Optimal Parameters for Virtual Mono-Energetic Imaging of Liver Solid Lesions / 中国医学科学院学报

Objective To explore the optimal parameters for virtual mono-energetic imaging of liver solid lesions. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed on 60 patients undergoing contrast-enhanced spectral CT of the abdomen.The iodine concentration values of hepatic arterial phase images and the CT values of different mono-energetic images were measured.The correlation coefficient and coefficient of variation were calculated. Results The average correlation coefficients between iodine concentrations and CT values of hepatic solid lesion images at 40,45,50,55,60,65,and 70 keV were 0.996,0.995,0.993,0.989,0.978,0.970,and 0.961,respectively.The correlation coefficients at 40(P=0.007),45(P=0.022),50 keV (P=0.035)were higher than that at 55 keV,and the correlation coefficients at 40 keV(P=0.134) and 45 keV(P=0.368) had no significant differences from that at 50 keV.The coefficients of variation of the CT values at 40,45,and 50 keV were 0.146,0.154,and 0.163,respectively. Conclusion The energy of 40 keV is optimal for virtual mono-energetic imaging of liver solid lesions in the late arterial phase,which is helpful for the diagnosis of liver diseases.

Taller de concordancia en la evaluación de imágenes capilaroscópicas / Reliability of nailfold videocapillaroscopy workshop

Introducción: la capilaroscopia es un método no invasivo que permite observar la microvasculatura en el área periungueal. Los resultados informados pueden ser altamente variables entre distintos observadores. A lo largo del tiempo surgieron métodos cuantitativos y semicuantitativos para mejorar la reproducibilidad. Objetivos: conocer el nivel de acuerdo intra e interobservador al informar los diferentes patrones capilaroscópicos en individuos con diferente nivel de entrenamiento. Materiales y métodos: estudio de corte transversal. Participaron médicos reumatólogos especialistas y en formación que habían realizado previamente un curso virtual de capacitación en capilaroscopia. Recibieron 40 imágenes capilaroscópicas proyectadas en una presentación de PowerPoint y debían responder a través de un cuestionario digital. Se evaluó la concordancia de respuestas intra e interobservador. Resultados: se encontró un alto nivel de concordancia global con un kappa 0,66 IC 95% (0,63-0,70) p<0,0000. También en otros grupos como reumatólogos en formación: kappa 0,65 IC 95% (0,60-0,71) p=0,0000, y médicos reumatólogos: kappa 0,67 IC 95% (0,62-0,72) p=0,0000. Conclusiones: el nivel de concordancia encontrado fue globalmente alto, independientemente del nivel de entrenamiento de los profesionales, y de ser o no reumatólogo. La concordancia fue superior cuando se comparó a quienes tenían más de 4 años de experiencia en la realización de videocapilaroscopia.

Introduction: videoapillaroscopy is a non-invasive method that allows the observation of the microvasculature in the periungual area. Reported results can be highly variable between different observers. Over time, quantitative and semi-quantitative methods emerged to improve reproducibility. Objetives: to know the level of intra and interobserver agreement when reporting the different capillaroscopic patterns in individuals with different levels of training. Materials and methods: cross section study. Specialist rheumatologists and those in training who had previously completed a virtual capillaroscopy training course participated. They received 40 capillaroscopic images projected in a PowerPoint presentation and had to issue their response through a digital questionnaire. Concordance of intra and interobserver responses was evaluated. Results: a high level of global agreement was found with a kappa 0.66 CI 95% (0.63-0.70) p<0.0000, also in other groups such as rheumatologists in training: kappa 0.65 CI 95% (0.60-0.71) p=0.0000, physicians rheumatologists: kappa 0.67 95% CI (0.62-0.72) p=0.0000. Conclusions: the level of agreement found was globally high, regardless of the level of training of the professionals, and whether or not they were a rheumatologist. Concordance was higher when compared to those who had more than 4 years of experience performing videocapillaroscopy.

