Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Can 18F-FDG PET/MR Imaging Contribute to the Assessment of Bone Lesions in Patients with Plasma Cell Dyscrasias?

Objective: Two patient groups were studied for evaluation of detection efficacy of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (18F-FDG PET/MRI). The first group was dedicated to assess the possible early bone lesions of those patients who had been diagnosed with monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance/smouldering multiple myeloma (MGUS/SMM). In the second group, the detection sensitivity of the PET/CT and PET/MRI for bone lesions was compared to each other in patients with symptomatic plasmacytic myeloma (PCM). Methods: 14 patients with MGUS/SMM and 27 patients with PCM were enrolled in this study. Initially, all patients underwent an 18F-FDG PET/CT examination and it was followed by a PET/MRI imaging. Results: No bone lesion was detected with PET/CT and PET/MRI in patients either with MGUS and SMM. Bone marrow alteration was also not detected with PET/MRI in this group. Disease progression has not been revealed in the course of the 18 months follow-up period. In regard to lesion detection, there was no difference between the PET/CT and PET/MRI in the symptomatic PCM group. The metabolic tumor volume (MTV) was found to be strongly correlating with both the β2-microglobulin serum level and the ISS stage. Conclusion: PET/MRI is a reliable diagnostic tool for detection of bone lesions in plasma cell discrasias, and it is not inferior to the PET/CT imaging. The MTV measurement can provide a promising diagnostic tool for the direct assessment of myeloma tumor loading in the future.
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis for National Dyslipidemia Screening Program in Korea: Results of Best Case Scenario Analysis Using a Markov Model

Recent changes in dietary patterns, physical inactivity, lifestyle modification, and increasing cholesterol level of the Asian population raise a concern about the increasing burden of cholesterol related diseases such as coronary heart disease (CHD) in the population [1,2]. Dyslipidemia caused by an accumulation of cholesterol in the blood is a disorder of lipid metabolism, including elevated total cholesterol (TC), elevated triglyceride (TG), elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). The National Cholesterol Education Program criteria defines dyslipidemia as having one or more of the following lipid abnormalities [3]: hypercholesterolemia (TC ≥240 mg/dL or diagnosis of dyslipidemia or use of lipid-lowering drugs), hypertriglyceridemia (≥150 mg/dL), hyper-LDL cholesterolemia (≥160 mg/dL or diagnosis of dyslipidemia or use of lipid-lowering drugs), and hypo-HDL-cholesterolemia (<40 mg/dL in men and <50 mg/dL in women). Age-standardized prevalence rates of dyslipidemia were 59.0% in 2010 [3]. The overall prevalence of hypercholesterolemia and hyper-LDL-cholesterolemia increased by 1.36 and 1.35 times in 2010 compared to 2007, respectively. Awareness, treatment, and control rates of dyslipidemia improved over the period of surveys in both sexes. In 2010, about 30% of dyslipidemia patients who received lipid-lowering treatment Cost-Effectiveness Analysis for National Dyslipidemia Screening Program in Korea: Results of Best Case Scenario Analysis Using a Markov Model
Measurement properties of muscle strength tests in AECOPD

Appropriate management of acute exacerbations of COPD should address peripheral and respiratory muscle strength, as they are severely compromised during these events. However, the measurement properties of strength tests have been poorly studied in AECOPD, which limits their use. This study assessed the reliability, validity and sensitivity-to-change of quadriceps and respiratory muscle strength in AECOPD. Non-hospitalised patients with AECOPD performed 3 tests of the 5 times sit-to-stand (5TSS), isometric quadriceps muscle strength (MicroFET2 dynamometer) and maximal inspiratory/expiratory pressure (MIP and MEP - MicroRPM). Tests were repeated after 3weeks. Patients were followed up for 3 months. Within day reliability (Intraclass Correlation Coefficients-ICC), standard error of measurement (SEM), minimal detectable change (MDC95), predictive validity (Cox analysis–hazard ratio) and sensitivity-to-change (standardize response of the mean-SRM) were calculated. 33 patients were enrolled (22♂, 67.1y, FEV1 49.2±21.3predicted). Results are presented in table 1. The 5TSS test presented adequate reliability and sensitivity-to-change to monitor functional muscle strength. Quadriceps and respiratory muscle strength assessed with a hand held dynamometer and with a pressure meter, respectively, presented excellent reliability but low sensitivity-to-change, and thus may not be adequate to to monitor AECOPD. None of the tests presented significant validity to predict 3 months exacerbations. Further studies should be conducted for enhancing muscle monitoring in AECOPD.
Gaita Örneklerinde Entamoeba Histolytica ile Entamoeba Dispar Ayrımında PCR ve ELISA Yöntemlerinin Değerlendirilmesi

