bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessment of dental age estimation methods applied to Brazilian children: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Franco Ademir , de Oliveira Murilo Navarro , Campos Vidigal Maria Tereza , Blumenberg Cauane , Pinheiro Adriele Alves , Paranhos Luiz Renato
Published: June 2020

Objectives:

To review the scientific literature of studies on dental age estimation methods applied to Brazilian children.

Methods:

A systematic literature review was designed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines and registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020136170). Six scientific databases were used as primary search sources (PubMed, Scopus, LILACS, SciELO, Embase and Web of Science) and two databases (Open Grey and Open Thesis) were searched to partially select the “grey literature.” Only cross-sectional studies were included. The risk of bias was assessed by means of Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Tools for Systematic Reviews. The standardized mean difference (SMD) between the estimated dental and chronological ages was meta-analysed via random effects model.

Results:

The search resulted in 2,527 studies, from which 13 met the eligibility criteria. Out of the eligible studies, 76.92% had low risk of bias and high methodological quality. Ten studies provided proper information to be included in the meta-analysis.The methods and their SMD between estimated and chronological ages were: Willems’=0.05, Lilequist and Lundberg’s = −0.11, Nolla’s = 0.22, Mornstad’s = 0.27, Cameriere’s = −0.31, Demirjian’s = 0.74 and Haavikko’s = −0.87.

Conclusion:

Although originally trained in populations worldwide, most of the international methods for radiographical dental age estimation had optimal performance in Brazilian children.
Use of routinely collected data in a UK cohort of publicly funded randomised clinical trials
Authors: McKay Andrew J. , Jones Ashley P. , Gamble Carrol L. , Farmer Andrew J. , Williamson Paula R.
Published: June 2020

Routinely collected data about health in medical records, registries and hospital activity statistics is now routinely collected in an electronic form. The extent to which such sources of data are now being routinely accessed to deliver efficient clinical trials, is unclear. The aim of this study was to ascertain current practice amongst a United Kingdom (UK) cohort of recently funded and ongoing randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in relation to sources and use of routinely collected outcome data.

Recently funded and ongoing RCTs were identified for inclusion by searching the National Institute for Health Research journals library. Trials that have a protocol available were assessed for inclusion and those that use or plan to use routinely collected health data (RCHD) for at least one outcome were included. RCHD sources and outcome information were extracted.

Of 216 RCTs, 102 (47%) planned to use RCHD. A RCHD source was the sole source of outcome data for at least one outcome in 46 (45%) of those 102 trials. The most frequent sources are Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) and Office for National Statistics (ONS), with the most common outcome data to be extracted being on mortality, hospital admission, and health service resource use.

Our study has found that around half of publicly funded trials in a UK cohort (NIHR HTA funded trials that had a protocol available) plan to collect outcome data from routinely collected data sources. This is much higher than the figure of 8% found in a cohort of 189 RCTs published since 2000, the majority of which were carried out in North America (McCord et al., 2019).
Identifying and understanding factors that affect the translation of therapies from the laboratory to patients: a study protocol
Authors: Lalu Manoj M. , Montroy Joshua , Begley C. Glenn , Bubela Tania , Hunniford Victoria , Ripsman David , Wesch Neil , Kimmelman Jonathan , Macleod Malcolm , Moher David , Tieu Alvin , Sikora Lindsey , Fergusson Dean A.
Published: June 2020

Background: The process of translating preclinical findings into a clinical setting takes decades. Previous studies have suggested that only 5-10% of the most promising preclinical studies are successfully translated into viable clinical applications. The underlying determinants of this low success rate (e.g. poor experimental design, suboptimal animal models, poor reporting) have not been examined in an empirical manner. Our study aims to determine the contemporary success rate of preclinical-to-clinical translation, and subsequently determine if an association between preclinical study design and translational success/failure exists.

Methods: Established systematic review methodology will be used with regards to the literature search, article screening and study selection process. Preclinical, basic science studies published in high impact basic science journals between 1995 and 2015 will be included. Included studies will focus on publicly available interventions with potential clinical promise. The primary outcome will be successful clinical translation of promising therapies - defined as the conduct of at least one Phase II trial (or greater) with a positive finding. A case-control study will then be performed to evaluate the association between elements of preclinical study design and reporting and the likelihood of successful translation.

Discussion: This study will provide a comprehensive analysis of the therapeutic translation from the laboratory bench to the bedside. Importantly, any association between factors of study design and the success of translation will be identified. These findings may inform future research teams attempting preclinical-to-clinical translation. Results will be disseminated to identified knowledge users that fund/support preclinical research.
Application of the intervention Complexity Assessment Tool for Systematic Reviews within a Cochrane review: an illustrative case study
Authors: Cadogan Cathal A. , Rankin Audrey , Lewin Simon , Hughes Carmel M.
Published: June 2020

Background: The intervention Complexity Assessment Tool for Systematic Reviews (iCAT_SR) has been developed to facilitate detailed assessments of intervention complexity in systematic reviews. Worked examples of the tool’s application are needed to promote its use and refinement. The aim of this case study was to apply the iCAT_SR to a subset of 20 studies included in a Cochrane review of interventions aimed at improving appropriate polypharmacy in older people.

