Micro-Manipulation Using Learned Model

Microscale devices can be found in applications ranging from sensors to structural components. The dominance of surface forces at the microscale hinders the assembly processes through nonlinear interactions that are difficult to model for automation, limiting designs of microsystems to primarily monolithic structures. Methods for modeling surface forces must be presented for viable manufacturing of devices consisting of multiple microparts. This paper proposes the implementation of supervised machine learning models to aid in automated micromanipulation tasks for advanced manufacturing applications. The developed models use sets of training data to implicitly model surface interactions and predict end-effector placement and paths that will yield a desired part trajectory. Conclusions and recommendations are based on evaluations of a collection of machine learning models and the effects of training data size and hyperparameter tuning on a collection of error metrics

Antimicrobial drug usage from birth to 180 days of age in Irish dairy calves and in suckler beef calves

peer-reviewedConcern about the use of antimicrobials in food producing animals is increasing. The study objective was to quantify antimicrobial drug usage in calves using antimicrobial treatment records from Irish suckler beef and dairy farms. Antimicrobial treatment records for calves born between 1 July 2014 and 30 June 2015 on 79 suckler beef and 44 dairy farms were analyzed. Calves were followed from birth (day 0) until 6 months of age. According to standard farm protocol, calves exhibiting clinical signs of any disease were identified and antimicrobial treatment was administered. Farmers recorded the following information for each treatment administered: calf identification, age at treatment, disease event, drug name, number of treatment days, and amount of drug administered. In total, 3,204 suckler beef calves and 5,358 dairy calves, representing 540,953 and 579,997 calf-days at risk, respectively, were included in the study. A total of 1,770 antimicrobial treatments were administered to suckler beef (n = 841) and dairy calves (n = 929) between birth and 6 months of age. There was large variation in TIDDDvet and TIDCDvet by farm. This study provides new insights into the time periods and indications for which specific antimicrobial substances are used in Irish dairy and beef suckler calves

Tofacitinib or adalimumab versus placebo: patient-reported outcomes from OPAL Broaden-a phase III study of active psoriatic arthritis in patients with an inadequate response to conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs.

Objectives: Tofacitinib is an oral Janus kinase inhibitor for treatment of psoriatic arthritis (PsA). We evaluated patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in patients with PsA refractory to ≥1 conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (csDMARD-IR) and tumour necrosis factor inhibitor-naïve in a 12-month, phase III randomised controlled trial (OPAL Broaden [NCT01877668]). Methods: Patients (N=422) received tofacitinib 5 mg or 10 mg twice daily, adalimumab 40 mg subcutaneously every 2 weeks or placebo advancing to tofacitinib 5 mg or 10 mg twice daily at month 3. Least squares mean changes from baseline and percentages of patients reporting improvements ≥minimum clinically important differences (MCID); and scores ≥normative values in: Patient Global Assessment of disease activity (PtGA), Pain, Patient Global Joint and Skin Assessment (PGJS), Short Form-36 Health Survey version 2 (SF-36v2), Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue (FACIT-Fatigue), EuroQol 5-Dimensions-3-level questionnaire (EQ-5D-3L) and Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life (ASQoL) were determined. Nominal p values were cited without multiple comparison adjustments. Results: At month 3, PtGA, Pain, PGJS, FACIT-Fatigue, EQ-5D-3L, ASQoL and SF-36v2 Physical Component Summary (PCS), physical functioning (PF), bodily pain (BP) and vitality domain scores exceeded placebo with both tofacitinib doses (p≤0.05); SF-36v2 social functioning with 5 mg twice daily (p≤0.05). Percentages reporting improvements ≥MCID in PtGA, Pain, PGJS, FACIT-Fatigue, ASQoL and SF-36v2 PCS, PF, BP and general health scores exceeded placebo with both tofacitinib doses (p≤0.05) and were similar with adalimumab. Conclusion: csDMARD-IR patients with active PsA reported statistically and clinically meaningful improvements in PROs with tofacitinib compared with placebo at Month 3

Network Meta-Analysis of Tofacitinib, Biologic Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drugs, and Apremilast for the Treatment of Psoriatic Arthritis

Background: Tofacitinib and other new treatments approved for use in psoriatic arthritis have only recently been included in psoriatic arthritis treatment guidelines, and studies evaluating the relative efficacy of available therapies are important to inform treatment decisions by healthcare professionals. Objective: To perform a network meta-analysis to evaluate the efficacy and safety profiles of tofacitinib, biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs), and apremilast in patients with psoriatic arthritis naive to tumor necrosis factor inhibitor therapy (TNFi-naive) or with an inadequate response (TNFi-IR). Methods: A systematic literature review used searches of MEDLINE, Embase, and The Cochrane Library on October 9, 2017. Randomized controlled trials including adult patients with psoriatic arthritis receiving treatment administered as monotherapy or with conventional synthetic DMARDs were selected. Efficacy outcomes included American College of Rheumatology 20 response, change from baseline in Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index, >/=75% improvement in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index, and change from baseline in Dactylitis Severity Score and Leeds Enthesitis Index. Treatment effects were evaluated during placebo-controlled phases, using a binomial logit model for binary outcomes and a normal identify link model for other outcomes. Discontinuations due to adverse events and serious infection events were assessed as safety outcomes. Results: The network meta-analysis included 24 published randomized controlled trials, of which 13 enrolled TNFi-naive patients only, 3 enrolled TNFi-IR patients only, and 8 enrolled both TNFi-naive and TNFi-IR patients. Placebo-controlled treatment durations ranged from 12 to 24 weeks. Indirect comparisons showed tofacitinib 5 and 10 mg BID to have similar efficacy compared with most bDMARDs and apremilast in improving joint symptoms (based on American College of Rheumatology 20 response), and with some bDMARDs in improving skin symptoms (based on Psoriasis Area and Severity Index) (tofacitinib 10 mg BID only in TNFi-IR) in patients with psoriatic arthritis who were TNFi-naive or TNFi-IR. Results also showed that, compared with placebo, the improvement in physical functioning (based on Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index) with tofacitinib 5 and 10 mg BID was similar to that observed with most bDMARDs and apremilast in TNFi-naive patients, and similar to that observed with all bDMARDs with available data in the TNFi-IR population. Improvements in Dactylitis Severity Score and Leeds Enthesitis Index scores were comparable between treatments. Tofacitinib 5 and 10 mg BID were median-ranked 8 and 15, respectively, for discontinuation due to any adverse events, and 5 and 16, respectively, for a serious infection event out of a total of 20 treatments in the network (lower numbers are more favorable). Conclusions: Tofacitinib provides an additional treatment option for patients with psoriatic arthritis, both in patients naive to TNFi and in those with TNFi-IR. (Curr Ther Res Clin Exp. 2020; 81:XXX-XXX)