Amac: Amibik infeksiyonlar, barsakta kolonizasyonun yani sira, karaciger, akciger ve beyin gibi konak dokularda da invazyon ve hasara neden olabilen ciddi paraziter hastaliklardir. Rutinde amebiyaz tanisi, diskinin mikroskopik incelemesinde Entamoeba histolytica (E. histolytica) kist ve trofozoitlerinin gorulmesiyle konulmaktadir. Ancak E. histolytica’ya benzer morfolojide olup non-patojen olan Entamoeba turlerinin de oldugu anlasilmis, Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) ve son yillarda Polimerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tanida kullanilmaya baslanmistir. Bu calismada, E. histolytica ve E. dispar ayrimini yapmak icin multipleks PCR yontemi kullanilmis ve sonuclar ELISA ile mikroskopi verileri ile kiyaslanmistir. Gerec ve yontem: Calismaya kronik inflmatuar barsak hastaligi olan ve mikroskopisinde Entamoeba kistleri gorulen toplamda 83 hastanin diski ornegi dahil edilmistir. Orneklerdeki Entamoeba turlerinin varligi mikroskopi ile degerlendirilmis ve tur ayriminda ELISA ve PCR yontemleri uretici firmanin onerileri dogrultusunda uygulanmistir. Bulgular: Calismaya dahil edilen 83 hastanin 48 tanesi (% 58) E. histolytica acisindan PCR ile pozitif olarak bulunmustur. PCR ile pozitif olarak bulunan 48 ornegin 40 tanesinde (% 48) E. histolytica II antijeni ELISA ile pozitif olarak belirlenmistir. Sonuc: Mikroskopik tani yontemi ile E. histolytica’nin diger Entamoeba turleri ile kolaylikla karisabilecegi bilinmektedir. ELISA ile kiyaslandiginda Entamoeba DNA’sini saptayan PCR yonteminin duyarlilik ve ozgullugunun ise daha yuksek oldugu belirlenmistir.
Tabakentwöhnung in der Schwangerschaft

Aufgrund der gesundheitlichen Bedrohung von Feten durch den Tabakkonsum der Mutter wird schwangeren Frauen der vollständige Rauchverzicht empfohlen. Zu keinem anderen Zeitpunkt im Leben sind Frauen mehr bereit dazu, das Rauchen einzustellen, als in der Schwangerschaft [25]. Hebammen können sie dabei entscheidend unterstützen und den ersten Anstoß geben. Ein Überblick über gesundheitliche Risiken des Rauchens in der Schwangerschaft, die Entstehung einer Tabakabhängigkeit und leitliniengerechte Behandlungsmaßnahmen zum Rauchausstieg.
Proportions of Women in STEM Leadership in the Academy in the USA

A considerable body of research exists on women in leadership and likewise, on women in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) fields. However, the intersection of the two is terra incognita: women in leadership in STEM. At the most fundamental level, we do not even have a solid idea of how many women hold leadership positions in STEM. This study determined the proportion of women in leadership positions in several academic STEM areas via a sampling of institutions across the United States. In every area studied, women held fewer leadership positions than the proportion of female PhDs in those fields. The proportion of women in non-STEM specific top academic leadership roles was also examined to see what proportion of those individuals leading academic institutions might have background in a STEM discipline and how that compares to men in the same positions.
The comparison of saline infusion sonography and transvaginal sonography for the intracavitary lesions in infertile women