Methods: Interventions were assessed independently by two authors using the six core iCAT_SR dimensions: (1) ‘Target organisational levels/categories’; (2) ‘Target behaviour/actions’; (3) ‘Active intervention components’; (4) ‘Degree of tailoring’; (5) ‘Level of skill required by intervention deliverers’; (6) ‘Level of skill required by intervention recipients’. Attempts were made to apply four optional dimensions: ‘Interaction between intervention components’; ‘Context/setting’; ‘Recipient/provider factors’; ‘Nature of causal pathway’. Inter-rater reliability was assessed using Cohen’s Kappa coefficient. Disagreements were resolved by consensus discussion. The findings are presented narratively.

Results: Assessments involving the core iCAT_SR dimensions showed limited consistency in intervention complexity across included studies, even when categorised according to clinical setting. Interventions were delivered across various organisational levels and categories (i.e. healthcare professionals and patients) and typically comprised multiple components. Intermediate skill levels were required by those delivering and receiving the interventions across all studies. A lack of detail in study reports precluded application of the iCAT_SR’s optional dimensions. The inter-rater reliability was substantial (Cohen's Kappa = 0.75)

Conclusions: This study describes the application of the iCAT_SR to studies included in a Cochrane systematic review. Future intervention studies need to ensure more detailed reporting of interventions, context and the causal pathways underlying intervention effects to allow a more holistic understanding of intervention complexity and facilitate replication in other settings. The experience gained has helped to refine the original guidance document relating to the application of iCAT_SR.
ACORN (A Clinically-Oriented Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Network): a pilot protocol for case based antimicrobial resistance surveillance
Authors: Turner Paul , Ashley Elizabeth A. , Celhay Olivier J. , Douangnouvong Anousone , Hamers Raph L. , Ling Clare L. , Lubell Yoel , Miliya Thyl , Roberts Tamalee , Soputhy Chansovannara , Ngoc Thach Pham , Vongsouvath Manivanh , Waithira Naomi , Wannapinij Prapass , van Doorn H. Rogier
Published: June 2020

Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) / drug resistant infections (DRIs) are a major global health priority. Surveillance data is critical to inform infection treatment guidelines, monitor trends, and to assess interventions. However, most existing AMR / DRI surveillance systems are passive and pathogen-based with many potential biases. Addition of clinical and patient outcome data would provide considerable added value to pathogen-based surveillance.

Methods: The aim of the ACORN project is to develop an efficient clinically-oriented AMR surveillance system, implemented alongside routine clinical care in hospitals in low- and middle-income country settings. In an initial pilot phase, clinical and microbiology data will be collected from patients presenting with clinically suspected meningitis, pneumonia, or sepsis. Community-acquired infections will be identified by daily review of new admissions, and hospital-acquired infections will be enrolled during weekly point prevalence surveys, on surveillance wards. Clinical variables will be collected at enrolment, hospital discharge, and at day 28 post-enrolment using an electronic questionnaire on a mobile device. These data will be merged with laboratory data onsite using a flexible automated computer script. Specific target pathogens will be Streptococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella spp., Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, and Acinetobacter baumannii. A bespoke browser-based app will provide sites with fully interactive data visualisation, analysis, and reporting tools.

Discussion: ACORN will generate data on the burden of DRI which can be used to inform local treatment guidelines / national policy and serve as indicators to measure the impact of interventions. Following development, testing and iteration of the surveillance tools during an initial six-month pilot phase, a wider rollout is planned.
Estimating the burden of antimicrobial resistance in Malawi: protocol for a prospective observational study of the morbidity, mortality and economic cost of third-generation cephalosporin resistant bloodstream infection
Authors: Lester Rebecca , Maheswaran Hendran , Jewell Christopher P. , Lalloo David G. , Feasey Nicholas A.
Published: June 2020

Introduction: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global public health concern, but the problems are context specific, with each county or setting facing differing challenges. In sub-Saharan Africa, third-generation cephalosporin resistant Enterobacterales (3GCR-E) are of particular concern, given the widespread reliance on ceftriaxone for treatment of severe infection in this setting. In Malawi, despite rising prevalence of 3GCR-E, the health-impact of these infections has not been described. This study is designed to estimate attributable mortality, morbidity and economic cost of 3GCR-E bloodstream infection (BSI) in a large, urban hospital.

Methods: This study will investigate the burden of AMR by recruiting a a prospective longitudinal cohort of patients who have bloodstream infection with 3GCR-E, at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre, Malawi. Patients whose blood culture is positive for either third-generation cephalosporin susceptible (3GC-S) or third-generation resistant (3GC-R) Enterobacterales will be enrolled and provide clinical and healthcare economic data. Patients will be followed throughout their hospital stay and to 6-months post discharge. The primary outcomes for the study are mortality and morbidity from 3GCR-E. Healthcare economic outcomes will be assessed by comparing healthcare provider costs, indirect patient costs and health-related quality of life outcomes in patients with 3GC-S and 3GC-R BSI. Based on our observation that some patients with clinical suspicion of sepsis and 3GC-R BSI are surviving without an effective antibiotic, we review each patient prospectively and classify what role the isolated bacteria is playing in the patient’s clinical presentation. Each BSI episode will be classified into the following categories: definite Gram-negative sepsis, probable Gram-negative sepsis, transient or occult bacteraemia, or contaminated blood culture. These classifications will be incorporated into our analysis.