Confiabilidad de una escala de valoración de resúmenes para congresos

Introducción: En 2013, desarrollamos una escala, para evaluar resúmenes de congresos de la Sociedad de Cirujanos de Chile (SOCICH). Objetivo: Determinar consistencia interna y confiabilidad interobservador de una escala para evaluar resúmenes de congresos. Material y Método: Estudio de confiabilidad. Doce cirujanos fueron capacitados de forma virtual durante 8 horas, para aplicar la escala. Una vez finalizado el entrenamiento, se les envió un cuestionario para evaluar contenidos de la capacitación, y varios resúmenescasos para ser evaluados con la escala antes señalada. Se aplicó estadística descriptiva, luego se estimó el grado de acuerdo entre observadores para cada ítem de la escala. Posteriormente, se evaluó el coeficiente de correlación (CCI), utilizando un modelo de dos factores mixtos en el que los efectos de los evaluadores son aleatorios y los ítems fijos; utilizando una definición de acuerdo absoluto. Además, se evaluó la consistencia interna de los ítems utilizando alfa de Cronbach, considerando intérvalos de confianza del 95% (IC 95%). Resultados: Luego de analizar las mediciones de los 9 ítems por los 12 observadores, se verificó que el CCI fue de 0,871; con un IC 95% de 0,700; 0,965. El valor de la consistencia interna fue de 0,7 considerando los 9 ítems, no se recomienda eliminar ningún ítem. Conclusión: La escala tiene buena confiabilidad interobservador y los ítems son consistentes entre sí; por lo que puede ser considerada como un instrumento confiable para la valoración de resúmenes de congresos.

Background: In 2013, we developed a scale to evaluate the abstracts of the congresses of the Society of Surgeons of Chile (SOCICH). Objective: To determine internal consistency and interobserver reliability of a scale to evaluate conference abstracts. Material and Methods: Reliability study. Twelve surgeons were trained virtually for 8 hours, to apply the scale. Once the training was finished, they were sent a questionnaire to evaluate the contents of the training, and several summaries-cases to be evaluated with the aforementioned scale. Descriptive statistics were applied, then the degree of agreement between observers was estimated for each item of the scale. Subsequently, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was evaluated, using a mixed two-factor model where the effects of the evaluators are random and the items are fixed, using a definition of absolute agreement. In addition, the internal consistency of the items was evaluated using Cronbach's alpha, considering 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Results: After analyzing the measurements of the 9 items by the 12 observers, it was verified that the ICC was 0.871; with a 95% CI of 0.700; 0.965. The internal consistency value was 0.7 considering the 9 items, it is not recommended to delete any item. Conclusions: The scale has good internal consistency and interobserver reliability. Therefore, it can be considered as reliable instrument to be used in the evaluation of abstracts for congresses.

Comprehensive evaluation method of real-time non-reference ultrasound image involving soft tissue deformation / 生物医学工程学杂志

Ultrasound guided percutaneous interventional therapy has been widely used in clinic. Aiming at the problem of soft tissue deformation caused by probe contact force in robot-assisted ultrasound-guided therapy, a real-time non-reference ultrasound image evaluation method considering soft tissue deformation is proposed. On the basis of ultrasound image brightness and sharpness, a multi-dimensional ultrasound image evaluation index was designed, which incorporated the aggregation characteristics of the organization. In order to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method, ultrasound images of four different models were collected for experiments, including prostate phantom, phantom with cyst, pig liver tissue, and pig liver tissue with cyst. In addition, the correlation between subjective and objective evaluations was analyzed based on Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. Experimental results showed that the average evaluation time of a single image was 68.8 milliseconds. The evaluation time could satisfy real-time applications. The proposed method realizes the effective evaluation of real-time ultrasound image quality in robot-assisted therapy, and has good consistency with the evaluation of supervisors.

Parameter transfer learning based on shallow visual geometry group network and its application in motor imagery classification / 生物医学工程学杂志

Transfer learning is provided with potential research value and application prospect in motor imagery electroencephalography (MI-EEG)-based brain-computer interface (BCI) rehabilitation system, and the source domain classification model and transfer strategy are the two important aspects that directly affect the performance and transfer efficiency of the target domain model. Therefore, we propose a parameter transfer learning method based on shallow visual geometry group network (PTL-sVGG). First, Pearson correlation coefficient is used to screen the subjects of the source domain, and the short-time Fourier transform is performed on the MI-EEG data of each selected subject to acquire the time-frequency spectrogram images (TFSI). Then, the architecture of VGG-16 is simplified and the block design is carried out, and the modified sVGG model is pre-trained with TFSI of source domain. Furthermore, a block-based frozen-fine-tuning transfer strategy is designed to quickly find and freeze the block with the greatest contribution to sVGG model, and the remaining blocks are fine-tuned by using TFSI of target subjects to obtain the target domain classification model. Extensive experiments are conducted based on public MI-EEG datasets, the average recognition rate and Kappa value of PTL-sVGG are 94.9% and 0.898, respectively. The results show that the subjects' optimization is beneficial to improve the model performance in source domain, and the block-based transfer strategy can enhance the transfer efficiency, realizing the rapid and effective transfer of model parameters across subjects on the datasets with different number of channels. It is beneficial to reduce the calibration time of BCI system, which promote the application of BCI technology in rehabilitation engineering.