Aim: The aim of this study is to compare the diagnostic accuracy of transvaginal sonography and saline infusion sonography in the detection of intracavitary space-occupying lesions (endometrial polyp and submucous fibroid) in infertile women. Material and Methods: Three hundred and twenty-three women with infertility were involved in this retrospective study. The diagnostic accuracy of transvaginal sonography and saline infusion sonography were compared with respect to evaluation by diagnostic hysteroscopy results. The sensitivity, specificity, predictive values and ROC curves were used to determine the efficacy of methods for detecting the intracavitary space-occupying lesions in infertile patients. Results: The incidence of intracavitary space-occupying lesions was 82.1% infertile women. The endometrial polyp and submucous fibroid were established in 56 (17.3%) and 5(1.5%) patients, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of transvaginal sonography were 50.8% and 98.1%, respectively. These values were 80.3% and 98.5% for saline infusion sonography, respectively. Saline infusion sonography was found superior to transvaginal sonography for evaluating the intracavitary space-occupying lesions. Conclusion: Saline infusion sonography was more accurate diagnostic modality than transvaginal sonography to assess the intracavitary space-occupying lesions in the infertility population. Therefore the addition of saline infusion sonography to the infertility workup may prevent unnecessary invasive procedures to evaluate the uterine cavity.
Prevalence of bacteremia and infective endocarditis in patients with Staphylococcus aureus

Introduction. Isolation of S. aureus in urine culture (S. aureus bacteriuria, SABU) is a rare event. Given the low tropism of S. aureus for the urinary and digestive epithelia, primary staphylococcal urinary tract infection is less probable than a haematogenous mechanism, i.e. S. aureus bacteremia (SAB) and infective endocarditis (IE). We aimed to determine to what extent SAB and endocarditis were associated with SABU. Patients and Methods. We conducted a retrospective, observational and single-centre study at the Grenoble Alpes University Hospital, Grenoble, France. Medicals records of all patients who had presented urine culture yielding S. aureus between the 1st January 2007 and 31th December 2014 were reviewed. Results. Six-hundred eighty-four patients were included. Blood culture was performed for 408 (59.6%), in whom a SAB was diagnosed in 122 cases (29.9%). For these 122 patients, echocardiography was performed in 85 (69.7%). Forty-seven IE were diagnosed (55.3%) (22 definite, 28 possible). Among patients with blood culture, those with SAB had significantly higher C-reactive protein and creatinine blood levels and less urinary tract catheterization than those without SAB. Among patients with bacteremia, those with an infective endocarditis has less urological comorbidities, and had received less frequently a recent urological surgery than those without IE. Conclusion. Among the patients with S. aureus bacteriuria, bacteremia is detected in 29.9% of patients who had blood culture, and diagnosis of definite/probable IE is made in 55.3% of cases if sought. Blood cultures and (if positive) echocardiography should be systematically performed in case of SABU.
A perspective of contemporary cataract surgery: the most common surgical procedure in the world

ABSTRACT Cataract is the most common, reversible cause of visual impairment and blindness in the world. Cataract surgery in primitive form has been around for millennia but the last 50 years have witnessed a monumental revolution in cataract surgery making it the most common, and one of the most successful, operations world-wide. Major advances have included the development of phacoemulsification techniques, refinement of small incision approaches, foldable and injectable specialised intraocular lenses (IOLs), day-case local anaesthetic approaches and a better understanding of risks and benefits. Clinicians and scientists in New Zealand / Aotearoa have contributed significantly to the global knowledge of cataract surgery, including aspects of indications for surgery, assessment and use of specialised IOLs including aspheric, toric and secondary IOLs, effect of surgical techniques on corneal structure and performance, training of cataract surgeons, intraoperative and post-operative complications, strategies to minimise complications, and visual outcomes following phacoemulsification surgery. These studies also reveal disparities in health care, with the indigenous Māori population demonstrating more advanced cataract at an earlier age, associated with greater risk of intra-operative complications, yet accessing cataract services disproportionally less. This review highlights key research contributions from a New Zealand perspective, in the light of contemporary knowledge and practice.
Qualitative versus quantitative study of distress in a sample of young age breast cancer survivors

