A review of image processing methods for fetal head and brain analysis in ultrasound images

Background and objective: Examination of head shape and brain during the fetal period is paramount to evaluate head growth, predict neurodevelopment, and to diagnose fetal abnormalities. Prenatal ultrasound is the most used imaging modality to perform this evaluation. However, manual interpretation of these images is challenging and thus, image processing methods to aid this task have been proposed in the literature. This article aims to present a review of these state-of-the-art methods. Methods: In this work, it is intended to analyze and categorize the different image processing methods to evaluate fetal head and brain in ultrasound imaging. For that, a total of 109 articles published since 2010 were analyzed. Different applications are covered in this review, namely analysis of head shape and inner structures of the brain, standard clinical planes identification, fetal development analysis, and methods for image processing enhancement. Results: For each application, the reviewed techniques are categorized according to their theoretical approach, and the more suitable image processing methods to accurately analyze the head and brain are identified. Furthermore, future research needs are discussed. Finally, topics whose research is lacking in the literature are outlined, along with new fields of applications. Conclusions: A multitude of image processing methods has been proposed for fetal head and brain analysis. Summarily, techniques from different categories showed their potential to improve clinical practice. Nevertheless, further research must be conducted to potentiate the current methods, especially for 3D imaging analysis and acquisition and for abnormality detection. (c) 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia(UIDB/00319/2020)This work was funded by projects “NORTE-01–0145-FEDER- 0 0 0 059 , NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-024300 and “NORTE-01–0145- FEDER-0 0 0 045 , supported by Northern Portugal Regional Opera- tional Programme (Norte2020), under the Portugal 2020 Partner- ship Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER). It was also funded by national funds, through the FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia within the R&D Units Project Scope: UIDB/00319/2020 and by FCT and FCT/MCTES in the scope of the projects UIDB/05549/2020 and UIDP/05549/2020 . The authors also acknowledge support from FCT and the Euro- pean Social Found, through Programa Operacional Capital Humano (POCH), in the scope of the PhD grant SFRH/BD/136670/2018 and SFRH/BD/136721/2018

Fetal head circumference delineation using convolutional neural networks with registration-based ellipse fitting

Examination of head shape during the fetal period is an important task to evaluate head growth and to diagnose fetal abnormalities. Traditional clinical practice frequently relies on the estimation of head circumference (HC) from 2D ultrasound (US) images by manually fitting an ellipse to the fetal skull. However, this process tends to be prone to observer variability, and therefore, automatic approaches for HC delineation can bring added value for clinical practice. In this paper, an automatic method to accurately delineate the fetal head in US images is proposed. The proposed method is divided into two stages: (i) head delineation through a regression convolutional neural network (CNN) that estimates a gaussian-like map of the head contour; and (ii) robust ellipse fitting using a registration-based approach that combines the random sample consensus (RANSAC) and iterative closest point (ICP) algorithms. The proposed method was applied to the HC18 Challenge dataset, which contains 999 training and 335 testing images. Experiments showed that the proposed strategy achieved a mean average difference of -0.11 ± 2.67 mm and a Dice coefficient of 97.95 ± 1.12% against manual annotation, outperforming other approaches in the literature. The obtained results showed the effectiveness of the proposed method for HC delineation, suggesting its potential to be used in clinical practice for head shape assessment.FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia(UIDB/00319/2020

Alcohol and other drug use in Michelin-starred kitchen brigades

This paper aims to explore chefs’ experiences of the use of alcohol and other drugs (AOD) in Michelin-starred restaurants in Britain and Ireland. In total, 54 Head Chefs were interviewed in this study, which found AOD use to be part of their occupational culture. The work context plays a key role in this phenomenon in that harsh working conditions (such as heat, stress and long hours) provide fertile ground for AOD use as a means of self-medication and as a coping strategy. This study observes a normalisation of drinking to unwind. Even if this practice is detrimental to health, it is the coping mechanism used by chefs to deal with the stresses associated with the high end kitchen environment. Based on the findings of this research, it is argued that despite the industry’s efforts to eliminate this phenomenon, AOD use is part of everyday life in high-end commercial kitchens

