bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Adaptive car control system based on a predictive model
Authors: Toroman Amel , Vojić Samir
Published: December 2021

An adaptive control is a control, which by pre-setting the parameters of the controller, enables the control of processes whose parameters are time-varying or are initially uncertain. The possibilities and benefits of adaptive control are versatile and can be best demonstrated by applying the system while driving a car, or maintaining the optimal speed and distance between cars, which is shown in this paper. As the car’s weight decreases while driving due to fuel consumption, the control algorithm has to be adapted to the changed driving conditions. Accordingly, an adaptive control system using the Matlab software package, and an adaptive cruise control system (ACC) was created in this paper, which is based on a predictive model. After evaluating the developed model of adaptive car motion control, the output parameters such as speed, acceleration, and distance between the two vehicles were analyzed. In this paper a PID controller is used to reduce oscillations in the system. First, the P controller was used to reduce the rise time of the significant values, then the PI controller improved the rise time, and finally the PID controller achieved overshoot reduction performance without affecting the dynamic response system. The obtained results confirm the justified expectations for the possibility of adaptive car control utilization as one of the possible solutions to the increasing traffic incidents, as well as a measure to improve the reduction of these incidents.
Facade Damage Assessment of the Buildings in Bam, Iran 2003 and Kermanshah, Iran 2017 Earthquakes
Authors: Farrokh Ghatte Hamid
Published: December 2021

One of the essential factors in buildings frontage is the continuity of the structural and building envelope parts. In this investigation, a comparison was made between Bam and Kermanshah earthquakes. A strong earthquake (magnitude 6.6) struck the city of Bam in southeast Iran on 26 December 2003, and similarly, another strong earthquake struck the city of Kermanshah (magnitude 7.3) in Iran on 12 November 2017. Damage in the facades of the buildings was a clear contributor to the overall building damage. This paper presents the damage assessment of the different facade systems from multi-story buildings in Bam and Kermanshah, Iran. The survey covers the buildings greater than three stories in height, excluding most unreinforced masonry facades. As far as a building can have more than one facade system, any facade systems are evaluated individually. Observation of facade damage is discussed and is presented in terms of its performance level.
Effects of O2 addition on the plasma uniformity and reactivity of Ar DBD excited by ns pulsed and AC power supplies
Authors: LIU Feng , ZHUANG Yue , ZHAO Yulei , CHEN Jie , FANG Zhi
Published: December 2021

Dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs) have been widely used in ozone synthesis, materials surface treatment, and plasma medicine for their advantages of uniform discharge and high plasma-chemical reactivity. To improve the reactivity of DBDs, in this work, the O2 is added into Ar nanosecond (ns) pulsed and AC DBDs. The uniformity and discharge characteristics of Ar ns pulsed and AC DBDs with different O2 contents are investigated with optical and electrical diagnosis methods. The DBD uniformity is quantitatively analyzed by gray value standard deviation method. The electrical parameters are extracted from voltage and current waveforms separation to characterize the discharge processes and calculate electron density n
e. The optical emission spectroscopy is measured to show the plasma reactivity and calculate the trend of electron temperature T
e with the ratio of two emission lines. It is found that the ns pulsed DBD has a much better uniformity than AC DBD for the fast rising and falling time. With the addition of O2, the uniformity of ns pulsed DBD gets worse for the space electric field distortion by O2
−, which promotes the filamentary formation. While, in AC DBD, the added O2 can reduce the intensity of filaments, which enhances the discharge uniformity. The ns pulsed DBD has a much higher instantaneous power and energy efficiency than AC DBD. The ratio of Ar emission intensities indicates that the T
e drops quickly with the addition of O2 both ns pulsed and AC DBDs and the ns pulsed DBD has an obvious higher T
e and n
e than AC DBD. The results are helpful for the realization of the reactive and uniform low temperature plasma sources.
Stable broken 𝐻(𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑙) polynomial extensions and 𝑝-robust a posteriori error estimates by broken patchwise equilibration for the curl–curl problem
Authors: Chaumont-Frelet T. , Ern A. , Vohralík M.
Published: December 2021

We study extensions of piecewise polynomial data prescribed in a patch of tetrahedra sharing an edge. We show stability in the sense that the minimizers over piecewise polynomial spaces with prescribed tangential component jumps across faces and prescribed piecewise curl in elements are subordinate in the broken energy norm to the minimizers over the broken

H
(
curl
)

\boldsymbol H(\boldsymbol {\operatorname {curl}})

space with the same prescriptions. Our proofs are constructive and yield constants independent of the polynomial degree. We then detail the application of this result to the a posteriori error analysis of the curl–curl problem discretized with Nédélec finite elements of arbitrary order. The resulting estimators are reliable, locally efficient, polynomial-degree-robust, and inexpensive. They are constructed by a broken patchwise equilibration which, in particular, does not produce a globally

H
(
curl
)

\boldsymbol H(\boldsymbol {\operatorname {curl}})

-conforming flux. The equilibration is only related to edge patches and can be realized without solutions of patch problems by a sweep through tetrahedra around every mesh edge. The error estimates become guaranteed when the regularity pick-up constant is explicitly known. Numerical experiments illustrate the theoretical findings.
On the least squares estimator asymptotic normality of the multivariate symmetric textured surface parameters
Authors: Ivanov A. , Savych I.
Published: December 2021

A multivariate trigonometric regression model is considered. Various discrete modifications of the similar bivariate model received serious attention in the literature on signal and image processing due to multiple applications in the analysis of symmetric textured surfaces. In the paper asymptotic normality of the least squares estimator for amplitudes and angular frequencies is obtained in multivariate trigonometric model assuming that the random noise is a homogeneous or homogeneous and isotropic Gaussian, in particular, strongly dependent random field on 

R

M

,

M
>
2.