Reproducibility Analysis of Iodine Concentrations of Abdominal Parenchymal Organs Based on Spectral CT / 中国医学科学院学报

Objective To investigate the intra-and inter-observer reproducibility of iodine concentrations of abdominal parenchymal organs based on spectral CT.Methods The water-free iodine images of the venous phase were retrospectively obtained from 50 patients with abdominal dynamic spectral CT scans.The iodine concentrations were measured in the left,right and caudate lobes of liver,spleen,pancreas and bilateral kidneys.Intraclass correlation coefficient(ICC)and Bland-Altman plot were employed to analyze the intra-and inter-observer reproducibility.Results The intra-observer ICCs of the left,right and caudate lobes of liver,spleen,pancreas,and left and right kidneys were 0.938(0.894,0.965),0.932(0.884,0.961),0.939(0.895,0.965),0.947(0.909,0.970),0.912(0.851,0.949),0.946(0.906,0.969)and 0.907(0.842,0.946),which indicated good intra-observer reproducibility.The inter-observer ICCs of the left,right and caudate lobes of liver,spleen,pancreas,and left and right kidneys were 0.947(0.909,0.970),0.927(0.875,0.958),0.943(0.902,0.968),0.956(0.924,0.975),0.934(0.887,0.962),0.927(0.875,0.958)and 0.892(0.818,0.937),which indicated good inter-observer reproducibility.Bland-Altman plots presented that more than 95% points of the intra-observer differences located within 95% CI of limits of agreement for the caudate lobe of liver,spleen,pancreas and bilateral kidneys,which was same as inter-observer differences of the caudate lobe of liver,spleen and right kidney.Conclusion The iodine concentration measurement based on the spectral CT presented good intra-and inter-observer reproducibility for the caudate lobe of liver and spleen.

Development of a luminescence real-time method for monitoring live bacteria during phage lysis / 生物工程学报

The toxin-producing bacterium Vibrio cholerae can cause severe diarrhea and has caused seven global pandemics. Traditional viable cell counts and phage plaques are commonly used to evaluate the efficacy of virulent phage clearance of V. cholerae, but these operations are time-consuming and labor-intensive, and difficult to provide real-time changes. It is desirable to develop a simple and real-time method to monitor V. cholerae during phage lysis. In this study, a luminescence-generating plasmid pBBR-pmdh-luxCDABE was transformed into three O1 serogroup drug-resistant strains of V. cholerae. The results showed that the luminescence value as a monitoring index correlates well with the traditional viable cell count method. Monitoring the number of live cells of V. cholerae by measuring the luminescence allowed real-time analysis of the number of bacteria remaining during phage lysis. This method enables repeated, interference-free, continuous multiple-time-point detection of the same sample without the time delay of re-culture or plaque formation, facilitating real-time monitoring and analysis of the interaction between the phage and the host bacteria.

A Generated Multi Branch Feature Fusion Model for Vehicle Re-identification

Abstract Vehicle re-id play a very import role in recent public safety, it has received more and more attention. The local features (e.g. hanging decorations and stickers) are widely used for vehicle re-id, but the same local feature exists in one perspective, but not exactly exists in other perspectives. In this paper, we firstly use experiments to verify that there is a low linear correlation between different dimension global features. Then we propose a new technique which uses global features instead of local features to distinguish the nuances between different vehicles. We design a vehicle re-identification method named a generated multi branch feature fusion method (GMBFF) to make full use of the complementarity between global features with different dimensions. All branches of the proposed GMBFF model are derived from the same model and there are only slight differences among those branches. Each of those branches can extract highly discriminative features with different dimensions. Finally, we fuse the features extracted by these branches. Existing research uses the fusing features for fusion and we use the global vehicle features for fusion. We also propose two different feature fusion methods which are single fusion method (SFM) and multi fusion method (MFM). In SFM, features for fusion with larger dimension occupy more weight in fused features. MFM overcomes the disadvantage of SFM. Finally, we carry out a lot of experiments on two widely used datasets which are VeRi-776 dataset and Vehicle ID dataset. The experimental results show that our proposed method is much better than the state-of-the-art vehicle re-identification methods.