Ethics and dissemination: The study protocol has been approved by the Malawi College of Medicine Research Ethics Committee and by the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine Research Ethics committee.
Variants associated with HHIP expression have sex-differential effects on lung function
Authors: Fawcett Katherine A. , Obeidat Ma'en , Melbourne Carl A. , Shrine Nick , Guyatt Anna L. , John Catherine , Luan Jian'an , Richmond Anne , Moksnes Marta R. , Granell Raquel , Weiss Stefan , Imboden Medea , May-Wilson Sebastian , Hysi Pirro , Boutin Thibaud S. , Portas Laura , Flexeder Claudia , Harris Sarah E. , Wang Carol A. , Lyytikäinen Leo-Pekka , Palviainen Teemu , Foong Rachel E. , Keidel Dirk , Minelli Cosetta , Langenberg Claudia , Bossé Yohan , Van den Berge Maarten , Sin Don D. , Hao Ke , Campbell Archie , Porteous David , Padmanabhan Sandosh , Smith Blair H. , Evans David M. , Ring Sue , Langhammer Arnulf , Hveem Kristian , Willer Cristen , Ewert Ralf , Stubbe Beate , Pirastu Nicola , Klaric Lucija , Joshi Peter K. , Patasova Karina , Massimo Mangino , Polasek Ozren , Starr John M. , Karrasch Stefan , Strauch Konstantin , Meitinger Thomas , Rudan Igor , Rantanen Taina , Pietiläinen Kirsi , Kähönen Mika , Raitakari Olli T. , Hall Graham L. , Sly Peter D. , Pennell Craig E. , Kaprio Jaakko , Lehtimäki Terho , Vitart Veronique , Deary Ian J. , Jarvis Debbie , Wilson James F. , Spector Tim , Probst-Hensch Nicole , Wareham Nicholas J. , Völzke Henry , Henderson John , Strachan David P. , Brumpton Ben M. , Hayward Caroline , Hall Ian P. , Tobin Martin D. , Wain Louise V.
Published: June 2020

Background: Lung function is highly heritable and differs between the sexes throughout life. However, little is known about sex-differential genetic effects on lung function. We aimed to conduct the first genome-wide genotype-by-sex interaction study on lung function to identify genetic effects that differ between males and females.

Methods: We tested for interactions between 7,745,864 variants and sex on spirometry-based measures of lung function in UK Biobank (N=303,612), and sought replication in 75,696 independent individuals from the SpiroMeta consortium.

Results: Five independent single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) showed genome-wide significant (P<5x10-8) interactions with sex on lung function, and 21 showed suggestive interactions (P<1x10-6). The strongest signal, from rs7697189 (chr4:145436894) on forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) (P=3.15x10-15), was replicated (P=0.016) in SpiroMeta. The C allele increased FEV1 more in males (untransformed FEV1 β=0.028 [SE 0.0022] litres) than females (β=0.009 [SE 0.0014] litres), and this effect was not accounted for by differential effects on height, smoking or pubertal age. rs7697189 resides upstream of the hedgehog-interacting protein (HHIP) gene and was previously associated with lung function and HHIP lung expression. We found HHIP expression was significantly different between the sexes (P=6.90x10-6), but we could not detect sex differential effects of rs7697189 on expression.

Conclusions: We identified a novel genotype-by-sex interaction at a putative enhancer region upstream of the HHIP gene. Establishing the mechanism by which HHIP SNPs have different effects on lung function in males and females will be important for our understanding of lung health and diseases in both sexes.
Bimodal distribution and set point HBV DNA viral loads in chronic infection: retrospective analysis of cohorts from the UK and South Africa
Authors: Downs Louise O. , Vawda Sabeehah , Bester Phillip Armand , Lythgoe Katrina A. , Wang Tingyan , McNaughton Anna L. , Smith David A. , Maponga Tongai , Freeman Oliver , Várnai Kinga A. , Davies Jim , Woods Kerrie , Fraser Christophe , Barnes Eleanor , Goedhals Dominique , Matthews Philippa C.
Published: June 2020

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) viral load (VL) is used as a biomarker to assess risk of disease progression, and to determine eligibility for treatment. While there is a well recognised association between VL and the expression of the viral e-antigen (HBeAg) protein, the precise determinants and distribution of VL at a population level are not well described. We here report the distribution of HBV VL in two large cross-sectional population cohorts in the UK and in South Africa, demonstrating a consistent bimodal distribution. The right skewed distribution and low median viral loads are significantly different from the left-skew and higher viraemia in seen in comparable HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) cohorts. Using longitudinal data, we present evidence for a stable ‘set-point’ VL in peripheral blood during chronic HBV infection. These results are important to underpin improved understanding of HBV biology and to plan public health interventions.
Estimating the time-varying reproduction number of SARS-CoV-2 using national and subnational case counts
Authors: Abbott Sam , Hellewell Joel , Thompson Robin N. , Sherratt Katharine , Gibbs Hamish P. , Bosse Nikos I. , Munday James D. , Meakin Sophie , Doughty Emma L. , Chun June Young , Chan Yung-Wai Desmond , Finger Flavio , Campbell Paul , Endo Akira , Pearson Carl A. B. , Gimma Amy , Russell Tim ,   CMMID COVID modelling group, Flasche Stefan , Kucharski Adam J. , Eggo Rosalind M. , Funk Sebastian
Published: June 2020

Background: Interventions are now in place worldwide to reduce transmission of the novel coronavirus. Assessing temporal variations in transmission in different countries is essential for evaluating the effectiveness of public health interventions and the impact of changes in policy.