\mathbb {R}^M,\,\, M>2.
From tense realism to realism about temporal passage: Reply to Nihel Jhou
Authors: Correia Fabrice , Rosenkranz Sven
Published: December 2021

Nihel Jhou (2021) takes issue with our argument to the conclusion that realism about tense implies realism about temporal passage (Correia and Rosenkranz 2020). Here we review his criticism and defend our conclusion by improving the original argument so as to do justice to the more demanding notion of temporal passage Jhou invokes.
Reactive scope model and emergency life history stage provide useful tools for evaluating the stress responses of native Australian lizards living in disturbed landscapes
Authors: Pahuja Harsh Kirpal , Narayan Edward Jitik
Published: December 2021

Glucocorticoids (GCs) are used as biomarkers of physiological stress response in reptiles. Fundamental stress physiology tools including the emergency life history stage (ELHS) and the reactive scope model (RSM) can be useful to determine how individual variation of stress responses shape population ecology. In this perspective, we applied the RSM and ELHS into the context of two urban-dwelling small native Australian reptile species to compare the stress-response patterns in short- and long-breeding lizards. Firstly, by drawing inferences from the ELHS, we presented hypothetical scenarios using sample GC data for a short-breeding species (e.g. common blue-tongue lizard). We showed that activation of the physiological stress response would be non-adaptive due to the consequences of stress on reproduction. Therefore, blue-tongue lizards may become exposed to acute and chronic environmental stressors (e.g. human disturbance and habitat clearance) during the breeding season as they prefer not to activate their hypothalamo-pituitary interrenal (HPI) axis in support of their short-breeding season. On the contrary, long-breeding lizards (e.g. bearded dragons), which have multiple breeding opportunities and are accustomed to living around humans and altered urban environments, tended to operate above the critical adaptive value of the ELHS during their breeding period. This suggests that any future changes to the dynamics of habitat availability and breeding opportunities may favour the dragon differently over the blue-tongue lizard. To further capture the dynamics of stress responses along spatial and temporal scales, we suggested that researchers should collect field data (e.g. blood plasma or faecal GCs) and then use the ELHS and RSM to understand how the environment is shaping the animal’s stress physiology. The application of field stress monitoring and data visualization using the ELHS and RSM could guide environmental monitoring and conservation programs of native wildlife species.
A discrete boundedness-by-entropy method for finite-volume approximations of cross-diffusion systems
Authors: Jüngel Ansgar , Zurek Antoine
Published: December 2021

An implicit Euler finite-volume scheme for general cross-diffusion systems with volume-filling constraints is proposed and analyzed. The diffusion matrix may be nonsymmetric and not positive semidefinite, but the diffusion system is assumed to possess a formal gradient-flow structure that yields $L^\infty $ bounds on the continuous level. Examples include the Maxwell–Stefan systems for gas mixtures, tumor-growth models and systems for the fabrication of thin-film solar cells. The proposed numerical scheme preserves the structure of the continuous equations, namely the entropy dissipation inequality as well as the non-negativity of the concentrations and the volume-filling constraints. The discrete entropy structure is a consequence of a new vector-valued discrete chain rule. The existence of discrete solutions, their positivity, and the convergence of the scheme is proved. The numerical scheme is implemented for a one-dimensional Maxwell–Stefan model and a two-dimensional thin-film solar cell system. It is illustrated that the convergence rate in space is of order two and the discrete relative entropy decays exponentially.
Differential Privacy and Noisy Confidentiality Concepts for European Population Statistics
Authors: Bach Fabian
Published: December 2021

The article discusses various approaches to statistical disclosure control based on random noise that are currently being discussed for official population statistics and censuses. A particular focus is on a stringent delineation between different concepts influencing the discussion: we separate clearly between risk measures, noise distributions, and output mechanisms—putting these concepts into scope and into relation with each other. The article also remarks on utility and risk aspects of some specific output mechanisms and parameter setups, with special attention on static outputs that are rather typical in official population statistics. In particular, it is argued that unbounded noise distributions, such as plain Laplace, may jeopardize key unique census features without a clear need from a risk perspective. On the other hand, bounded noise distributions, such as the truncated Laplace or the cell key method, can contribute effectively to safeguarding these unique census features while controlling disclosure risks in census-like outputs. Finally, the article analyses some typical attack scenarios to constrain generic noise parameter ranges that suggest a good risk/utility compromise for the 2021 EU census output scenario. The analysis also shows that strictly differentially private mechanisms would be severely constrained in this scenario.
Protein–protein interactions in fatty acid elongase complexes are important for very-long-chain fatty acid synthesis
Authors: Kim Juyoung , Kim Ryeo Jin , Lee Saet Buyl , Suh Mi Chung
Published: December 2021