El parto pretérmino desde los registros del nacido vivo en Colombia, período 2008 - 2017 / Preterm birth from live-born registry in the period between 2008 - 2017 in Colombia

Resumen. Introducción: El parto pretérmino es uno de los principales problemas de la salud infantil. Es la principal causa de mortalidad infantil en los países en vía de desarrollo. Los últimos 20 años ha venido en aumento en el mundo por diferentes causas. Conocer su tendencia y características poblacionales es un elemento útil para su atención. Objetivo: Describir las características poblacionales asociados al parto pretérmino en Colombia desde los datos del Registro del Nacido Vivo en la década 2008 - 2017. Métodos: Estudio descriptivo ecológico a partir de fuentes segundarias: microdatos de Estadísticas Vitales del DANE; información almacenada en el programa Excel de Microsoft Office®. Análisis de las variables tiempo/lugar/persona en el programa estadístico SPSS™ mediante estadística descriptiva, análisis de asociación utilizando el estadístico Ji-cuadrado y el coeficiente de correlación Phi para la asociación estadística entre variables. Resultados. Fueron analizados 6.705.385 registros de nacidos vivos, 1.277.839 correspondientes a parto hasta las 37 semanas de gestación. Prevalencia del 19% de todos los años. Departamentos con mayor tasa de prematuros: Atlántico, Bogotá, Antioquía y Santander. No se encontró una asociación fuerte con los datos del registro del nacido vivo. Conclusiones: Existe déficit de información acerca del parto pretérmino en aspectos de datos completos y accesibles a los investigadores. La información no es homogénea ni sigue parámetros específicos. El registro de nacido vivo, sin embargo, es un excelente instrumento de recolección de datos poblacionales y base de aproximación al evento.

Abstract Background: Preterm birth is one of the main problems in infant health and it is the leading cause of infant mortality in developing countries. During the last 20 years this particularity has been increasing in the world for different reasons. Knowing its trend and population characteristics is a useful element for its attention. Objectives: To describe the population characteristics associated with preterm birth in Colombia from the data of the Live Birth Registry in the decade 2008 - 2017. Methods: Descriptive ecological study using secondary sources such us Vital Statistics microdata from DANE; information stored in the Microsoft Office® Excel program. Also, the analysis of the time/place/person variables in the SPSS ™ statistical program through descriptive statistics, and association analysis using the Chi-square statistic and the Phi correlation coefficient for the statistical association between variables was implemented. Results: 6,705,385 records from live-born registry were analyzed. 1,277,839 corresponded to preterm birth up to 37 weeks of gestation with 19% of prevalence all years. The departments with the highest rate of premature infants were Atlántico, Bogotá, Antioquia, and Santander. No strong association was found with live birth registry data. Conclusions: There is lack of complete and accessible information to researchers related to preterm birth. The data is not homogeneous and does not follow specific parameters. However, the live-born registry is an excellent instrument for collecting population data and a useful basis for approaching this event.

Reliability of an isometric test for measuring the strength of the hip abductors and adductors / Confiabilidade de um teste isométrico para medir a força dos abdutores e adutores do quadril

This study aimed to measure the reliability of a test for measuring the strength and strength imbalance of the hip abductors and adductors, using isokinetic equipment adapted for isometric testing. Thirteen healthy, physically active male individuals took part in the research. Two unilateral isometric tests were undertaken using a load cell attached to an adapted abductor bench machine: a hip abduction test and hip adduction test. Tests consisted of two maximum voluntary isometric contractions made for six seconds with a break of one minute between each. The following dynamic variables were measured: maximum force, mean force, rate of force development for each limb (right and left), and the existence of asymmetries between the limbs. For statistical analysis, the t-test, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), and standard error of measurement (SEM) were applied. Results: The methodology utilized for the evaluation of the hip abductors and adductors did not show reliability in most of the parameters researched, with the ICC neither sufficient or low, and the retest performance higher than the test (p < 0.05). The applied test was not reliable for assessing strength and strength imbalances of hip abductors and adductors in most of the parameters investigated. These results indicate that the hip joints, more precisely, the abductor and adductor muscles, are complex structures to be assessed. They need to be previously familiarized with the proposed exercise, as their performance does not occur habitually. It is recommended to develop new tests in order to measure hip abduction and adduction strength adding a prior familiarization procedure