Methods: We use case notification data to generate daily estimates of the time-dependent reproduction number in different regions and countries. Our modelling framework, based on open source tooling, accounts for reporting delays, so that temporal variations in reproduction number estimates can be compared directly with the times at which interventions are implemented.

Results: We provide three example uses of our framework. First, we demonstrate how the toolset displays temporal changes in the reproduction number. Second, we show how the framework can be used to reconstruct case counts by date of infection from case counts by date of notification, as well as to estimate the reproduction number. Third, we show how maps can be generated to clearly show if case numbers are likely to decrease or increase in different regions. Results are shown for regions and countries worldwide on our website (https://epiforecasts.io/covid/) and are updated daily. Our tooling is provided as an open-source R package to allow replication by others.

Conclusions: This decision-support tool can be used to assess changes in virus transmission in different regions and countries worldwide. This allows policymakers to assess the effectiveness of current interventions, and will be useful for inferring whether or not transmission will increase when interventions are lifted. As well as providing daily updates on our website, we also provide adaptable computing code so that our approach can be used directly by researchers and policymakers on confidential datasets. We hope that our tool will be used to support decisions in countries worldwide throughout the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Research of the Influence of Digitalization on the Growth of Labor Productivity in the Agricultural Complex: Russian and International Experience
Authors: Osovin M. , Kadomceva M.
Published: June 2020

As a part of the study, an analysis of Russian and international experience in the transfer of digital technologies to agriculture was carried out. It allowed the authors to generalize the prerequisites for the transition of the industry to digital form, highlight the problems that impede its transformation, and formulate the basic requirements for the digital environment. It is shown that the process of introducing digital technologies into agriculture should not be limited only to technological re-equipment of the production sphere. It is necessary to strike a balance between the constantly growing level of domestic demand for qualified personnel and the quality of professional skills and competencies of agricultural workers in high technology. It is concluded that in the context of the transition from the traditional model to the “digital” one, it is necessary to ensure a continuous increase in investment in education, to make changes in the structure of specialties of higher educational institutions in the agricultural field, and to bring the subject area of research projects in the field of ICT as close as possible to goals and objectives facing the real sector of the economy.
The Effects of Tip Recommendations on Customer Tipping, Satisfaction, Repatronage, and Spending
Authors: Alexander Damon , Boone Christopher , Lynn Michael
Published: June 2020

A field experiment involving 94,571 orders from 24,637 customers of an app-based laundry pick-up, cleaning, and delivery service examined the effects of various randomly assigned tip recommendations on consumers’ tip amounts, satisfaction ratings, frequency of return, and bill size. We find that tip recommendations affect tip amounts, but not customer satisfaction, patronage frequency, or bill size, which implies that neither the processes underlying the tip-recommendation effects on tipping nor consumer tipping itself affect these other consumer outcomes. From a practical perspective, these results and conclusions inform efforts to increase or decrease tipping. Recommending larger tip amounts, at least within the $2–$10 or 5%–25% ranges studied here, appears to be a safe means of increasing the amounts customers leave. More generally, altering customers’ tipping behavior will not itself adversely affect those customers’ subsequent satisfaction, repatronage, or spending, as long as the means used to alter tipping do not directly affect these other outcomes.

This paper was accepted by John List, behavioral economics.
Aplicação da triagem de risco nutricional em crianças e adolescentes hospitalizados com cardiopatia congênita
Authors: Anaice Suzi Hellen
Published: June 2020

Introdução: A triagem nutricional em crianças é de extrema importância no ambiente hospitalar, pois é uma ferramenta simples e eficiente. Objetivo: Detectar o risco nutricional, a partir do método de triagem nutricional pediátrica Strong Kids, em crianças e adolescentes com cardiopatias congênitas. Método: Foram avaliados 81 crianças e adolescentes com cardiopatia congênita, até 48 horas de internação, no período de agosto de 2016 a maio de 2017. Dados foram coletados através de triagem nutricional pediátrica. A análise estatística se deu através do teste qui-quadrado, a fim de verificar o nível de significância, p < 0,05. Resultados: Dentre os resultados obtidos, houve maior prevalência de crianças com cardiopatia congênita internadas do gênero feminino 60,49% (n=49). De acordo com a classificação das fases de vida, a predominância ocorreu na fase pré-escolar 46,91%, seguida de lactentes 27,16%, adolescentes 13,58% e escolar 12,35%. Não houve déficit nutricional para 74,07%. Segundo o teste qui-quadrado, observou-se relevância do médio risco nutricional. Conclusão: A triagem nutricional pediátrica é fundamental na prática clínica, e sua melhor forma de avaliação é a intervenção nutricional precoce. Isto implicará um tratamento nutricional adequado, em especial para crianças com cardiopatia congênita.
Efeitos da restrição de carboidratos no manejo do diabetes mellitus: revisão de literatura científica
Authors: Prado Campos Laís , Monteiro de Castro Lobo Lina
Published: June 2020