Context Breast cancer survivors suffer from distress that extends along a continuum: from common normal feelings of vulnerability to disabling psychiatric symptoms. Aim The aim of this study is to describe the ‘lived’ experience of distress in a sample of young breast cancer survivors using a person-centered approach, determine the coping mechanisms used, and the prevalence of anxiety and depression in these patients. Patients and methods This is a cross-sectional descriptive study in which 30 Egyptian female breast cancer survivors diagnosed between the age of 20 and 40 years were selected among the patients attending the outpatient clinic of the Oncology Department, Cairo University Hospitals. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was used to assess the prevalence of anxiety and depression among a sample of survivors and the Coping Processes Scale was used to determine the coping processes that they use in the face of their distress. A person-centered approach was used to determine the extent of their distress and gain a better knowledge of each survivor’s experience with cancer. Results The prevalence of anxiety was 70.0% and that of depression was 63.3%. There was a statistically significant negative association between acceptance and depression and a negative association between seeking information and social support and anxiety. Conclusion Each patient had different experiences and different stress-related cancer effects and management. Each patient is unique in her experience so we must listen to each patient.
Transient Analysis of High-Power Microwave Air Breakdown under External DC Magnetic Field

This article concentrates on the high-power microwave (HPM) breakdown process and behaviors in air-filled rectangular waveguide under the external dc magnetic field. To solve the persuasive issue, a three-dimensional (3-D) multiphysics model coupling full-wave Maxwell’s equations with plasma fluid equations is established and solved by the spectral-element time-domain (SETD) method. In our simulation, the Galerkin’s method is employed for the space discretization and the central difference scheme is used for the temporal discretization during the SETD process. The numerical results reveal that the external dc magnetic field applied in breakdown volume can significantly enhance the breakdown threshold to suppress the HPM breakdown, which is beneficial for the propagation of HPM pulse in air-filled waveguide. Our research provides theoretical guidance for suppressing the impact of HPM breakdown for HPM devices protection.
Designing Virtual Reading Room (VRR Digi_Litikon) for learning batik in Vocational High Schools: Curriculum material improvement

This study aimed at designing Virtual Reading Room (VRR Digi_Litikon) for learning batik in Vocational High Schools in Indonesia. The design was also a part of curriculum material improvement with the touch of information technology. As a web-based application, VRR Digi_Litikon saved all the contents and database on its server. It was also proven that it had frontend as its user interface. The user interface was also PHP-based with Code Igniter framework. The application was designed using Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) method consisting of such phases as system engineering, analysis, design, coding/implementation, testing, and maintenance. The results of the application design were digital books equipped with scientific journal articles in relation to batik. The digital platforms designed for VRR Digi_Litikon enabled students to have information not only in a form of texts but also in audio/voices of the contents of a book they were learning. The application was tested in various devices and had been proven to be eligible to use as a learning media application particularly for learning batik in vocational high schools.
Research on the Optimization of Logistics Distribution Path of Tianyang Fruit and Vegetable Distribution Center in Guangxi Province

In order to study the logistics distribution path of Tianyang fruit and vegetable distribution center in Guangxi Province, we establish an optimization model of distribution path subject to the demand and distribution locations of logistics distribution customers in Tianyang fruit and vegetable distribution center. This paper used the method of saving mileage with soft time window to solve the problem, and analyzed the new distribution line, the related cost of distribution and the original distribution scheme, and finally, found that the new scheme significantly reduces the related distribution cost. Keywords—Logistics distribution; distribution routing; saving mileage model
Fragility of bridges exposed to multiple hazards and impact on transport network resilience

Transportation infrastructure is a pylon for the society and economy, enabling the services and transportation of goods and people, under normal and emergency circumstances. Bridges act as bottlenecks within road and rail networks, since bridges are crunch points along the network system. Their failures due to multiple natural hazards (e.g. floods, earthquakes, tsunami or ground movements) may cause disproportionate losses, which are expected to be exacerbated due to climate change. Thus, pinpointing the vulnerabilities and quantifying bridge resilience within transportation networks is of paramount importance in the context of natural hazards. However, reliable quantification of risk and resilience of bridges is not yet available, as engineering judgment dominates quantitative assessments. This paper describes an integrated framework for the development of numerical fragility functions and the resilience assessment of bridges subjected to multiple hazards. The framework is applied to obtain the fragility of a representative bridge exposed to flood-induced scour followed by an earthquake. The resulting fragility functions are essential to evaluate direct losses due to multiple hazards, i.e. physical damage, as a means to deliver the Quantitative Risk Assessment (QRA) of the exposed bridges and networks. The framework is extended to the transport network level exposed to multiple hazards, providing a mean for allocating the resources reasonably toward efficient management and consequence analysis.
Tele-Rehabilitation of Upper Limb Function in Stroke Patients using Microsoft Kinect