Fatty acid elongase (FAE), which catalyzes the synthesis of very-long-chain fatty acids (VLCFAs), is a multiprotein complex; however, little is known about its quaternary structure. In this study, bimolecular fluorescence complementation and/or yeast two-hybrid assays showed that homo-interactions were observed in β-ketoacyl-CoA synthases (KCS2, KCS9, and KCS6), Eceriferum2-like proteins [CER2 and CER2-Like2 (C2L2)], and FAE complex proteins (KCR1, PAS2, ECR, and PAS1), except for CER2-Like1 (C2L1). Hetero-interactions were observed between KCSs (KCS2, KCS9, and KCS6), between CER2-LIKEs (CER2, C2L2, and C2L1), and between FAE complex proteins (KCR1, PAS2, ECR, and PAS1). PAS1 interacts with FAE complex proteins (KCR1, PAS2, and ECR), but not with KCSs (KCS2, KCS9, and KCS6) and CER2-LIKEs (CER2, C2L2, and C2L1). Asp308 and Arg309–Arg311 of KCS9 were essential for the homo-interactions of KCS9 and hetero-interactions between KCS9 and PAS2 or ECR. Asp339 of KCS9 is involved in its homo- and hetero-interactions with ECR. Complementation analysis of the Arabidopsis kcs9 mutant by the expression of amino acid-substituted KCS9 mutant genes showed that Asp308 and Asp339 of KCS9 are involved in the synthesis of C24 VLCFAs from C22. This study suggests that protein–protein interaction in FAE complexes is important for VLCFA synthesis and provides insight into the quaternary structure of FAE complexes for efficient synthesis of VLCFAs.
Public invocations of international law and legacies of the Iraq War
Authors: Chiam Madelaine
Published: December 2021

This essay reads three texts: Charlotte Peevers’s The Politics of Justifying Force: the Suez Crisis, the Iraq War and International Law, the 2016 Report of the UK Iraq Inquiry, and Ayça Çubukçu’s For the Love of Humanity: The World Tribunal On Iraq. It explores what each of the texts tells us about the role of international law as a public language and suggests how we might think of the texts as creating one legacy of the Iraq War.
International law, politics and opposition to the Iraq War
Authors: Knox Robert
Published: December 2021

A key feature of the Iraq war was the prominence of international legal argument. This article argues that the motif of the ‘illegal war’ was crucial in mobilisations against the war. It traces the reasons for the prominence of this ‘illegal war’ motif and the wider political consequences of its adoption.
Accurate X-ray timing in the presence of systematic biases with simulation-based inference
Authors: Huppenkothen Daniela , Bachetti Matteo
Published: December 2021

Because many of our X-ray telescopes are optimized towards observing faint sources, observations of bright sources like X-ray binaries in outburst are often affected by instrumental biases. These effects include dead time and photon pile-up, which can dramatically change the statistical inference of physical parameters from these observations. While dead time is difficult to take into account in a statistically consistent manner, simulating dead-time-affected data is often straightforward. This structure makes the issue of inferring physical properties from dead-time-affected observations fall into a class of problems common across many scientific disciplines. There is a growing number of methods to address them under the name of simulation-based inference (SBI), aided by new developments in density estimation and statistical machine learning. In this paper, we introduce SBI as a principled way to infer variability properties from dead-time-affected light curves. We use sequential neural posterior estimation to estimate the posterior probability for variability properties. We show that this method can recover variability parameters on simulated data even when dead time is variable, and present results of an application of this approach to NuSTAR observations of the galactic black hole X-ray binary GRS 1915+105.
Pulsar death line revisited – I. Almost vacuum gap
Authors: Beskin V S , Litvinov P E
Published: December 2021

In this paper, which is the first in a series of papers devoted to a detailed analysis of ‘the death line’ of radio pulsars, we consider a possibility of producing secondary particles at a sufficiently long pulsar period P. To this end, we reconsidered the potential drop necessary for secondary plasma generation in the inner gap over magnetic polar caps. Our research made it possible to refine the conditions for generating secondary plasma, such as the multiplicity of the production of secondary particles and their spatial distribution. Our research also made it possible to further quantitatively analyse the dependence of the possibility of secondary plasma generation on all parameters, including the inclination angle of the magnetic axis to the rotation axis, the polar cap size and the magnetic field geometry.
The activity of the dwarf nova RU Pegasi with rapidly changing outburst types
Authors: Šimon Vojtěch
Published: December 2021

RU Pegasi is a dwarf nova (DN) of the U Geminorum type. This analysis of its long-term optical activity uses data from the data base of the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO). It concentrates on investigating the properties of the individual outbursts and the time evolution of the ensemble of these events. No significant irradiation of the disc by the white dwarf was detected. In the interpretation, a variable steepness of the rising branches of the individual outbursts shows that the start of outbursts of RU Peg can occur at various distances from the disc centre without remarkable changes of the outburst recurrence time TC. The disc overflow of the inflowing mass stream, varying with time, could contribute to the changes in the starting position of the heating front, and hence the variations of the outburst types. A typical length of TC was 90 d. The segments of the relatively stable length of TC were accompanied by the primarily little variable and small values of the fluence (the energy radiated in the optical band in the individual outbursts). Jumps of TC, accompanied by the big scatter of the fluences, sometimes replaced them. In the interpretation, a combination of variations of TC with the unstable properties of the outbursts, including an unstable mass transfer rate between the components, shows the influence of several mechanisms on the state of the disc in various time segments.
A classifier for spurious astrometric solutions in Gaia eDR3
Authors: Rybizki Jan , Green Gregory M , Rix Hans-Walter , El-Badry Kareem , Demleitner Markus , Zari Eleonora , Udalski Andrzej , Smart Richard L , Gould Andrew
Published: December 2021