O objetivo do presente estudo foi avaliar, por meio de uma revisão da literatura, evidências da utilização de dietas com restrição de carboidratos no manejo do diabetes mellitus (DM). As buscas eletrônicas e manuais foram até abril de 2019, e incluíram trabalhos publicados a partir de 2008. Foram excluídos estudos de pesquisas in vitro e em animais, revisões de literatura, livros, monografias, dissertações, teses, estudos de caso e relatos de caso. Os artigos remanescentes foram submetidos à análise de sua qualidade metodológica pela Escala JADAD cinco pontos. Um total de 19 estudos randomizados e com qualidade média de três pontos foram selecionados e analisados quanto aos tipos de dieta utilizadas, adesão, tipo de DM, tempo de intervenção, consumo reportado de carboidratos e resultados observados para os grupos controle e intervenção. Dentre os parâmetros escolhidos para mensurar os possíveis efeitos das dietas, destacaram-se alteração de peso e IMC, Hb1Ac, variabilidade ou controle glicêmico, perfil lipídico e alteração nas doses de insulina ou medicação utilizadas. Em quatro estudos não foram observadas vantagens significativas de uma dieta restrita em carboidratos, e 15 trabalhos relataram melhoras em um ou mais parâmetros. Tais resultados podem representar uma grande vantagem na adoção desta estratégia alimentar no manejo do DM e na prevenção de complicações da doença. Contudo, existem limitações nos estudos, que precisam ter suas hipóteses verificadas no longo prazo, e pesquisas adicionais devem ser realizadas para configurar uma estratégia oficial no controle do DM.
Consumers’ knowledge and use of nutritional information on food labels
Authors: Morais Ana Carolina Bail , Stangarlin-Fiori Lize , Bertin Renata Labronici , Medeiros Caroline Opolski
Published: June 2020

A rotulagem de alimentos é importante para a comunicação entre produtores e consumidores. No entanto, para ajudar os consumidores a ter maior autonomia em suas escolhas alimentares, é importante interpretar corretamente a rotulagem dos alimentos. Assim, esta pesquisa avaliou o conhecimento e o uso das informações nutricionais apresentadas nos rótulos dos alimentos. Pesquisa quantitativa, exploratória e transversal, realizada em 2018 em uma universidade pública no Brasil, com 415 consumidores com 18 anos ou mais. Para avaliar o conhecimento, aplicou-se questionário estruturado com pontuação de 0 a 24. Os dados foram analisados por meio de análise descritiva, correlação de Spearman e teste de Kruskal-Wallis e Mann Whitney. Participaram indivíduos com idade de 21,02 ± 2,89 anos, dos quais 58,31% eram do sexo feminino. Muitos consumidores liam frequentemente os rótulos dos alimentos (56,39%). A pontuação média de conhecimento foi de 14,99 ± 4,12. A média do escore de conhecimento foi afetada pela idade (p = 0,039) e renda (p = 0,020). Os participantes que utilizaram alegações nutricionais como critério de compra (p = 0,004) obtiveram maiores pontuações. Os maiores problemas na interpretação dos rótulos nutricionais estavam relacionados às reivindicações obrigatórias de nutrientes e aos termos "isento de gordura trans (0%)", "alimento funcional", "dieta" e "light". Considerando que a regulamentação dos rótulos de alimentos está em processo de revisão no Brasil, torna-se importante pesquisar seu uso e conhecimento por consumidores adultos jovens. Isso contribuirá para a discussão da revisão da legislação, além de ajudar os profissionais a orientarem os consumidores na interpretação dos rótulos.
Práticas alimentares de estudantes universitários da área da saúde, de acordo com as recomendações do Guia Alimentar para a População Brasileira
Authors: Barbosa Bruna Carolina Rafael , Guimarães Nathalia Sernizon , De Paula Waléria , Meireles Adriana Lúcia
Published: June 2020

Introdução: As práticas alimentares dos indivíduos são influenciadas pelo ambiente em que eles estão inseridos. Estudantes universitários, ao ingressarem no ensino superior, podem modificar seus hábitos alimentares em função de novos comportamentos e relações sociais que se estabelecem nesta nova fase da vida. Objetivo: Avaliar as práticas alimentares de estudantes universitários ingressantes no 1º semestre dos cursos da área da saúde de uma instituição federal de ensino superior, de acordo com as recomendações do Guia Alimentar para a População Brasileira. Métodos: Estudo transversal com estudantes universitários dos cursos de graduação da área da saúde de uma instituição pública do ensino superior. As práticas alimentares foram obtidas através da escala desenvolvida e validada por Gabe e Jaime (2019). Foram avaliadas as características sociodemográficas, hábitos de vida e condições de saúde. A análise dos dados compreendeu distribuição de frequência e análise bivariada. Resultados: Foram entrevistados 148 estudantes, dos quais 58,1% eram mulheres, 61,5% tinham 20 anos ou menos, com idade variando de 18 a 31 anos. Práticas alimentares inadequadas foram observadas em 23,7% dos estudantes, 52,0% mostraram práticas de risco e 24,3%, adequadas. O somatório das categorias de risco e inadequação foi representado por 75,7% dos estudantes. Homens apresentaram maior frequência de práticas alimentares de risco (64,5%) e mulheres, maior frequência de práticas alimentares inadequadas (29,1%) (p=0,033). Conclusão: Observou-se alta frequência (75,7%) de práticas alimentares inadequadas no público estudado. Ao comparar as variáveis explicativas com as práticas alimentares, observou-se associação positiva entre o sexo e as práticas alimentares dos estudantes.
Tendency towards operative treatment is increasing in children’s fractures: results obtained from patient databases, causes, impact of evidence-based medicine
Authors: Ömeroğlu Hakan , Cassiano Neves Manuel
Published: June 2020

