements. In this paper, we propose a secure task-offloading framework for a distributed fog computing environment based on smart-contracts on the blockchain. The proposed framework allows a fog-node to securely offload tasks to a neighboring fog node, even if no prior trust-relation exists. The security analysis of the proposed framework shows how non-authenticated fog nodes are prevented from taking up offloading tasks.
Fault Location in Overhead Transmission Lines Based on Magnetic Signatures and on the Extended Kalman Filter

This paper proposes a non-contact method for fault location in transmission lines, which is based on magnetic fields produced by current signals measured using magnetoresistive sensors installed only at transmission line terminals, under the phase conductors of the first transmission tower at both terminals or at the substations portals. The proposed method uses the Extended Kalman filter to process these measurements and is based on a travelling wave approach in order to perform the fault localization. This paper also describes the implementation and testing of the method, firstly introducing its overview, followed by an analysis of the magnetic fields produced by the current signals, as well as considerations on their measurement; secondly, detailing the Extended Kalman filter and the travelling wave approach; and, finally, presenting the results of the method with regards to simulations built using EMTP/ATP to evaluate its robustness under different conditions varying the fault resistance, fault inception angle, phases involved and fault location. The results indicate that the proposed method is robust and accurate.
Multi-agent Actor-Critic Reinforcement Learning Based In-network Load Balance

Load balancing is a difficult online decision-making problem in the current network. Recently, with the development of the programmable data-plane, it is feasible to perform flexibly load balance directly inside the network. This in-network load balance scheme can quickly adapt to the volatility of network traffic. However, previous in-network solutions are largely relying on the manual process. Inspired by recent successes in applying machine learning in online control, automating the in-network load balance process is thus appealing. But as a distributed control system, it behooves us to ask the critical question: “Can the distributed switches learn globally optimal scheduling policy and still be deployed in a distributed fashion to allow rapid reaction in real-time? ” To tackle this question, we adopt a centralized learning and distributed execution framework and propose a multi-agent actor-critic reinforcement learning algorithm in this paper. The centralized “critic” is reinforced with the global network state and joint actions of all agents to ease the training process whilst distributed switches can take actions relaying on their local observations. In addition, a baseline scheme is introduced to solve the credit assignment problem in the multi-agent system. The extensive simulations are conducted to evaluate our proposed algorithm in comparison to state-of-the-art schemes.