The Gaia early Data Release 3 has delivered exquisite astrometric data for 1.47 billion sources, which is revolutionizing many fields in astronomy. For a small fraction of these sources, the astrometric solutions are poor, and the reported values and uncertainties may not apply. Before any analysis, it is important to recognize and excise these spurious results – this is commonly done by means of quality flags in the Gaia catalogue. Here, we devise a means of separating ‘good’ from ‘bad’ astrometric solutions that is an order of magnitude cleaner than any single flag: 99.3 per cent pure and 97.3 per cent complete, as validated on our test data. We devise an extensive sample of manifestly bad astrometric solutions, with parallax that is negative at ≥4.5σ; and a corresponding sample of presumably good solutions, including sources in healpix pixels on the sky that do not contain such negative parallaxes, and sources that fall on the main sequence in a colour–absolute magnitude diagram. We then train a neural network that uses 17 pertinent Gaia catalogue entries and information about nearby sources to discriminate between these two samples, captured in a single ‘astrometric fidelity’ parameter. A diverse set of verification tests shows that our approach works very cleanly, including for sources with positive parallaxes. The main limitations of our approach are in the very low signal-to-noise ratio and the crowded regime. Our astrometric fidelities for all of eDR3 can be queried via the Virtual Observatory, our code and data are public.
Analysis of Eukaryotic lincRNA Sequences Indicates Signatures of Hindered Translation Linked to Selection Pressure
Authors: Brümmer Anneke , Dreos René , Marques Ana Claudia , Bergmann Sven
Published: December 2021

Long intergenic noncoding RNAs (lincRNAs) represent a large fraction of transcribed loci in eukaryotic genomes. Although classified as noncoding, most lincRNAs contain open reading frames (ORFs), and it remains unclear why cytoplasmic lincRNAs are not or very inefficiently translated. Here, we analyzed signatures of hindered translation in lincRNA sequences from five eukaryotes, covering a range of natural selection pressures. In fission yeast and Caenorhabditis elegans, that is, species under strong selection, we detected significantly shorter ORFs, a suboptimal sequence context around start codons for translation initiation, and trinucleotides (“codons”) corresponding to less abundant tRNAs than for neutrally evolving control sequences, likely impeding translation elongation. For human, we detected signatures for cell-type-specific hindrance of lincRNA translation, in particular codons in abundant cytoplasmic lincRNAs corresponding to lower expressed tRNAs than control codons, in three out of five human cell lines. We verified that varying tRNA expression levels between cell lines are reflected in the amount of ribosomes bound to cytoplasmic lincRNAs in each cell line. We further propose that codons at ORF starts are particularly important for reducing ribosome-binding to cytoplasmic lincRNA ORFs. Altogether, our analyses indicate that in species under stronger selection lincRNAs evolved sequence features generally hindering translation and support cell-type-specific hindrance of translation efficiency in human lincRNAs. The sequence signatures we have identified may improve predicting peptide-coding and genuine noncoding lincRNAs in a cell type.
Revised clinical and molecular risk strata define the incidence and pattern of failure in medulloblastoma following risk-adapted radiotherapy and dose-intensive chemotherapy: results from a phase III multi-institutional study
Authors: Lucas John T , Tinkle Christopher L , Huang Jie , Onar-Thomas Arzu , Srinivasan Sudharsan , Tumlin Parker , Becksfort Jared B , Klimo Paul , Boop Frederick A , Robinson Giles W , Orr Brent A , Harreld Julie H , Krasin Matthew J , Northcott Paul A , Ellison David W , Gajjar Amar , Merchant Thomas E
Published: December 2021

Background

We characterize the patterns of progression across medulloblastoma (MB) clinical risk and molecular subgroups from SJMB03, a Phase III clinical trial.

Methods

One hundred and fifty-five pediatric patients with newly diagnosed MB were treated on a prospective, multi-center phase III trial of adjuvant radiotherapy (RT) and dose-intense chemotherapy with autologous stem cell transplant. Craniospinal radiotherapy to 23.4 Gy (average risk, AR) or 36-39.6 Gy (high risk, HR) was followed by conformal RT with a 1 cm clinical target volume to a cumulative dose of 55.8 Gy. Subgroup was determined using 450K DNA methylation. Progression was classified anatomically (primary site failure (PSF) +/– distant failure (DF), or isolated DF), and dosimetrically.

Results

Thirty-two patients have progressed (median follow-up 11.0 years (range, 0.3–16.5 y) for patients without progression). Anatomic failure pattern differed by clinical risk (P = .0054) and methylation subgroup (P = .0034). The 5-year cumulative incidence (CI) of PSF was 5.1% and 5.6% in AR and HR patients, respectively (P = .92), and did not differ across subgroups (P = .15). 5-year CI of DF was 7.1% vs. 28.1% for AR vs. HR (P = .0003); and 0% for WNT, 15.3% for SHH, 32.9% for G3, and 9.7% for G4 (P = .0024). Of 9 patients with PSF, 8 were within the primary site RT field and 4 represented SHH tumors.