Results of numerous studies assessing the national or the local patient databases in several countries have indicated that the overall rate of operative treatment in fractures, as well as the rate in certain upper and lower limb fractures, has significantly increased in children. The most prominent increase in the rate of operative treatment was observed in forearm shaft fractures. Results of several survey studies have revealed that there was not a high level of agreement among paediatric orthopaedic surgeons concerning treatment preferences for several children’s fractures. The reasons for the increasing tendency towards operative treatment are multifactorial and patient-, parent- and surgeon-dependent factors as well as technological, economic, social, environmental and legal factors seem to have an impact on this trend. It is obvious that evidence-based medicine is not the only factor that leads to this tendency. A high level of scientific evidence is currently lacking to support the statement that operative treatment really leads to better long-term outcomes in children’s fractures. Properly designed multicentre clinical trials are needed to determine the best treatment options in many fractures in children.

Cite this article: EFORT Open Rev 2020;5:347-353. DOI: 10.1302/2058-5241.5.200012
Reflections on effective services: the art of evidence-based programming
Authors: Carswell Jessica , Kothari Anita , Peter Nedra
Published: June 2020

Third sector organisations (TSOs) are playing an increasingly prominent role in delivering health and social care services to the public. It is therefore important to ensure that such services are safe, equitable and effective. One way to achieve this is by incorporating evidence-based programmes (EBPs) and research into practice. Drawing on the broad literature, this article examines the values and knowledge preferences of TSOs and how these influence the incorporation of EBPs and related activities. Also discussed are the various factors that have an impact on successful EBP adoption and evidence use in the third sector and ways to maximise TSOs’ knowledge use. Informed by the perspective of a community-based mental health worker and academic researchers who engage in knowledge translation with TSOs, this discussion provides implications for practice and future research. Two recommendations are proposed: greater understanding of the knowledge-to-action pipeline; and the exploration and study of collaborations between TSOs and researchers.
Free-space 16-ary orbital angular momentum coded optical communication system based on chaotic interleaving and convolutional neural networks
Authors: El-Meadawy Shimaa A. , Shalaby Hossam M. H. , Ismail Nabil A. , Abd El-Samie Fathi E. , Farghal Ahmed E. A.
Published: June 2020

Recently, orbital angular momentum (OAM) rays passing through free space have attracted the attention of researchers in the field of free-space optical communication systems. Throughout free space, the OAM states are subject to atmospheric turbulence (AT) distortion leading to crosstalk and power discrepancies between states. In this paper, a novel chaotic interleaver is used with low-density parity-check coded OAM-shift keying through an AT channel. Moreover, a convolutional neural network (CNN) is used as an adaptive demodulator to enhance the performance of the wireless optical communication system. The detection process with the conjugate light field method in the presence of chaotic interleaving has a better performance compared to that without chaotic interleaving for different values of propagation distance. Also, the viability of the proposed system is verified by conveying a digital image in the presence of distinctive turbulence conditions with different error correction codes. The impacts of turbulence strength, transmission distance, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and CNN parameters and hyperparameters are investigated and taken into consideration. The proposed CNN is chosen with the optimal parameter and hyperparameter values that yield the highest accuracy, utmost mean average precision (MAP), and the largest value of area under curve (AUC) for the different optimizers. The simulation results affirm that the proposed system can achieve better peak SNR values and lower mean square error values in the presence of different AT conditions. By computing accuracy, MAP, and AUC of the proposed system, we realize that the stochastic gradient descent with momentum and the adaptive moment estimation optimizers have better performance compared to the root mean square propagation optimizer.
Dynamic noncontact surface profilometry using a fast eigenspace method in diffraction phase microscopy
Authors: Ajithaprasad Sreeprasad , Ramaiah Jagadesh , Gannavarpu Rajshekhar
Published: June 2020

Dynamic measurement of surface profile is an important requirement in nondestructive testing, especially for the inspection of large samples with consecutive area scans or test objects under translation. In this paper, we propose the application of an eigenspace signal analysis method in diffraction phase microscopy for reliable and noncontact dynamic surface metrology. We also propose the inclusion of a graphics processing unit (GPU) computing framework in our method to enable fast interferogram processing for dynamics-based investigations. The practical viability of the proposed method is demonstrated for noninvasive nanoscale topography of a test target.
Development of a photoelectric phase-locked loop model to better synchronize frequency combs and microwaves
Authors: Zhang Wanpeng , Zhou Weifeng , Chen Xing , Zhao Yingxin , Lin Wei , Meng Sensen , Liu Bo , Wu Hong
Published: June 2020

The high phase coherence between ultralow-noise microwaves and ultrahigh-stable optical frequency combs (OFCs) is of both scientific and technological relevance for telecommunication, timekeeping, astronomy, and metrology. Here, a photoelectric phase-locked loop (PLL) model with ultralow phase noise based on the optical-microwave phase detector technique has been proposed and experimentally demonstrated. A detailed mathematical model for tight, real-time phase synchronization of OFCs and microwaves is developed to investigate the feasibility and analyze the characteristics of the phase-coherent system. We fabricate a compact PLL circuit with a proportional-integral-derivative regulator for the synchronization of an OFC to a microwave reference. Once synchronized, the long-term stability of the OFC agrees to

