Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Multiresolution Morphological Approach to Document Image Analysis

An image-based approach to document image analysis is presented. The methods are motivated by a merged view of shape and textural image properties at multiple scales. The principal binary image operations are morphological and multiresolution. The generalized opening is introduced for extraction of both shape and texture from an image. Threshold reduction operations are introduced for performing efficient and controllable shape and texture transformations between resolution levels. Some problems, such as halftone or dark area segmentation, can be in large part solved by a sequence of threshold reductions. Aspects of the approach are illustrated by the problem of identifying italic and bold words in text, using word-level extraction at lowered resolution. The computational costs of the basic operations are given, so that algorithm efficienc y can be estimated, and the importance of operating at the lowest feasable resolution is demonstrated. For example, word segmentation and halftone extraction proceed in excess of 1.5x10 image pixels/second on a Sun Sparcstation2 .
Serum Level of 14-3-3η (Eta) Protein as a Diagnostic Marker for Rheumatoid Arthritis and Potential Correlation with Disease Activity

Results: serum 14-3-3 η levels in patients with RA (mean &SD 2.72±1.75ng/ ml) were significantly higher (P<0.0001) as compared to healthy individuals [0.09±0.09 ng/ml] and all controls [0.14±0.21ng/ml)]. For serum 14-3-3 η diagnostic accuracy in RA; ROC curve analysis comparing patient with RA with all control showed a significant AUC (P < 0.0001) and at a cutoff of ≥ 0.39 ng/ ml, the ROC curve yielded a sensitivity of 90.2%, a specificity of 94.6%, a PPV of 0.98, and an NPV of 0.73. There were no significant differences in14-3-3 η serum levels between the early and established RA groups (2.73±1.79 Vs 2.70±1.69ng/ ml). There was significant positive correlation between serum 14-3-3η levels and DAS28 in RA patients & particularly in early RA (P <0.0001).
AI techniques in induction machines diagnosis including the speed ripple effect

Various applications of AI techniques (expert systems, neural networks and fuzzy logic) presented in the literature prove that such technologies are well suited to cope with on-line diagnostics tasks for induction machines. The features of these techniques and the improvements that they introduce in the diagnostic process are recalled, showing that, in order to obtain indication on the fault extent, faulty machine models are still essential. The models must trade off between simulation result effectiveness and simplicity. With reference to rotor electrical faults of induction machines, a new and simple model which includes the speed ripple effect is developed. This model leads to a new diagnostic index, independent of the machine operating condition and inertia value, that allows the implementation of the diagnostic system with a minimum configuration intelligence.
National Standards for Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support

By the most recent estimates, 18.8 million people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with diabetes and an additional 7 million are believed to be living with undiagnosed diabetes. At the same time, 79 million people are estimated to have blood glucose levels in the range of prediabetes or categories of increased risk for diabetes. Thus, more than 100 million Americans are at risk for developing the devastating complications of diabetes (1).
Assessment of knowledge and practice to control nosocomial infection, among the staff nurses, hi-tech medical college and hospital

The term “Nosocomial” is taken from the Greek word “nosocomium” meaning health care facility. A nosocomial infection is one that is acquired in a hospital or other health agency. A hospital is one of the most likely places for acquiring an infection because it harbours a high population of virulent stairs of micro-organism that are usually resistant to antibiotics. Nosocomial infections not only extend hospital care for the patient, but also increase cost for both patient and hospital.1 Nurses have an important role in preventing and controlling the nosocomial infection in the hospital. So, this study was undertaken to assess the knowledge and practice of the staff nurses.
Alumina Ceramic Surface Defect Detection: Combining Canny Edge Detector and Contourlet Transformation

Abstract Because of the special texture structure of alumina ceramic, the plate is often incorrectly detected by simply using edge detector. In this paper, we investigate a scheme for detecting the surface defections by combining Canny edge detector and contourlet transformation. Contourlet is a type of directional wavelet and it has good performance of image smoothing and denoising for image. At each high frequency subband of L-level decomposition, the Gaussian mixture model (GMM) and generalized Gaussian model (GGM) are exploited to remove the noise of ceramic image. The defects of denoised image are extracted by using canny edge detector at finally. Experimental results confirm the usefulness of this scheme for the industrial application.
Bispectral analysis of underwater EM pulses