O presente estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a confiabilidade de um teste para avaliação da força e desequilíbrios de força de abdutores e adutores de quadril utilizando um equipamento isoinercial adaptado para isometria. Participaram do estudo 13 sujeitos saudáveis, do sexo masculino, fisicamente ativos. Foram realizados dois testes isométricos unilaterais utilizando uma célula de carga fixada em um banco abdutor adaptado: teste de Abdução de Quadril e Teste de Adução de Quadril. Os testes consistiram em duas contrações isométricas voluntárias máximas de seis segundos de duração com intervalo de um minuto entre elas. As seguintes variáveis dinâmicas foram avaliadas: Força Máxima, Força Média, Taxa de Produção de Força, para cada membro (direito e esquerdo), e a existência de assimetrias entre membros. Para análise estatística foram realizados teste t, coeficiente de correlação intraclasse (CCI) e erro padrão de medida. Resultados: A metodologia empregada para avaliação de adutores e abdutores de quadril não se mostrou confiável na maioria dos parâmetros investigados, com valores de CCI não significativos ou baixos, e o desempenho no reteste foi superior ao teste (p<0,05). O teste empregado não se mostrou confiável para avaliação da força e desequilíbrios de força de abdutores e adutores do quadril na maioria dos parâmetros investigados . Esses resultados demonstram que a articulação do quadril, mais precisamente os músculos abdutores e adutores, são estruturas complexas de se avaliarem, necessitando de uma familiarização prévia com o exercício proposto, por não serem movimentos realizados habitualmente. Recomenda-se novos testes para avaliação da força de adução e abdução de quadril adicionando um procedimento de familiarização prévio.

Correlation of Vitamin D Status with Glycaemic Status of Individuals- A Cross Sectional Study in a Rural Tertiary Care Hospital of North Bengal, India

Recent pandemic of vitamin D deficiency is co-existing with type II diabetes mellitus pandemic. Even in India, vitamin D insufficiency/deficiency is common among individuals with pre-diabetes. If correlation can be established between these two and risk of impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) or diabetes can be predicted based on serum vitamin D status, much early detection of pre-diabetes or diabetes will be possible and preventive measures can be taken. Not too many studies have been done in this context, especially in North Bengal region of West Bengal, India. We wanted to evaluate the correlation between vitamin D status and glycaemic status of individual and predict the risk of impaired glucose tolerance depending on vitamin D, independent of other factors.METHODSAfter ethical clearance and informed consent, 430 study subjects were interviewed, examined, blood sample collected and tested. Data was entered in Microsoft Excel 2007 and analysed using appropriate software. Correlation and multinomial regression analysis were done.RESULTSMean ± SD of serum 25(OH) D level is found to be 21.53±7.06 ng/ml among a total of 430 study participants. 41.86% of participants were found to be with insufficient vitamin D status. Pearson’s correlation between serum 25(OH) D level and post prandial blood sugar is found to be strongly negative while Spearman’s correlation between vitamin D status and post prandial glycaemic status of individuals is found to be strongly positive. If vitamin D status changes from “Sufficient” to “Insufficient” or “Deficient”, risk of IGT increases by 17 times and 16.3 times respectively.CONCLUSIONSStrong positive correlation exists between vitamin D status and glycaemic status of individuals. Estimation of 25(OH) D level may be used as a screening test for detection of risk of IGT.

Recognition of three different imagined movement of the right foot based on functional near-infrared spectroscopy / 生物医学工程学杂志

Brain-computer interface (BCI) based on functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a new-type human-computer interaction technique. To explore the separability of fNIRS signals in different motor imageries on the single limb, the study measured the fNIRS signals of 15 subjects (amateur football fans) during three different motor imageries of the right foot (passing, stopping and shooting). And the correlation coefficient of the HbO signal during different motor imageries was extracted as features for the input of a three-classification model based on support vector machines. The results found that the classification accuracy of the three motor imageries of the right foot was 78.89%±6.161%. The classification accuracy of the two-classification of motor imageries of the right foot, that is, passing and stopping, passing and shooting, and stopping and shooting was 85.17%±4.768%, 82.33%±6.011%, and 89.33%±6.713%, respectively. The results demonstrate that the fNIRS of different motor imageries of the single limb is separable, which is expected to add new control commands to fNIRS-BCI and also provide a new option for rehabilitation training and control peripherals for unilateral stroke patients. Besides, the study also confirms that the correlation coefficient can be used as an effective feature to classify different motor imageries.

