Monitoring Knee Health: Ultra-Wideband Radar Imaging for Early Detection of Osteoarthritis

This paper presents a non-invasive method and study for analyzing knee osteoarthritis, encompassing a dual-step approach: a) the employment of synthetic aperture radar (SAR)-based microwave reflection tomography for imaging the knee joint, and b) the application of an ultra-wideband (UWB) radar technique combined with a genetic algorithm to determine muscle electrical properties (permittivity) and the gap between the femur (thighbone) and tibia (shinbone). The assessment of osteoarthritis is conducted by integrating the outcomes of the knee joint imaging, change in muscle permittivity, and inter-bone spacing. This technique undergoes initial validation on simplified knee models, subsequently extending to adult human voxel knee tissues as represented in CST software. Experimental validation involves analyzing a porcine knee joint comprising sequential layers of skin, fat, muscle, and bone. Both simulated and experimental validations suggest that this technique is viable, safe, and cost-effective for estimating knee osteoarthritis in humans

Cause of Death and Predictors of All-Cause Mortality in Anticoagulated Patients With Nonvalvular Atrial Fibrillation : Data From ROCKET AF

M. Kaste on työryhmän ROCKET AF Steering Comm jäsen.Background-Atrial fibrillation is associated with higher mortality. Identification of causes of death and contemporary risk factors for all-cause mortality may guide interventions. Methods and Results-In the Rivaroxaban Once Daily Oral Direct Factor Xa Inhibition Compared with Vitamin K Antagonism for Prevention of Stroke and Embolism Trial in Atrial Fibrillation (ROCKET AF) study, patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation were randomized to rivaroxaban or dose-adjusted warfarin. Cox proportional hazards regression with backward elimination identified factors at randomization that were independently associated with all-cause mortality in the 14 171 participants in the intention-to-treat population. The median age was 73 years, and the mean CHADS(2) score was 3.5. Over 1.9 years of median follow-up, 1214 (8.6%) patients died. Kaplan-Meier mortality rates were 4.2% at 1 year and 8.9% at 2 years. The majority of classified deaths (1081) were cardiovascular (72%), whereas only 6% were nonhemorrhagic stroke or systemic embolism. No significant difference in all-cause mortality was observed between the rivaroxaban and warfarin arms (P=0.15). Heart failure (hazard ratio 1.51, 95% CI 1.33-1.70, P= 75 years (hazard ratio 1.69, 95% CI 1.51-1.90, P Conclusions-In a large population of patients anticoagulated for nonvalvular atrial fibrillation, approximate to 7 in 10 deaths were cardiovascular, whereasPeer reviewe

Ovarian carcinoma associated with pregnancy: A clinicopathologic analysis of 23 cases and review of the literature

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The aim of this study was to analyze and describe cases of ovarian cancer in pregnant women treated at our center and to review the literature concerned, and to discuss the rationale for therapy.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Twenty-Three patients of ovarian malignancies during pregnancy were treated at Vali- Asr Hospital between 1991 and 2002. Data on treatment and follow-up were evaluated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The incidence of ovarian carcinoma associated with pregnancy in our series was 0.083/1000 deliveries. Eleven (47.8%) were found with ovarian malignant germ cell tumors, five (21.7%) with low malignant potential tumors, four (17.4%) with invasive epithelial tumors, and three (13%) with sex cord stromal tumors. Seventeen (73.9%) of the patients were diagnosed in stage I and had complete remission. Five of the six in advanced stage died. The mean follow-up was 36.3 months. The prognosis was significantly related with stage and histological type (<it>P </it>< 0.05). Sixteen healthy live babies were recorded in this group, and two premature newborn died of respiratory distress syndrome. Chemotherapy was administered to 44% of the patients, in two cases during pregnancy. Overall survival at 5 years was 61%. In most of case conservative surgical treatment could be performed with adequate staging and debulking.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Early finding of ascitis by ultrasound and persistent large ovarian mass during pregnancy may be related to malignancy and advanced stage. Pregnant women in advanced stage of ovarian cancer seem to have poor prognosis.</p

Optimalni neizraziti reglutor tipa 2 za sustave za grijanje, ventilaciju i klimatizaciju

In this paper a novel Optimal Type-2 Fuzzy Proportional-Integral-Derivative Controller (OT2FPIDC) is designed for controlling the air supply pressure of Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) system. The parameters of input and output membership functions, and PID controller coefficients are optimized simultaneously by random inertia weight Particle Swarm Optimization (RNW-PSO). Simulation results show the superiority of the proposed controller than similar non-optimal fuzzy controller.U radu je predložena nova upravljačka shema optimalnog neizrazitog PID regulatora tipa 2 za upravljanje sustavima za grijajne, ventilaciju i klimatizaciju. Predložena je shema zasnovana na neizrazitom regulatoru (FLC) učestalo korištenom za upravljajne nelinearnim procesima. Kako bi se premostio problem neizrazitih regulatora, neodstatak metode dizajnirajna, parametri ulazno-izlaznih funkcija pripadanja, kao i parametri PID regulatora se optimiraju metodom roja čestica sa slučajnim parametrima inercije (RNW-PSO). Simulacijski rezultati pokazuju izvedivost predloženog pristupa

Relative Frequency of Rotavirus and Adenovirus Among Children Aged 1-60 Months Hospitalized With Acute Diarrhoea in South-Western, Iran

Background: More than three million children in developing countries die from acute diarrhea annually. Rotaviruses and Adenoviruses are from the most important etiologic factors in acute gastroenteritis of children. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of rotavirus and adenovirus among children with acute diarrhoea admitted to Abuzar Hospital in Ahvaz (Southwest Iran). Patients and Methods: In a descriptive, cross-sectional study over 1 year (September 2009 to August 2010), children who were admitted to Abuzar Hospital in Ahvaz with a diagnosis of acute diarrhoea were studied. Stools were examined with ELISA kits for detection of adenoviruses and rotaviruses. Results: Of 180 children in our study, 104 were boys (57.8) and 76 were girls (42.2), with a mean age of 12.86 months (1-60 months). Sixty-three (35) had rotavirus infections (mean age, 11.57 months), and 6 (3.3) had adenovirus infections (mean age, 8.17 months). We examined the seasonal distribution and found that 12 cases (19) had occurred in spring, 11 (17.5) in summer, 24 (38.1) in autumn, and 16 (25.4) in winter. There was no significant correlation between sex and viral agents causing acute diarrhoea (P = 0.96). Conclusions: This survey showed a high incidence of rotavirus infection (35) in children with acute diarrhoea, especially in children under 2 years old. It seems that use of an appropriate vaccine could effectively prevent diarrhoea in this population. Published by Kowsar Corp, 2013. cc 3.0

Development of an integrated system for distribution planning in supply chain

Distribution planning, which includes Vehicle Routing and Scheduling Problem (VRSP), has become an important element in Supply Chain impacting its service level and efficiency. Computer Aided Routing and Scheduling (CARS) has been developed and implemented, which can handle complicated distribution models using advanced heuristic optimization algorithms. A classification scheme is introduced to classify various types of routing and scheduling problems in a structured manner, based on the main objects of VRSP. The integrated system described in this paper can manage the dynamic aspects of the Supply Chain in practice. The modelling and solution approach in the CARS optimization engine, its user interface, sample performance measurements, and planning and operational features of the system are described in detail.</jats:p