2.4

×

10

−
14

at a 1000 s averaging time, which is enhanced by more than 4 orders of magnitude. Besides, the OFC almost acquires the same frequency stability as the microwave source. The ability to better phase synchronize OFCs and microwaves enables a wide range of applications beyond the laboratory.
Deep OCT image compression with convolutional neural networks
Authors: Guo Pengfei , Li Dawei , Li Xingde
Published: June 2020

We report an end-to-end image compression framework for retina optical coherence tomography (OCT) images based on convolutional neural networks (CNNs), which achieved an image size compression ratio as high as 80. Our compression scheme consists of three parts: data preprocessing, compression CNNs, and reconstruction CNNs. The preprocessing module was designed to reduce OCT speckle noise and segment out the region of interest. Skip connections with quantization were developed and added between the compression CNNs and the reconstruction CNNs to reserve the fine-structure information. Two networks were trained together by taking the semantic segmented images from the preprocessing module as input. To train the two networks sensitive to both low and high frequency information, we leveraged an objective function with two components: an adversarial discriminator to judge the high frequency information and a differentiable multi-scale structural similarity (MS-SSIM) penalty to evaluate the low frequency information. The proposed framework was trained and evaluated on ophthalmic OCT images with pathological information. The evaluation showed reconstructed images can still achieve above 99% similarity in terms of MS-SSIM when the compression ratio reached 40. Furthermore, the reconstructed images after 80-fold compression with the proposed framework even presented comparable quality with those of a compression ratio 20 from state-of-the-art methods. The test results showed that the proposed framework outperformed other methods in terms of both MS-SSIM and visualization, which was more obvious at higher compression ratios. Compression and reconstruction were fast and took only about 0.015 seconds per image. The results suggested a promising potential of deep neural networks on customized medical image compression, particularly valuable for effective image storage and tele-transfer.
Influence of terahertz field on optical absorption coefficients and refractive index changes in double semi-V-shaped quantum wells
Authors: Lao Junming , Guo Kangxian , Lan Jianyu , He Xiaobin
Published: June 2020

In this paper, the refractive index changes (RICs) and optical absorption coefficients (OACs) related to an intense terahertz (THz) field and the barrier widths in double semi-V-shaped quantum wells (DSVQW) are investigated theoretically by Kramers–Henneberger approximation and the finite difference method. The numerical results show that the THz field significantly widens the DSVQW and lowers the potential barrier. The DSVQW eventually turn into triple graded quantum wells under an intense THz field. As a result, the THz field essentially changes the energy gaps and dipole matrix, which determines the strength of the OACs and RICs. Both the OACs and the RICs are nonmonotonic functions of the applied THz field and have maximum and minimum value when the THz quiver motion parameters are close to the width parameter of a potential barrier. Based on the above analysis, we conclude that a THz field can effectively improve OACs and reduce RICs. Besides, the THz quiver motion parameters needed to achieve peak positions of the OACs and minimum position of the RICs at different barrier widths are proposed, which provides the possibility of designing various infrared optics devices.
Stimulated emission tomography for entangled photon pairs with different detection spectral ranges
Authors: Yang Yiquan , Zhang Peiyu , Ma Xiao-Song
Published: June 2020

Frequency nondegenerate entangled photon pairs have been employed in quantum communication, imaging, and sensing. To characterize quantum entangled states with long-wavelength [infrared (IR) or even terahertz (THz)] photons, one needs to either develop the single-photon detectors at the corresponding wavelengths or use a novel tomography technique that does not rely on single-photon detections, such as stimulated emission tomography (SET). We use standard quantum state tomography and SET to measure the density matrix of entangled photon pairs, with one photon at 1550 nm and the other one at 810 nm, and obtain highly consistent results, showing the reliability of SET. Our work paves the way for efficient measurement of entangled photons with highly dissimilar frequencies, even to the frequencies where single-photon detections are not available.
THz streak camera performance for single-shot characterization of XUV pulses with complex temporal structures
Authors: Oelze Tim , Kulyk Olena , Schütte Bernd , Frühling Ulrike , Klimešová Eva , Jagielski Bartholomäus , Dittrich Laura , Drescher Markus , Pan Rui , Stojanovic Nikola , Polovinkin Vitaly , Khakurel Krishna P. , Muehlig Kerstin , Bermudez Macias Ivette J. , Düsterer Stefan , Faatz Bart , Andreasson Jakob , Wieland Marek , Krikunova Maria
Published: June 2020

The THz-field-driven streak camera has proven to be a powerful diagnostic-technique that enables the shot-to-shot characterization of the duration and the arrival time jitter of free electron laser (FEL) pulses. Here we investigate the performance of three computational approaches capable to determine the duration of FEL pulses with complex temporal structures from single-shot measurements of up to three simultaneously recorded spectra. We use numerically simulated FEL pulses in order to validate the accuracy of the pulse length retrieval in average as well as in a single-shot mode. We discuss requirements for the THz field strength in order to achieve reliable results and compare our numerical study with the analysis of experimental data that were obtained at the FEL in Hamburg - FLASH.
Assessing different regression algorithms for paddy rice leaf nitrogen concentration estimations from the first-derivative fluorescence spectrum
Authors: Yang Jian , Du Lin , Cheng Yinjia , Shi Shuo , Xiang Chengzhi , Sun Jia , Chen Biwu
Published: June 2020