Conclusions

The low incidence of PSF following conformal primary site RT is comparable to prior studies using larger primary site or posterior fossa boost volumes. Distinct anatomic failure patterns across MB subgroups suggest subgroup-specific treatment strategies should be considered.
Prior COVID-19 infection: an underappreciated factor in vaccine hesitancy in the USA
Authors: Do D Phuong , Frank Reanne
Published: December 2021

Despite tremendous efforts to quickly identify the ‘vaccine hesitant’ in the USA, what has emerged instead is a complex picture of a highly heterogeneous unvaccinated population. Although numerous factors have been implicated in influencing US COVID-19 vaccine decision-making, the role that prior coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection may play in vaccine receipt has been largely uninvestigated. Using data from two separate US national surveys, the US COVID-19 Trends and Impact Survey and the Household Pulse Survey, we find that roughly one-quarter of unvaccinated survey respondents has had a prior COVID-19 infection. Prior COVID-19 infection halves the odds of receiving the vaccine. This information is consequential for ongoing vaccine outreach efforts.
A Megabirnavirus Alleviates the Pathogenicity of Fusarium pseudograminearum to Wheat
Authors: Xie Yuan , Wang Zhifang , Li Ke , Liu Dongwei , Jia Yifan , Gao Fei , Dai Junli , Zhang Songbai , Zhang Xiaoting , Li Honglian
Published: December 2021

Fusarium pseudograminearum is a phytopathogen that causes wheat crown rot disease worldwide. Fusarium pseudograminearum megabirnavirus 1 (FpgMBV1) was isolated from the hypovirulent strain FC136-2A of F. pseudograminearum as a novel double-stranded RNA mycovirus belonging to the family Megabirnaviridae. Here we examined the effects of FpgMBV1 on colony morphology and pathogenicity of F. pseudograminearum. Through hyphal tip culture, we obtained virus-free progeny of strain FC136-2A, referred to as FC136-2A-V–. FpgMBV1 was transferred horizontally to another virus-free strain, WZ-8A-HygR-V–. The progeny obtained through horizontal transfer was referred to as WZ-8A-HygR-V+. Colony morphology was similar between the FpgMBV1-positive and -negative strains. The ability to penetrate cellophane in vitro was lost, and pathogenicity on wheat plants was reduced significantly in the FpgMBV1-positive strains relative to the FpgMBV1-negative strains. Microscopic observations showed a 6-h delay in the formation of appressoria-like structures in FC136-2A relative to FC136-2A-V–. Mycelium extension was significantly longer in wheat coleoptiles infected by WZ-8A-HygR-V– than in that infected by WZ-8A-HygR-V+ at 12 and 20 h after inoculation (hai). In addition, expression of five genes that encode cell wall-degrading enzymes differed significantly between FpgMBV1-positive and -negative strains at 12 and 20 hai during early infection of wheat cells by conidia. This study provides evidence for the hypovirulence effect of FpgMBV1 on F. pseudograminearum and suggests that the underlying mechanism involves unsuccessful early infection and perhaps cell wall degradation.
Botulinum Toxin Type A for Lumbar Sympathetic Ganglion Block in Complex Regional Pain Syndrome: A Randomized Trial
Authors: Yoo Yongjae , Lee Chang-Soon , Kim Jungsoo , Jo Dongwon , Moon Jee Youn
Published: December 2021

Background

The present study was designed to test the hypothesis that botulinum toxin would prolong the duration of a lumbar sympathetic block measured through a sustained increase in skin temperature. The authors performed a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial to investigate the clinical outcome of botulinum toxin type A for lumbar sympathetic ganglion block in patients with complex regional pain syndrome.

Methods

Lumbar sympathetic ganglion block was conducted in patients with lower-extremity complex regional pain syndrome using 75 IU of botulinum toxin type A (botulinum toxin group) and local anesthetic (control group). The primary outcome was the change in the relative temperature difference on the blocked sole compared with the contralateral sole at 1 postoperative month. The secondary outcomes were the 3-month changes in relative temperature differences, as well as the pain intensity changes.

Results

A total of 48 participants (N = 24/group) were randomly assigned. The change in relative temperature increase was higher in the botulinum toxin group than in the control group (1.0°C ± 1.3 vs. 0.1°C ± 0.8, respectively; difference: 0.9°C [95% CI, 0.3 to 1.5]; P = 0.006), which was maintained at 3 months (1.1°C ± 0.8 vs. –0.2°C ± 1.2, respectively; P = 0.009). Moreover, pain intensity was greatly reduced in the botulinum toxin group compared with the control group at 1 month (–2.2 ± 1.0 vs. –1.0 ± 1.6, respectively; P = 0.003) and 3 months (–2.0 ± 1.0 vs. –0.6 ± 1.6, respectively; P = 0.003). There were no severe adverse events pertinent to botulinum toxin injection.

Conclusions

In patients with complex regional pain syndrome, lumbar sympathetic ganglion block using botulinum toxin type A increased the temperature of the affected foot for 3 months and also reduced the pain.