Reproducibility analysis of quantitative susceptibility mapping of cerebral subcortical nuclei in healthy adults / 南方医科大学学报

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the intra- and inter-scanner reproducibility of quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) of cerebral subcortical nuclei in healthy adults.@*METHODS@#QSM was performed in 21 healthy adults on two different 3.0T MR scanners, and the region of interest (ROI) method was used to measure the magnetic susceptibility value of the left subcortical nuclei (the head of the caudate, putamen, globus pallidus, thalamus, substantia nigra and red nucleus). The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland-Altman method were used to evaluate the inter-scanner and intra-scanner reliability.@*RESULTS@#The ICCs of the susceptibility value ranged from 0.90 to 0.99 for all the subcortical gray nuclei except for the head of the caudate nucleus measured on the same MR scanner by the same observer. Bland-Altman analysis revealed that the points with susceptibility differences for all the subcortical gray nuclei except for substantia nigra located in the 95% CI of limits of agreement for the same MR scanner. The ICCs of the susceptibility value for the inter-scanner was 0.49 (0.08-0.75) for the head of the caudate nuleus, 0.80 (0.57-0.91) for the putamen, 0.77 (0.51-0.90) for the globus pallidus, 0.78 (0.54-0.91) for the thalamus, 0.80 (0.56-0.91) for the substantia nigra and 0.93 (0.83-0.97) for the red nucleus. The points with susceptibility difference (95.2%, 20/21) located in the 95% CI of limits of agreement for the putamen and the thalamus measured on two different MR scanners.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The intra-scanner reproducibility of QSM of the subcortical gray nuclei is superior to the inter-scanner reproducibility in healthy adults.

Concordancia entre los diferentes conteos celulares según los parámetros morfológicos y morfométricos del endotelio corneal / Concordance between different cell counts according to morphologic and morphometric parameters of the corneal endothelium

RESUMEN Objetivo: Estimar los valores morfológicos y morfométricos del endotelio corneal según la cantidad de células y evaluar la concordancia interobservadores para los diferentes parámetros, considerados según los diferentes conteos celulares en adultos sin alteraciones corneales. Métodos: Se realizó una investigación observacional, descriptiva y transversal de serie de casos en el Servicio de Cirugía Refractiva del Instituto Cubano de Oftalmología "Ramón Pando Ferrer" en dos años de estudio. Después de aplicar los criterios de exclusión, la muestra quedó conformada por 200 ojos de 100 pacientes adultos sin alteraciones corneales. Se realizó microscopia endotelial de no contacto SP-3000P, para identificar los valores morfológicos (hexagonalidad y coeficiente de variabilidad) y morfométricos (densidad celular), así como el promedio del tamaño celular corneal según cantidad de células evaluadas. Resultados: Según la cantidad de células endoteliales evaluadas, no existieron diferencias significativas de las variables morfológicas y morfométricas (p> 0,05) en ambos ojos. La concordancia entre los diferentes conteos celulares según los valores de los coeficientes de correlación intraclase fueron todos altos. La concordancia interobservadores (excepto para la hexagonalidad) y los coeficientes de correlación intraclase fueron altos. Conclusiones: Los valores morfológicos y morfométricos del endotelio corneal según cantidad de células evaluadas, son similares en todos los conteos celulares. Se demuestra una buena concordancia entre los diferentes conteos celulares estudiados para los diferentes parámetros estimados(AU)

ABSTRACT Objective: To estimate the morphological and morphometric values of the corneal endothelium according to the number of cells and evaluate the interobserver concordance for the different parameters, estimated according to the different cell counts in adults without corneal alterations. Methods: An observational, descriptive and cross-sectional case series research was carried out in the Refractive Surgery Service of Ramón Pando Ferrer Cuban Institute of Ophthalmology during two years of study. After applying the exclusion criteria, the sample was made up of 200 eyes of 100 adult patients without corneal alterations. Non-contact endothelial microscopy SP-3000P was performed to identify morphological values (hexagonality and coefficient of variability) and morphometric values (cell density), as well as the average corneal cell size according to the number of cells evaluated. Results: According to the amount of endothelial cells evaluated, there were no significant differences between morphological and morphometric variables (p>0.05) in both eyes. The agreement between the different cell counts according to the values of the interclass correlation coefficients (ICC) were all high. The interobserver concordance and ICCs were also high, except for hexagonality. Conclusions: The morphological and morphometric values of the corneal endothelium, according to the number of cells evaluated, are similar in all cell counts. Good concordance between the different cell counts studied for the different estimated parameters is demonstrated(AU)

Main pulmonary artery diameter assessment in a large sample of Indian population: a MDCT based study