The non-destructive and rapid estimation of the crop’s leaf nitrogen concentration (LNC) is significant for the quality evaluation and precise management of nitrogen (N) fertilizer. First derivative can be applied to reduce the noise in the spectral analysis, which is suited to estimate leaf N and chlorophyll concentration with different fertilization levels. In this study, the first-derivative fluorescence spectrum (FDFS) was calculated in terms of the laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) spectra and was combined with different regression algorithms, including principal component analysis (PCA), partial least-square regression (PLSR), random forest (RF), radial basic function neural network (RBF-NN), and back-propagation neural network (BPNN) for paddy rice LNC estimation. Then, the effect of diverse inner parameters on regression algorithm for LNC estimation based on the calculated FDFS served as input variables were discussed, and the optimal parameters of each model were acquired. Subsequently, the performance of different models (PLSR, RF, BPNN, RBF-NN, PCA-RF, PCA-BPNN, and PCA-RBFNN) with the optimal parameter for LNC estimation based on FDFS was discussed. Results demonstrated that PCA can efficiently extract major spectral information without obviously losing, which can improve the stability and robustness of model (PLSR, PCA-RF, PCA-BNN, and PCA-RBFNN) for LNC estimation. Then, PCA-RBFNN model exhibited better potential for LNC estimation with higher average R2 (R2=0.8743) and lower SD values (SD=0.0256) than that the other regression models in this study. And, PLSR also exhibited promising potential for LNC estimation in which the R2 values (average R2=0.8412) are higher than that the other models except for PCA-RBFNN.
Ghost polarimetry with unpolarized pseudo-thermal light
Authors: Magnitskiy Sergey , Agapov Dmitriy , Chirkin Anatoly
Published: June 2020

We present an experimental implementation of the ghost polarimetry concept in unpolarized light, which allows obtaining complete information on the spatial distribution of polarization properties of objects with linear dichroism. It is theoretically shown that it is possible to restore the spatial distribution of the azimuth and a value of anisotropy of such objects. The developed technique allows us to free up the object arm from all additional optical elements, including polarizers. The experimental results of measuring the dichroism parameters of a test four-sectional sample are presented, which demonstrate the efficiency of the method and confirm the correctness of the developed theoretical model.
Strategy for optical thermometry based on temperature-dependent charge transfer to the Eu3+ 4f-4f excitation intensity ratio in Sr3Lu(VO4)3:Eu3+ and CaWO4:Nd3+
Authors: Chang Qianyang , Zhou Xianju , Zhou Xiao , Chen Lingni , Xiang Guotao , Jiang Sha , Li Li , Li Yanhong , Tang Xiao
Published: June 2020

Optical thermometry has been developed as a promising temperature-sensing technique. We propose a new, to the best of our knowledge, strategy of fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR), based on an abnormal thermal quenching effect. In the phosphors of

S
r

3

L
u

(

V
O

4

)
3

:

E
u

3
+

and

C
a
W
O

4

:

N
d

3
+

, the f-f emission intensity of the doped lanthanide ions increases with raising temperature upon the excitation of the charge transfer band (CTB) of the host. The abnormal thermal quenching is caused by the thermally activated absorption, which is proved by temperature-dependent diffuse reflectance spectra. The opposite change tendency of M-O (

M

=

V

5
+

or

W

6
+

) CTB and

L
n

3
+

(

L
n

=

E
u

3
+

or

N
d

3
+

) f-f transitions has been observed in the temperature-dependent excitation spectra and employed as the thermometric probe in ratiometric luminescent thermometry. The strategy applies to the FIR technique in lanthanide singly doped phosphors and eliminates the limitation of thermal-coupled levels. It opens up new possibilities of ratiometric optical thermometry. In addition, the derived maximum relative sensitivity is larger than the value obtained via thermal-coupled levels in the same sample. This illustrates that optical thermometry based on abnormal thermal quenching might be a feasible and effective method.
Optical patching scheme for optical convolutional neural networks based on wavelength-division multiplexing and optical delay lines
Authors: Xu Shaofu , Wang Jing , Zou Weiwen
Published: June 2020

Recent progress on optical neural networks (ONNs) heralds a new future for efficient deep learning accelerators, and novel, to the best of our knowledge, architectures of optical convolutional neural networks (CNNs) provide potential solutions to the widely adopted convolutional models. So far in optical CNNs, the data patching (a necessary process in the convolutional layer) is mostly executed with electronics, resulting in a demand for large input modulator arrays. Here we experimentally demonstrate an optical patching scheme to release the burden of electronic data processing and to cut down the scale of the input modulator array for optical CNNs. Optical delay lines replace electronics to execute data processing, which can reduce the scale of the input modulator array. The adoption of wavelength-division multiplexing enables a single group of optical delay lines to simultaneously process multiple input data, reducing the system complexity. The optical patching scheme provides a new solution to the problem of data input, which is challenging and concerned with the field of ONNs.