In this paper we investigate the higher-order spectral properties of an electromagnetic (EM) transmission channel. We use higher-order moments ensemble averaging of received real underwater EM pulses for signal to noise enhancement and discuss appropriate features based on bicoherence and the cross-bispectrum for object classification. The reconstructed signal y/spl tilde/(n) is estimated from the bicepstrum. This technique is shown to outperform conventional stacking techniques. We use bicoherence for estimation of nonlinear properties in the received pulses. There are no significant quadratic nonlinear contributions in the signal. The non-linearities are essential around the power supply frequency and at a region above 17 kHz. Finally an analysis of the transfer function based on the cross-bispectrum is given. At several frequencies in the signal bandwidth there is a significant part with nonlinear gain.
Theoretical Limits Analysis of Indoor Positioning System Using Visible Light and Image Sensor

To solve the problem of parameter optimization in image sensor‐based visible light positioning systems, theoretical limits for both the location and the azimuth angle of the image sensor receiver (ISR) are calculated. In the case of a typical indoor scenario, maximum likelihood estimations for both the location and the azimuth angle of the ISR are first deduced. The Cramer‐Rao Lower Bound (CRLB) is then derived, under the condition that the observation values of the image points are affected by white Gaussian noise. For typical parameters of LEDs and image sensors, simulation results show that accurate estimates for both the location and azimuth angle can be achieved, with positioning errors usually on the order of centimeters and azimuth angle errors being less than 1°. The estimation accuracy depends on the focal length of the lens and on the pixel size and frame rate of the ISR, as well as on the number of transmitters used.
Multiple Nutritional Factors and the Risk of Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.

BACKGROUND Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) is considered to be the most common autoimmune disease. It is currently accepted that genetic susceptibility, environmental factors, and immune disorders contribute to its development. With regard to nutritional factors, evidence implicates high iodine intake and deficiencies of selenium and iron with a potential relevance of vitamin D status. To elucidate the role of nutritional factors in the risk, pathogenesis, and treatment of HT, PubMed and the Cochrane Library were searched for publications on iodine, iron, selenium, and vitamin D and risk/treatment of HT. SUMMARY Chronic exposure to excess iodine intake induces autoimmune thyroiditis, partly because highly iodinated thyroglobulin (Tg) is more immunogenic. Recent introduction of universal salt iodization can have a similar, though transient, effect. Selenoproteins are essential to thyroid action. In particular, the glutathione peroxidases protect the thyroid by removing excessive hydrogen peroxide produced for Tg iodination. Genetic data implicate the anti-inflammatory selenoprotein S in HT risk. There is evidence from observational studies and randomized controlled trials that selenium/selenoproteins can reduce thyroid peroxidase (TPO)-antibody titers, hypothyroidism, and postpartum thyroiditis. Iron deficiency impairs thyroid metabolism. TPO, the enzyme responsible for the production of thyroid hormones, is a heme (iron-containing) enzyme which becomes active at the apical surface of thyrocytes only after binding heme. HT patients are frequently iron deficient, since autoimmune gastritis, which impairs iron absorption, is a common co-morbidity. Treatment of anemic women with impaired thyroid function with iron improves thyroid-hormone concentrations, while thyroxine and iron together are more effective in improving iron status. Lower vitamin D status has been found in HT patients than in controls, and inverse relationships of serum vitamin D with TPO/Tg antibodies have been reported. However, other data and the lack of trial evidence suggest that low vitamin D status is more likely the result of autoimmune disease processes that include vitamin D receptor dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS Clinicians should check patients' iron (particularly in menstruating women) and vitamin D status to correct any deficiency. Adequate selenium intake is vital in areas of iodine deficiency/excess, and in regions of low selenium intake a supplement of 50-100 μg/day of selenium may be appropriate.
Obstetrik Brakiyal Pleksus Yaralanmalı Olgularda Skapular Kinematik Analiz: Vaka Serileri Çalışması