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Accuracy of intraocular lens power formulas for eyes with scleral-sutured intraocular lenses in congenital ectopia lentis
Authors: Lian Zhangkai , Cao Qianzhong , Qi Haotian , Young Charlotte Aimee , Zhang Xinyu , Jin Guangming , Zheng Danying
Published: December 2021

Purpose:

To compare the accuracy of intraocular lens (IOL) power calculation formulas in eyes with congenital ectopia lentis (CEL) that underwent scleral-fixated IOL implantation.

Setting:

Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Guangzhou, China.

Design:

Retrospective consecutive case-series study.

Methods:

158 eyes from 158 patients diagnosed from December 12, 2017, to November 16, 2020, with CEL and undergoing a lensectomy and scleral fixation of a Rayner 920H or 970C model IOL were retrospectively reviewed. The prediction errors (PEs) of the spherical equivalent of 8 formulas, Barrett Universal II (BUII), Emmetropia Verifying Optical (EVO), Haigis, Hoffer Q, Holladay 1, Kane, Hill-RBF 3.0, and SRK/T, were compared.

Results:

For CEL patients with scleral-sutured IOL, all 8 formulas yielded myopic PEs without constant optimization. After such optimization, the performance of each formula ranked by median absolute error (MedAE) from the lowest to highest in diopter (D) was as follows: SRK/T (0.47), EVO (0.48), Kane (0.52), BUII (0.53), Hoffer Q (0.58), Holladay 1 (0.59), Haigis (0.61), and Hill-RBF 3.0 (0.62) formulas. The EVO and SRK/T formulas had the highest prediction accuracy concerning the percentage of cases within ±0.50 D and ±1.00 D range of PE in eyes that experienced scleral-sutured IOL surgery, respectively.

Conclusions:

All formulas before constant optimization produced myopic PEs. After optimization, the SRK/T and EVO formulas had the lowest MedAE and the highest percentage of PE in the range within ±0.50 D for CEL patients with scleral-sutured IOL implantations.
Effect of electroacupuncture on glucose and lipid metabolism in type 2 diabetes
Authors: Han Yiran , Lu Zeyuan , Chen Shaotao , Gao Tianjiao , Gang Xiaochao , Pan Ting , Meng Meng , Liu Mingjun
Published: December 2021

Background:

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a global pandemic with a significant negative impact on health-related quality of life. Worldwide, the prevalence of T2DM has almost doubled since 1980. Although multiple systematic reviews and clinical trials have suggested that electroacupuncture could be effective for T2DM treatment, whether it can improve glucose and lipid metabolism has not been systematically reviewed.

Methods:

We searched PubMed, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, Chinese Scientific Journal Database, and Wan-Fang Database from the date of creation to December 2022. Language is limited to both Chinese and English languages. Clinical randomized controlled trials related to acupuncture for T2DM were included in this study. Fasting plasma glucose, fasting insulin, lipid profile, and glycated hemoglobin levels were the primary outcomes. In addition, we manually retrieved other resources, including reference lists of identified publications, conference articles, and gray literature. Research selection, data extraction, and research quality assessments were independently completed by 2 researchers.

Results:

This study provides more options for clinicians and patients to treat obese patients with type 2 diabetes.

Conclusion:

In this study, we aimed to summarize and assess the effectiveness and safety of EA as a supplemental method to treat T2DM patients from clinical trials and provide more options for clinicians and patients to treat T2DM.

Trial registration:

This study was registered at INPLASY with registration number INPLASY202180008 (https://inplasy.com/inplasy-2021-8-0008/).

Systematic review registration:

INPLASY202180008.
Risk factors impacting intra- and postoperative cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea on the endoscopic treatment of pituitary adenomas
Authors: Wang Ming , Cai Yang , Jiang Yugang , Peng Yong
Published: December 2021

We aimed to identify the risk factors associated with intra- and postoperative cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage in pituitary adenomas treated with endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery.

This study is a retrospective analysis of 250 pituitary adenoma cases from January 2017 to December 2019 at our hospital. All patients underwent endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal surgeries. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to investigate the risk factors associated with intra- and postoperative CSF rhinorrhea.

Eighty (32.0%) and nine (3.6%) patients had intra- and postoperative CSF leakage, respectively. Tumor size was an independent risk factor for intraoperative CSF leakage (odds ratio [OR], 1.229; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.133–1.334; P < .001); intraoperative CSF leakage was an independent risk factor for postoperative CSF leakage (OR, 7.707; 95% CI, 1.336–44.455; P = .022). Chronic respiratory disease (OR, 57.500; 95% CI, 8.031–411.682; P < .001) was also an independent risk factor for postoperative CSF leakage. Vascularized septal mucosal flap was a protective factor (OR, 0.107; 95% CI, 0.013–0.894; P = .039).