Background:The gold standard for pulmonary artery pressure measurement is right heart catheterization but its invasive nature precludes its routine use. Main pulmonary arterial trunk calibreincrease is a strong indicator of underlying pulmonary arterial hypertension. MDCT can accurately measure the diameter of main pulmonary artery. The objective of the study was to establish the normative values of main pulmonary artery caliber using contrast enhanced CT and try to ascertain any significant difference in main pulmonary artery calibers between two genders and correlation of age and main pulmonary artery diameter. Methods:Contrast enhanced CT images of 462 subjects were analysed on a PACS workstation monitor and widest diameter perpendicular to long axis of the main pulmonary artery as seen on reformatted axial image was measured with electronic caliper tool at the level of the main pulmonary artery bifurcation.Results:The mean main pulmonary artery diameter in females was 22.54±2.19 mm and 23.34±3.06 mm in males. The mean pulmonary artery diameter in males was larger than females with statistically significant difference seen (p<0.05). The correlation coefficient between age of whole sample and their mean main pulmonary artery was found to be 0.1006 with no statistically significant difference.Conclusions:There is a statistically significant difference in the mean main pulmonary artery calibre between males and femaleswith no strong correlation between the age and mean main pulmonary artery calibre. Further studies are warranted to find the complex interaction between main pulmonary artery diameter and sex, age and body mass index

Analysis of tissues difference of flavonoids and key enzyme genes expression in Bupleurum chinense and B. scorzonerifolium / 中草药

Objective To investigate the relationship between the content of flavonoids and the key enzyme genes expression in different tissues of Bupleurum chinense and B. scorzonerifolium. Methods The roots, stems, leaves, and fruits of B. chinense and B. scorzonerifolium were used as test materials, determination of flavonoids (rutin, quercetin, kaempferol, and isorhamnetin) in different tissues by HPLC, determination of total flavonoids by UV spectrophotometry, the tissues expression of key enzyme genes (IFS, F3H, and DFR) in flavonoids synthesis was determined by real-time quantitative PCR, correlation analysis was performed with SPSS. Results The content of flavonoids in the aerial parts (stems, leaves, and fruits) of B. chinense and B. scorzonerifolium was significantly higher than that in roots, the content of flavonoids was mainly rutin, and the content of rutin in the leaves of B. chinense leaves was up to 106.961 mg/g; The distribution of total flavonoids in B. chinense and B. scorzonerifolium was obviously different, the content was from high to low: leaves ≥ fruit > stem > root; The expression of B. chinense IFS, F3H, and DFR gene in the aerial parts was much higher than that in roots, IFS gene was significantly positive correlated with rutin (P < 0.05), F3H gene was significantly positive correlated with DFR gene (P < 0.05), but the expression of IFS, F3H, and DFR gene in each tissues of B. scorzonerifolium was at lower level. Conclusion The content of flavonoids in different parts of B. chinense and B. scorzonerifolium was consistent with the expression of flavonoids synthesis key enzyme genes, the differential expression of key enzyme genes regulates the synthesis and accumulation of flavonoids in different tissues.

Correlation Of Human Height With Foot Length In Indian Individuals

Introduction: The height estimation is as important as other parameters like age, sex and race especially inmedico-legal cases. The environmental and genetic factors influence the development of various parts of body.Although bilateral symmetry is a feature seen in humans, there is asymmetry in the foot length without gender orhandedness bias.Aim: To study the relationship of human height with foot length and to derive a mathematical module to predictthe height from foot length.Materials and Methods: This is a Cross-sectional study carried out in Ramaiah Medical College, Bangalore in234 individuals aged between 18 and 25 years of age. Descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation coefficientand linear regression were employed for the Statistical analysis of the dataResults: The overall mean foot length observed was 22.82 ±1.10 cms. There was significant difference in the meanvalues between right and left foot length which was statistically significant (P value = <0.001). The height showeda statistically significant positive correlation with left foot length in both males and females. Linear regressionequation was derived to predict height from foot length in both males and females.Conclusion: In the present study, there was a statistically significant difference in right and left side mean footlength measurements in both sexes. A positive correlation was observed between height and foot length and leftfoot length had better correlation with height in both sexes. It was concluded from further analysis that otherparameters need to be considered for better predictability of height.

