Surgical management of vesicoureteral reflux in children

Vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) is the most common uropathy affecting children. Compared to children without VUR, those with VUR have a higher rate of pyelonephritis and renal scarring following urinary tract infection (UTI). Options for treatment include observation with or without antibiotic prophylaxis and surgical repair. Surgical intervention may be necessary in patients with persistent reflux, renal scarring, and recurrent or breakthrough febrile UTI. Both open and endoscopic approaches to reflux correction are successful and reduce the occurrence of febrile UTI. Estimated success rates of open and endoscopic reflux correction are 98.1% (95% CI 95.1, 99.1) and 83.0% (95% CI 69.1, 91.4), respectively. Factors that affect the success of endoscopic injection include pre-operative reflux grade and presence of functional or anatomic bladder abnormalities including voiding dysfunction and duplicated collecting systems. Few studies have evaluated the long-term outcomes of endoscopic injection, and with variable results. In patients treated endoscopically, recurrent febrile UTI occurred in 0–21%, new renal damage in 9–12%, and recurrent reflux in 17–47.6% of treated ureters with at least 1 year follow-up. These studies highlight the need for standardized outcome reporting and longer follow-up after endoscopic treatment

Computer-Aided Design of Precast Building System

The paper describes an expert system for computerized design of precast building components for a given architectural solution. The system receives the layouts and evaluations of the building as input, indicates the location of structural supports, breaks down the floors and walls into the elements to be prefabricated, and finally generates detailed production drawings for each element. Design stages are governed by the specific features of the prefabrications system to be employed. Design alternatives are also evaluated in the course of the process. The paper reviews the principles of the system and the particular features of the computer program employed for this purpos

Programming construction robots using virtual reality techniques

The paper describes a new approach to programming construction robots, using virtual reality (VR) techniques. The new approach is needed because both traditional and new methods of programming industrial robots, described in the paper, have specific drawbacks, which become crucial in the construction arena. This is because of the ever-changing environment of construction and its nature, a prototype or one-of-a-kind, industry. As a result, construction robots need much more programming than their industrial counterparts, which is labor intensive using known methods and is not compensated by mass production. The VR approach is demonstrated with the Multi-Purpose Interior Finishing Robot (MPIR) for a masonry task, accompanied by a detailed description of the VR-based programming model and approach.

The Use of Computer Graphics as a Scheduling Tool

The paper describes a potential application of computer graphics to construction scheduling. A computer program receives, as its input a geometrical representation of the building to be constructed, and a schedule for the erection of its main components. Subsequently, the actual construction progress is also recorded. The outputs of the program include a graphical representation of the total schedule, of the construction status at any given date, and of the difference between the scheduled and the actual performance. Other possible features of the program are also discusse

Integration of Cost Planning in the Architectural Design of Housing

Cost estimation in the initial phases of a project is of great interest to the construction industry. This paper proposes a new way of the integration of an architectural project and its cost estimate so as to optimise the design solutions, according to technical and economic criteria. This work explores the capacity of an elemental cost estimation method for residential buildings, when integrated with Computer Aided Design systems, to increase cost estimate precision during the early stages of design. A Cost Planning and CAD model (CP/CAD) is developed by the integration of a database and a CAD system which provides for the automatic exchange of information relative to the geometric layout of the building, the construction element build-up and the construction costs of the same. Finally the CP/CAD model is tested through the estimation of costs for some theoretical cases and also for a group of one-family houses with similar architectural characteristics. The results show the increased precision and the advantages of the model for cost estimation in the early design stages.

Hybrid virtual reality and telepresence utilising mobile phone technology

This chapter looks at hybrid virtual reality and telepresence utilising mobile phone technolog