Intraoperative CSF leakage is more likely to occur in large pituitary adenomas. In the presence of intraoperative CSF leakage, postoperative CSF rhinorrhea is very likely to occur. Patients with chronic respiratory disease are also more likely to develop postoperative CSF leakage. The sellar base reconstructed using vascularized nasal septal flaps can significantly decrease the risk. The Knosp grade, degree of tumor resection, and postoperative use of a lumbar subarachnoid drain did not have any effects on postoperative CSF rhinorrhea.
Sub-acute hypersensitive reaction to botulinum toxin type A following Covid-19 vaccination
Authors: Guo Xiaoshuang , Li Tongtong , Wang Ye , Jin Xiaolei
Published: December 2021

Rationale:

Botulinum toxin type A (BTA) is one of the most widely used injectable agents in cosmetic surgery. Corona virus disease 2019 (Covid-19) infection and vaccination, which can induce specific and nonspecific activation of the immune system, has been reported to induce delayed inflammatory reactions to previously injected hyaluronic acid fillers. However, there are no reports about the interaction between BTA and Covid-19. We aimed to report 2 sub-acute cases of allergic reactions to BTA in facial cosmesis following the Covid-19 vaccination.

Patient concern:

A 35-year-old and a 34-year-old female who has several previous BTA injections without any adverse effects experienced facial swelling, flu-like symptoms after BTA treatment following the Covid-19 vaccination.

Diagnose:

According to the typical clinical manifestation, a hypersensitive reaction to BTA was considered.

Intervention:

Corticosteroids and antihistamine were administered empirically.

Outcomes:

The flu-like symptoms recovered over the next day, but the facial swelling gradually faded within 1 to 2 weeks.

Lessons:

A literature review was also conducted to summarize the hypersensitive actions to cosmesis related to Covid-19. We recommend BTA injection be administered at least 2 to 3 months after Covid-19 vaccination.
Fast and precise pathogen detection and identification of overlapping infection in patients with CUTI based on metagenomic next-generation sequencing
Authors: Zhang Manyu , Wang Weixiu , Li Xue , Zhang Xiaoxiao , Yang Dingwei
Published: December 2021

Rationale:

The gold standard for pathogen detection and identification of complicated urinary tract infection (CUTI) remains quantitative urine culture, however, the diagnostic value of urine culture remains limited due to the time-consuming procedure and low detection rate. Here we report a case of successfully using Metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) provided fast and precise detection and identification of overlapping infection in patients with CUTI with no similar reports or studies published before to the best of our knowledge.

Patient concerns:

A 70-year-old male was admitted to hospital due to elevated serum creatinine for 2 weeks.

Diagnoses:

Acute exacerbation of chronic renal failure and CUTI were the most critical diagnosis on admission.

Interventions:

Blood purification, bladder irrigation and aggressive anti-infective therapy were administered. But the empirical anti-infection therapy and the adjustment of treatment according to the evidence of urine culture drug sensitivity had no obvious effect. We further carried out urinary PMseq-DNA detection and the results showed overlapping infection with Enterococcus faecium, Enterococcus hirae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas denitrificans and Candida albicans. According to the genetic test results, linezolid, meropenem and fluconazole triple anti-infection treatment was given.

Outcomes:

After adjusting the treatment, the infection was basically controlled in 10 days, and even the renal function was significantly improved, dialysis independence was achieved after 3 months.

Lessons:

Our case illustrated the potential application of mNGS in detecting pathogenic microorganisms in patients with CUTI especially when overlapping infections are present.
Removal of a congenital corneal dermoid through tumor excision and lamellar keratoplasty in a young child
Authors: Cui Yanyan , Yin Shan , Yin Xuewei , Liu Yonghui , Zhao Bojun
Published: December 2021

Rationale:

Corneal dermoids are a rare cause of corneal opacification, consisting of abnormal mesoblastic tissue surrounded by epithelium. Here, we describe the case of a 1-year-old child who had a congenital corneal dermoid in the left eye since birth; thus, the patient underwent tumor excision followed by keratoplasty.

Patient concern:

A 1-year-old girl was brought to the hospital by her parents, who had been noticing a mass on the surface of her left eyeball since birth. The patient had no other previous or concurrent disease nor family history for dermoids.

Clinical findings:

No abnormalities were present in the cornea and the anterior and posterior segments of the right eye. Eye movement, intraocular pressure, and the position of the upper eyelid of the left eye were normal. No signs of conjunctival hyperemia were present. The tumor presented as a yellowish-pink mass with hair and veins on the surface.

Diagnose:

The patient was initially diagnosed with a keratoconjunctival tumor of the left eye by a clinical doctor.

Interventions:

Corneal tumor resection combined with keratoplasty was performed in the patient. Eye drops with 1% cyclosporine were administered 3 times per day to prevent immune rejection.

Outcomes:

Based on postoperative pathological examinations, the final diagnosis was a corneal dermoid. The patient had an uneventful healing process and rapid corneal re-epithelization. The ocular surface was stable during the follow-up visits, and no complications emerged.

Lessons:

We report a rare case of congenital corneal dermoid. We learned that close follow-up is needed after surgery in such cases.
Cyanoacrylate injection treatment for postoperative leakage of Boerhaave's syndrome
Authors: Park Su Bee , Yum Yun Jin , Cha Jae Myung
Published: December 2021

Rationale:

Surgical treatment remains the most effective option for treating Boerhaave's syndrome. However, in cases of postoperative anastomotic leakage of Boerhaave's syndrome, endoscopic interventions such as over-the-scope clip, stenting, or cyanoacrylate injection have emerged over reoperation.