Effect of tofacitinib on patient-reported outcomes in patients with active psoriatic arthritis and an inadequate response to tumour necrosis factor inhibitors in the phase III, randomised controlled trial: OPAL Beyond.

Objectives: Tofacitinib is an oral Janus kinase inhibitor for treatment of psoriatic arthritis (PsA). Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) were evaluated in patients with PsA with inadequate responses to tumour necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi-IR) in a 6-month, phase III randomised controlled trial (OPAL Beyond [NCT01882439]). Methods: Patients (N=394) received tofacitinib 5 or 10 mg twice daily or placebo (advancing to tofacitinib 5 or 10 mg twice daily at month 3). Least squares mean changes from baseline and percentages of patients reporting improvements ≥minimum clinically important differences and scores ≥normative values were determined in Patient Global Assessment of disease activity (PtGA), Pain, Patient Global Joint and Skin Assessment (PGJS), Short Form-36 Health Survey version 2 (SF-36v2), Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue (FACIT-Fatigue), EuroQol 5-Dimensions-3-level (EQ-5D-3L), EQ-VAS and Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life (ASQoL). Nominal p values are without multiple comparison adjustments. Results: At month 3, PtGA, Pain, PGJS, SF-36v2 Physical Component Summary (PCS), physical functioning (PF), bodily pain (BP), vitality and social functioning (SF) domains, FACIT-Fatigue Total score, EQ-5D-3L pain/discomfort, EQ-VAS and ASQoL scores exceeded placebo with both tofacitinib doses (role physical [RP] with 10 mg twice daily only; p≤0.05). Patients reporting improvements ≥MCID (%) in PtGA, PGJS, Pain, ASQoL and SF-36v2 PCS, PF, RP, BP, SF (both tofacitinib doses) exceeded placebo (p≤0.05). Conclusion: TNFi-IR patients with PsA receiving tofacitinib reported statistically and clinically meaningful improvements in PROs versus placebo over 3 months, which were maintained to month 6. Despite lower baseline scores, these improvements were similar to the csDMARD-IR TNFi-naive OPAL Broaden trial

Investigating diagnosis, treatment, and burden of disease in patients with ankylosing spondylitis in Central Eastern Europe and the United States: a real-world study.

INTRODUCTION/OBJECTIVES: Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a chronic inflammatory immune-mediated condition. We compared AS diagnosis, treatment, and burden in Central Eastern European countries (CEE), where this has been less researched, and the United States (US) from a real-world perspective. METHODS: Point-in-time survey of rheumatologists and their AS patients was conducted in the US (Apr-Oct 2018) and CEE (Aug-Nov 2019) via physician- and patient-completed record forms, including clinical and patient-reported outcomes. Statistical analysis included descriptive statistics, t-tests, Fisher's exact tests, and generalized linear models. RESULTS: In total, 487 patients were recruited from 88 rheumatologists in the US and 922 patients from 126 rheumatologists in CEE. Time from onset of symptoms to final AS diagnosis was longer in CEE than the US (4.2 vs 2.7 years, p < 0.05). At diagnosis, a greater use of conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and injected steroids was reported in CEE vs the US (43.7% vs 27.6%, p < 0.05; 19.3% vs 8.7%, p < 0.05). 22.9% of US patients received a biologic DMARD at diagnosis vs 10% of CEE patients (p < 0.05). At current consultation, biologic DMARD use in CEE was lower vs the US (27.9% vs 71.0%, p < 0.05). CEE vs US patients had greater disease activity (mean Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index 4.2 vs 3.1, p < 0.05) and worse quality of life (QoL; mean Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life Questionnaire score 6.2 vs 8.4, p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: AS patients in CEE vs the US faced slower diagnosis and worse access to biologics, disease activity, and QoL. Whether early access to biologics can improve symptoms, QoL, and daily activities in AS patients in CEE remains to be seen. Key Points • The study provided evidence on the real-world approach to the diagnosis, treatment, and burden of axSpA (axial spondyloarthritis) in CEE compared with the US. • The study reported patients in CEE experienced longer delays in diagnosis and poorer access to biologics than in the US. • This may have resulted in higher disease activity, greater levels of pain, and poorer outcomes, as reported by patients with axSpA in CEE