A six-minute walking test: maximum oxygen consumption in physical education students / Teste de caminhada de seis minutos: o consumo máximo de oxigênio em estudantes de educação física

ABSTRACT The Six-Minute Walking Test (SMWT) was completed just in few times in apparently healthy young individuals and university students, while the maximal volume of oxygen consumption (VO2max) prediction has not been taken into consideration. The aim of this study was to elaborate a prediction equation for VO2max from the heart rate recovery (HRR) after completion the SMWT. 127 young in the first stage completed the SMWT and Course Navette Test (CNT), 17 in the second stage (test-retest) completed the SMWT and CNT, and 20 subjects in the third stage completed the SMWT and Bruce test. All physical education students (PES) completions an informed consent. A significant correlation was observed between VO2max estimated trough the CNT and HRR after the SMWT (rho= -0.3; p= 0.001). The correlation between the same variables was r= -0.72 (p= 0.001) in the second stage, and a significant correlation (r= -0.65; p= 0.002) was observed between VO2max directly measured in Bruce test and HRR after the SMWT. From the correlation a prediction equation was elaborated is y= 92.468-(0.278*20-second-HRR) and the standard error of estimation (SEE) was 7.17 ml·kg-1·min-1. The HRR achieved after the SMWT may predict VO2max in PES.

RESUMO O teste de caminhada de seis minutos (SMWT) foi concluído em poucas ocasiões em indivíduos jovens aparentemente saudáveis e estudantes universitarios, enquanto que a predição máxima do consumo de oxigênio (VO2max) não foi tomada em consideração. O objetivo deste estudo foi elaborar uma equação de predição para VO2max a partir da recuperação da freqüência cardíaca (HRR) após a realização do SMWT. 127 jovens na primeira etapa completaram o SMWT eo Course Navette Test (CNT), 17 na segunda etapa (teste-reteste) completaram o SMWT e CNT, e 20 sujeitos na terceira etapa completaram o teste SMWT e Bruce test. Todos os estudantes de educação física (PES) completam o consentimento informado. Observou-se uma correlação significativa entre o VO2máx estimado pela CNT e a HRR após o SMWT (rho= -0,3; p= 0,001). A correlação entre as mesmas variáveis foi r= -0,72 (p= 0,001) na segunda etapa e observou-se uma correlação significativa (r= -0,65; p= 0,002) entre VO2max medido diretamente no teste de Bruce e HRR após o SMWT. A partir da correlação foi elaborada uma equação de predição de y= 92,468-0,278*20-segundo-HRR) eo erro padrão de estimação (SEE) foi de 7,17 ml·kg-1·min-1. O HRR conseguido após o SMWT pode predizer VO2max no PES.

Reliability study in the measurement of the cusp inclination angle of a chairside digital model / 华西口腔医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#This study aims to evaluate the reliability of the software Picpick in the measurement of the cusp inclination angle of a digital model.@*METHODS@#Twenty-one trimmed models were used as experimental objects. The chairside digital impression was then used for the acquisition of 3D digital models, and the software Picpick was employed for the measurement of the cusp inclination of these models. The measurements were repeated three times, and the results were compared with a gold standard, which was a manually measured experimental model cusp angle. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was calculated.@*RESULTS@#The paired t test value of the two measurement methods was 0.91. The ICCs between the two measurement methods and three repeated measurements were greater than 0.9. The digital model achieved a smaller coefficient of variation (9.9%).@*CONCLUSIONS@#The software Picpick is reliable in measuring the cusp inclination of a digital model.

Correlative analysis of three sperm indexes and IVT-ET outcome after semen treatment / 重庆医学

Objective To investigate the correlation between three sperm indexes and the outcome of in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer(IVT-ET) before and after semen treatment.Methods The semen derived from 298 male patients treated with IVT-ET from the Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University was retrospectively analyzed.Routine analysis of semen before treatment was performed according to the WHO standard.Vitrolife density gradient centrifugation combined with upstream method was used to analyze sperm parameters after sperm analysis,and the observation and statistics were performed after fertilization and sequential culture to day 3.Results The total viability of spermatozoa before and after semen treatment,the percentage of normal spermatozoa,sperm density,and other differences were statistically significant (P＜0.05);The normal sperm morphology rate was positively correlated with fertilization rate(r=0.487,P＜0.01) and cleavage rate(r=0.250,P＜0.05);The sperm vitality of post-processed semen was positively related to the fertilization rate (r =0.249,P＜0.05,);and significantly cleavage rate (r =0.272,P＜0.05);After treatment,sperm density was positively correlated with 2 PN(r=0.609,P＜0.01) and multiple PN fertilization rates(r=0.243,P＜0.05).Conclusion Our experimental results indicate that the parameters of post-processed sperm treated at the day when the oocytes were collected may be more helpful in predicting the fertilization rate and cleavage rate of IVF-ET.Therefore,the IVF-ET treatment protocols should be chose based on the normal sperm morphology rate and sperm vitality after semen treatment.