Stroke is a major cause of death and disability worldwide. The damage or death of brain cells caused by a stroke affects brain function and leads to deficits in sensory and/or motor function. As a consequence, a stroke can have a significantly negative impact on the patient’s ability to perform activities of daily living and therefore also affect the patient’s quality of life. Stroke patients may regain function through intensive physical rehabilitation, but often they do not recover their original functional level. The incomplete recovery in some patients might be related to e.g. stroke severity, lack of motivation for training, or insufficient and/or non-optimal training in the initial weeks following the stroke.
Ácido tranexámico en la pérdida sanguínea de la cirugía por fractura de cadera

espanolEl objetivo de la investigacion fue c omparar la utilidad del acido tranexamico en la perdida sanguinea en cirugia por fractura de cadera. Se evaluaron caracteristicas generales de los pacientes, valores de hemoglobina, hematocrito pre y post - operatorios y perdida hematica trans - operatoria y efectos adversos del acido tranexamico. Se seleccionaron para la investigacion 60 pacientes, los cuales fueron asignados al azar para recibir acido tranexamico (grupo A; n =30) o no (grupo B, n = 30). No se encontraron diferencias con relacion con la edad, peso e indice de masa corporal entre los pacientes de ambos grupos (p = ns). En los dos grupos la mayoria de los pacientes tratados fue del sexo femenino (p = ns). No se observaron diferencias entre los grupos en los valores promedio de hemoglobina y hema tocrito pre - operatorio (p = ns). Al evaluar las concentraciones de post - operatorias se observo que los pacientes del grupo A presentaban diferencias significativas que los pacientes del grupo B (p No se observo ningun efecto adverso atribuible al uso del acido tranexamico. Se concluye que el acido tranexamico es util para la reduccion de la perdi da sanguinea en pacientes sometidos a cirugia por fractura de cadera. EnglishThe objective of this research was to compare the usefulness of tranexamic acid in blood loss of hip fracture surgery. This research was done in patients who assisted to Orthopedic and Traumatology consult at Hospital Central “Dr. Urquinaona". General char acteristics of patients, pre - and post - operatory hemoglobin and hematocrit values, intra - operatory blood loss and adverse effects of tranexamic acid were evaluated. Sixty patients were selected for research, who were randomly assigned to received tranexami c acid (group A; n = 30) or not (group B, n = 30). There were found no significant differences in age, weight and body mass index between patients of both groups (p = ns). In both groups of patients most treated patients were female (p = ns). There were fo und no differences between groups in mean values of pre - operative hemoglobin and hematocrit (p = ns). When post - operative concentrations were evaluated, there was found that patients of group A had significant differences with patients of group B (p
Classificação do Estado dos Olhos via Dados EEG e Redes Neurais Feed-Forward, Recorrente e Evolutiva

Electroencephalography (EEG) data analysis has been widely used in a variety of application domains. This study aims at detecting the state of the eyes from 14 EEG electrodes. Three artificial neural models are briefly presented, computationally realized, and compared for the task of classifying the state of the eyes. A feed-forward Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) network, the recurrent Elman (ELM) network, and an evolving granular (EGNN) neural network are developed. Results show that the evolving EGNN approach outperforms the remaining approaches in terms of true positives and negatives regarding the state of the eye. Resumo: A análise de dados de eletroencefalografia (EEG) tem sido largamente explorada em uma variedade de aplicações. O presente trabalho visa detectar o estado dos olhos a partir dos dados de 14 eletrodos EEG. Três modelos neurais artificiais são brevemente apresentados, implementados e comparados na tarefa de classificação do estado do olho. Empregou-se o modelo feed-forward Multi Layer Perceptron (MLP), o modelo recorrente de Elman (ELM), e o modelo granular evolutivo (EGNN). Os resultados mostram que a abordagem evolutiva EGNN supera as demais em termos de verdadeiros positivos e negativos com relação ao estado do olho.