Obstetrik Brakiyal Pleksus Yaralanmasi (OBPY), brakiyal pleksusa bagli dallarin zedelenmesi sonucu ortaya cikan bir yaralanma seklidir. Iyilesme gerceklestikce olusacak kas imbalansina bagli olarak ilerleyen yaslarda deformiteler ve fonksiyonel yetersizlikler meydana gelebilmektedir. OBPY’li olgularda etkilenen taraf skapulanin pozisyonu ve hareketleri etkilenmeyen tarafa gore farkliliklar arz etmektedir. Calismanin amaci, OBPY geciren 3 olguda istirahatte ve kol elevasyonu sirasinda skapulanin hareketlerini 3 boyutlu kinematik analiz ile degerlendirmektir. Calismaya katilan olgularin yasi sirasiyla 12, 14 ve 11’di. Olgularin demografik ozellikleri sorgulandiktan sonra Motion Monitor® Iskelet Analiz Sistemi ile kol elevasyonu sirasinda 3 boyutlu skapular hareketler degerlendirildi. Kol elevasyonu sirasinda, tum olgularin skapular hareketi, internal rotasyon, yukari dogru rotasyon ve posterior tilt, indirme fazinda eksternal rotasyon, asagi dogru rotasyon ve anterior tiltti. Fakat olgularimizin etkilenen ve etkilenmeyen taraflari arasindaki hareketler sirasinda senkronizasyon olmadigi belirlendi. Calismamiza katilan olgularda skapular diskinezi varligi ortaya konmustur. Konuyla ilgili daha net bilgi elde edebilmek ve OBPY sonrasi etkilenen taraf kaslarin diskineziye olan katkilarini inceleyebilmek icin calismamiz, olgu sayisi artirilmis calismalarla desteklenmelidir.
Early Variations in Augmentation Index and Pulsed Wave Velocity in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Arterial Hypertension Post CPAP Treatment

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a chronic repeated upperairway obstruction during sleep, characterized by repetitive apnea, hyperpnoea and oxygen desaturations leading to interrupted sleep, variations in blood pressure, and increased sympathetic nervous system activity [1]. The prevalence of OSA is 2–4 % in the general population [2-4]. The prevalence of cardiovascular disease (systemic hypertension, coronary artery disease and cerebrovascular disease) was high in OSA patients [5]. The number of OSA patients with hypertension is high (35 %) to (70 %) [6,7] and nearly 30 % of patients presenting with hypertension also have OSA [8]. OSA has been proven to be a causal factor in the pathogenesis of vascular dysfunction and hypertension [9]. The Noninvasive assessment of arterial stiffness by the measurement of pulsed wave velocity (PWV) and augmentation index is a predictor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in hypertensive patients [10]. The Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), is considered the first line treatment for OSA and can decrease the arterial stiffness in hypertensive patients with obstructive sleep apnea [11,12]. Volume 9 Issue 2 2017
Brain Aneuryms: Isn’t Time to Review the Strategy for its Detection and Screening in Limited Clinical Environment and in the New Robotic Era?

Submit Manuscript | http://medcraveonline.com Despite challenging task, a reasonable brain aneurysm visualization can be performed by noninvasive methods as magnetic resonance angiography (which identifies small aneurysms between 3 to 5 mm size) with up to 95% sensitivity and high accuracy when special sequences as volume rendering and 3D time-of-flight are performed or CT angiography which has good sensitivity for aneurysms larger than 3 mm [5]. This is making the DSA is no longer considered essential for establishing the diagnostic of brain aneurysms [1]. Non-invasive methods are particularly recognised for screening of the highrisk brain aneurysmal populations e.g patients with genetic or collagen diseases, familiar occurrence or with history of multiple aneurysms or “minor” neurological symptoms including e.g chronic or recent headache or migraines like headache, visual acuity loss, cranial neuropathies, pyramidal tract dysfunction, pituitary clinical manifestations, atypical facial pain among others. Also, it has been used specially angioCT as routine after subarachnoid haemorrhage or follow-up of treated brain aneurysm [7-15].
Intelligent call admission control for differentiated QoS provisioning in wideband CDMA cellular systems