Determination of food neophobia levels of International Mersin Citrus Festival participants

Mersin Citrus Festival is considered the biggest festival of the province and is an international event held in Mersin every year. The festival aims to introduce citrus fruits, the most important agricultural product grown in Mersin. This study was carried out in order to determine the neophobia levels of attendees’ and to measure their attitudes towards new foods at the 7th International Mersin Citrus Festival. Answers to four research questions were sought in the study. The data were obtained through a survey on 1-3 November 2019, using the convenience sampling method. The obtained 152 usable questionnaires were subjected to statistical evaluations and analyzed. It has been determined that the neophobia level of the participants of Mersin Citrus Festival is “neutral”. In the study, it was determined that the most common expression of participants in Mersin Citrus Festival regarding their attitudes towards food was “I like to try the newly opened ethnic restaurants”. This study is limited to the determination of the neophobia levels of participants and their attitudes towards the different foods of Mersin Citrus Festival. When the literature is examined, the fact that there is no study on this subject for festival participants shows the originality of the study

Identified competencies of Research Chefs

This dissertation was conducted to identify the basic competencies of Research Chefs. A modified, three round (pilot round plus two rounds) Delphi procedure was employed. The Research Chefs Association nominated chefs who participated throughout the study. In the pilot round, the chefs identified the knowledge, skills, and abilities that a successful Research Chef should have. In the other rounds, the chefs rated and analyzed the competencies identified in the pilot round. It was found that the title Research Chef is a generic name for actually two different groups of Research Chefs. These Research Chefs were identified as “Research Focused” and “Management Focused”. It was found that even though these chefs share some common skill and behavior competencies, they differ in many different competencies. Nineteen basic competencies were identified for “Research Focused Research Chefs,” and eight basic competencies were identified for “Management Focused Research Chefs.

A Study on the Spectator Motivations and Perceived Benefits in the XVII Mediterranean Games

Spor turizmi tüm dünyada oldukça büyük bir pazar oluşturmaktadır ve önemli bir kaynak olarak ele alınmaktadır. Bu anlamda spor seyircilerinin güdülerinin bilinmesi hem spor yöneticileri hem de o spora ilişkin ürün ve hizmet pazarlayan kurum ve kuruluşlar açısından oldukça önemlidir. Bu çalışmada 20-30 Haziran 2013 tarihlerinde Mersin'de gerçekleştirilen XVII. Akdeniz Oyunları seyircilerinin güdüleri ve Oyunların sosyo-ekonomik etkilerine ilişkin algıları belirlenmeye çalışılmıştır. Araştırma bulgularına göre seyircilerin güdüleri etkinlik atmosferi, yenilik, sosyalleşme ve kaçış olarak belirlenmiştir. Katılımcılar aynı zamanda bu tür etkinliklerin toplumsal bağlılık ve toplumsal faydalar yarattığını, ekonomik faydalar sağladığını, ancak toplumsal maliyetlerinin de bulunduğunu düşünmektedirler. Çalışma sonuçlarına göre güdülenme boyutları ve sosyo-ekonomik etkilerin katılımcıların demografik özelliklerine göre küçük farklılıklar sergilediği saptanmıştır. Çalışmanın son bölümünde bulgular tartışılarak bu tür spor etkinliklerinin düzenlenmesi ve toplumun bu türden etkinliklere katılımının artırılması için öneriler geliştirilmiştir.Sport tourism considered to be one of the emerging markets and a valuable resource for destinations. As such, it is vital to understand the motivations of the spectators and their perceptions towards the socio-economic benefits of sporting events. This study aims to analyze the motivations and perceived benefits of the spectators attending to XVII. Mediterranean Games organized in Mersin on 20-30 June 2013. The basic motivation of the spectators was found to be event atmosphere, novelty, socialization and escape. Further, it was found that the spectators are aware of the socio-economic benefits and costs of such sporting events. Finally, both the motivations and the perceptions of the benefits vary among the spectators according to their demographics. The study ends with a discussion of the results and suggestions on the organization of sporting events and increasing the community participation