Patient concerns:

We report the case of a 50-year-old male patient who presented with vomiting and abdominal pain after alcohol consumption. Laparoscopic surgery was performed for primary closure of a laceration at the lower esophagus, and for the closure of a Boerhaave's syndrome, which was detected by abdominal computed tomography. However, postoperative anastomotic leakage was confirmed through esophagography after the operation. In our case, endoscopic treatment with an over-the-scope clip and stenting were not effective for the repair of the anastomotic leakage, but cyanoacrylate injection successfully healed the anastomotic leakage.

Diagnoses:

Boerhaave's syndrome was initially detected by abdominal computed tomography, but postoperative anastomotic leakage after the operation was confirmed with esophagography.

Interventions:

A total of 2.0 cc of N-butyl-2-cyanoacrylate and lipiodol mixture (at 1:1) was injected into the leakage tract through the perforation entrance.

Outcomes:

Complete healing of the anastomotic leakage was confirmed with a follow-up esophagoscopy.

Lessons:

N-butyl-2-cyanocrylate injection treatment can be used as a rescue option for postoperative leakage when over-the-scope clips and stenting fail for this indication.
Efficacy and safety of acupuncture for adenomyosis
Authors: Wang Jingru , Zhai Tairan , Sun Xiao , Du Xinran , Zhang Xinru , Shi Xuemeng , Shu Yang , Yan Xiao , Xia Qingchang , Ma Yuxia
Published: December 2021

Background

Adenomyosis (AM) is a disease in which the endometrium (including glands and stroma) invades the myometrium and grows. The main clinical symptoms include menorrhagia, dysmenorrhea, chronic pelvic pain, metrorrhagia, and dyspareunia, which will seriously affect the physical and mental health of patients, and most of which occur in women of childbearing age. Acupuncture, as a special external treatment of Traditional Chinese medicine, has shown good effects in the treatment of adenomyosis. At present, there is a lack of systematic review on acupuncture in the treatment of adenomyosis. We conduct this study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of acupuncture in the treatment of adenomyosis.

Methods

We will search Chinese and English databases: Medline, Pubmed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Scientific and Journal Database, Wan Fang database (Wanfang), Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM) to identify articles of randomized clinical trials of acupuncture for adenomyosis. All above electronic databases will be searched from inception to September 30, 2021. RevMan 5.3 software will be used to conduct this systematic review. No language and publication status restrictions will be applied.

Results

The study will prove the efficacy and safety of acupuncture for adenomyosis.

Conclusion

We plan to submit this systematic review to a peer-reviewed journal.

Trial registration number

CRD42021277136.
Prevalence and risk factors for cage subsidence after lumbar interbody fusion
Authors: Li Qiujiang , Long Xingxia , Shi Lin , Wang Yinbin , Guan Tao , Lv Jinhan , Cai Lijun
Published: December 2021

Introduction:

Lumbar interbody fusion (LIF) is an effective treatment for lumbar degenerative diseases. Cage subsidence (CS) contitutes one of the most common postoperative complications. Many risk factors for CS after LIF have been reported in some studies. However, controversies still exist. The objective of this study will be to summarize data on the prevalence and risk factors of CS after LIF.

Methods and analysis:

Our study present a protocol that conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of prevalence and risk factors for CS after LIF. Two reviewers retrieved the relevant articles using the 5 databases (PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science) from inception to May 31st, 2021. Primary outcome will be the prevalence of CS after LIF. Second outcomes include the risk factors associated with postoperative CS and clinical outcomes associated with postoperative CS. Three reviewers will screen citation titles and abstracts and evaluated full-text of each potentially relevant citation, and then extracted the data using a data extraction form. Any discrepancies in decisions between reviewers will be resolved through discussion. We assessed the methodological quality and risk of bias of the included studies based on the Newcastle–Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale (NOS). The aim of the extra analysis is to explore the explanations of the heterogeneity (age, gender, race, year of publication, type of study and surgical procedure). Publication bias will be assessed by Begg test, Egger test and funnel plots.

Ethics and dissemination:

No primary data will be collected and individual patient information and endangering participant rights, thus ethics approval is not required. Findings will be reported through publication and media.

Protocol registration number:

PROSPERO CRD42021257981 (https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/#joinuppage).
Plug-assisted retrograde transvenous obliteration via gastrocaval shunt for the gastric variceal bleeding
Authors: Jang Joo Yeon , Jeon Ung Bae , Kim Jin Hyeok , Kim Tae Un , Ryu Hwaseong , Cho Mong , Hong Young Mi , Yoon Ki Tae
Published: December 2021

Rationale:

Most gastric varices at the fundus drain into the left renal vein via the gastrorenal shunt (80–85% of cases) or the inferior vena cava via the gastrocaval shunt (10–15%). Therefore, plug-assisted retrograde transvenous obliteration (PARTO) is usually performed via a gastrorenal shunt. Here, we report a case of gastric varix treated with PARTO via a gastrocaval shunt.

Patient concerns:

A 46-year-old woman with hepatitis B virus and liver cirrhosis visited the emergency room in our hospital with the main symptom of hematemesis and hematochezia.

Diagnoses:

Endoscopy and computed tomography (CT) revealed a gastric varix and thrombotic-occluded transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) stent.

Interventions:

The patient underwent PARTO via a gastrocaval shunt to manage gastric variceal bleeding after failed TIPS revision.

Outcomes:

On CT, the gastric varix completely disappeared. The patient did not experience any additional bleeding events.

Lessons:

PARTO via a gastrocaval shunt is safe and effective.