We propose intelligent call admission control for wideband CDMA cellular systems to support differentiated QoS requirements. The intelligent call admission controller (ICAC) adopts fuzzy and neural network techniques to make admission decision for a new call request by considering the QoS measures of all service types, predicted next-step existing-call interference, and estimated new-call interference. It contains a fuzzy call admission processor, a pipeline recurrent neutral network (PRNN) interference predictor and a fuzzy equivalent interference estimator. Simulation results indicate that ICAC attains better performance in keeping QoS guaranteed, blocking probability and admitted number of users. Furthermore, ICAC is more adaptive and stable than SIR-based CAC in wideband CDMA cellular systems.
Vitamin D actions on cell differentiation, proliferation and inflammation

Submit Manuscript | http://medcraveonline.com receptor (VDR), a member of the nuclear receptor superfamily. The number and variety of 1,25-(OH)2D3 target genes combined with the presence of the VDR in a high variety of tissues is reflected by the diversity of physiological actions of 1,25-(OH)2D3 [1]. VDR was first discovered and cloned in chick intestine [2] and later demonstrated to be present in almost all human cells and tissues [3]. First and foremost, 1,25-(OH)2D3 is the major regulator of calcium and phosphate hemostasis and plays a pivotal role in ensuring bone integrity. This is often referred to as the “classic actions” of 1,25-(OH)2D3 and is mediated by finetuned interactions between parathyroid hormone (PTH), calcium and phosphate levels and 1,25-(OH)2D3 itself [4].
Diretrizes brasileiras de diagnóstico e tratamento da fibrose cística

A fibrose cistica (FC) e uma doenca genetica autossomica recessiva caracterizada pela disfuncao do gene CFTR. Trata-se de uma doenca multissistemica que ocorre mais frequentemente em populacoes descendentes de caucasianos. Nas ultimas decadas, diversos avancos no diagnostico e tratamento da FC mudaram drasticamente o cenario dessa doenca, com aumento expressivo da sobrevida e qualidade de vida. Atualmente, o Brasil dispoe de um programa de ampla cobertura para a triagem neonatal de FC e centros de referencia distribuidos na maior parte desses estados para seguimento dos individuos. Antigamente confinada a faixa etaria pediatrica, tem-se observado um aumento de pacientes adultos com FC tanto pelo maior numero de diagnosticos de formas atipicas, de expressao fenotipica mais leve, assim como pelo aumento da expectativa de vida com os novos tratamentos. Entretanto, ainda se observa uma grande heterogeneidade no acesso aos metodos diagnosticos e terapeuticos para FC entre as diferentes regioes brasileiras. O objetivo dessas diretrizes foi reunir as principais evidencias cientificas que norteiam o manejo desses pacientes. Um grupo de 18 especialistas em FC elaborou 82 perguntas clinicas relevantes que foram divididas em cinco categorias: caracteristicas de um centro de referencia; diagnostico; tratamento da doenca respiratoria; tratamento gastrointestinal e nutricional; e outros aspectos. Diversos profissionais brasileiros atuantes na area da FC foram convidados a responder as perguntas formuladas pelos coordenadores. A literatura disponivel foi pesquisada na base de dados PubMed com palavras-chave, buscando-se as melhores respostas as perguntas dos autores.
Fieber bei Krebspatienten

Fever in cancer patients is a medical emergency until a severe infection has been ruled out. In case of neutropenia prompt diagnostic work-up should be paralleled by empiric antibiotic treatment. Underlying malignancy as well as treatments may impair immune response and thus pave the way for less virulent pathogens. So the spectrum of infections comprises both pathogens that cause disease in immunocompetent patients and a variety of rarer organisms. After collecting two pairs of blood cultures, broad-spectrum antibiotic treatment should commence within one to two hours. Depending on the individual patient's risk antimicrobial prophylaxis should be considered.
Access to agricultural information and millennium development goals

Purpose – The millennium development goals (MDGs) emerged from the Millennium Declaration adopted by all Member States of the United Nations. The MDGs are international objectives on poverty reduction adopted by the world community in 2000. This paper examines provision of agricultural information to rural dwellers/farmers in meeting the MDG 1: eradicating poverty and hunger in the world.Design/methodology/approach – The paper is drawn from the authors' interaction /interviews with a group of farmers in Abeokuta, Ogun State.Findings – Methods of disseminating information to farmers identified include the use of electronic and print media, village square meetings, church and mosques as well as market places.Practical implications – Study recommends the support of pro‐poor policies by the developed countries as this will allow people living in the developing world to break out of the poverty, hunger and malnutrition trap in which they find themselves.Originality/value – Agricultural information required by .
Security of RC5 Encryption with Watermarking Technique

In the digital world, that is currently evolving at such a rapid pace, intellectual copyright protection is becoming increasingly important. This is due to digital data being particularly simple to copy and resell without any loss of quality. Digital representation and distribution of data has increased the potential for misuse and theft and thus gives rise to problems associated with copyright protection and the enforcement of these rights. The main technical approaches to address the challenge of intellectual copyright protection are digital watermarking techniques. The encryption algorithm used here is a block cipher. Double encryption technique has been used with RC5 symmetric cipher for providing increased level of security to the digital content. While the technique embeds watermark in the encrypted domain, the extraction of watermark can be done in the decrypted domain. Experimental results show the security as well as copyright protection of the digital data.
Aplicación de la clasificación de Neff modificada en el manejo de la diverticulitis aguda

Correspondencia: Laura Mora López. Servicio de Cirugía General. Hospital Universitari Parc Tauli. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Parc Tauli, s/n. 08208 Sabadell, Barcelona e-mail: Lmora@tauli.cat Mora López L, Flores Clotet R, Serra Aracil X, Montes Ortega N, Navarro Soto S. Aplicación de la clasificación de Neff modificada en el manejo de la diverticulitis aguda. Rev Esp Enferm Dig 2017;109(5):328-334.
Musculoskeletal Health Disparities in America

Arthritis affects over 20% of American adults and nearly 50% of adults 65 and older. Arthritis is the most common reported cause of disability and the third leading cause of work limitation in the United States. Persistent racial/ ethnic differences have been documented in the prevalence of arthritis and the limitations caused by arthritis. There are many theories on the persistence of disparities in ethnic minorities and women including differences in health-care access, use of available health-care services, language barriers, higher prevalence of obesity, and differences in types of work. A comprehensive multi-pronged strategy is key to effectively addressing the complex problem of persistent musculoskeletal health disparities. If musculoskeletal health professionals do not act, healthier patients may be “picked” for surgical interventions while complex patients with multiple co-morbidities (often from underrepresented minority groups) are “dropped” as potential surgical candidates.
DYNAMIQUE DES AGRICULTURES PERIURBAINES EN AFRIQUE SUB-SAHARIENNE ET STATUTS FONCIERS LE CAS DES VILLES D'ACCRA ET YAOUNDE

Urban Agriculture dynamic in African cities and land use. This paper is about a PhD work started in 2008 on land use of urban and peri-urban spaces in two African cities: Yaounde and Accra. Brutal transformation is the context on the peri-urban area in African cities. Many challenges for food security and governance exist in these fast urbanised peri-urban spaces. Urban agriculture has existed for a long time but there are today many questions: which are the consequences of the staying of agricultural activities in city on urban management, environment, food apply and social links? How are solved the conflicts about resources like water, land? Despite the importance of urbanisation, no specific institutions take care of the phenomenon of urban agriculture in Africa. The land ownership system, in particular, determines the future of agriculture. These spaces are intermediaries spaces because there are “between”. Some issues are very important in the two cities: competition between usage, rural depopulation, ethnical question, land monetization, rent repartition. We try to question the link between land status and agricultural systems in periphery if African cities, using the concept of intermediaries spaces. Is this special localisation and context an opportunity or a bridle for agricultural systems?