Recognition of children on age-different images: Facial morphology and age-stable features

The situation of missing children is one of the most emotional social issues worldwide. The search for and identification of missing children is often hampered, among others, by the fact that the facial morphology of long-term missing children changes as they grow. Nowadays, the wide coverage by surveillance systems potentially provides image material for comparisons with images of missing children that may facilitate identification. The aim of study was to identify whether facial features are stable in time and can be utilized for facial recognition by comparing facial images of children at different ages as well as to test the possible use of moles in recognition. The study was divided into two phases (1) morphological classification of facial features using an Anthropological Atlas; (2) algorithm developed in MATLAB® R2014b for assessing the use of moles as age-stable features. The assessment of facial features by Anthropological Atlases showed high mismatch percentages among observers. On average, the mismatch percentages were lower for features describing shape than for those describing size. The nose tip cleft and the chin dimple showed the best agreement between observers regarding both categorization and stability over time. Using the position of moles as a reference point for recognition of the same person on age-different images seems to be a useful method in terms of objectivity and it can be concluded that moles represent age-stable facial features that may be considered for preliminary recognition

Sella turcica dimensions between 7 and 13 years: a novel radiographic method for age estimation

Age estimation of the living is becoming a relevant field of application of foren- sic anthropology, where the development of novel methods is urging (1). Several articles highlight the relation with age of different metrical parameters of the sella turcica (2,3), although no study so far has produced regression formulae which may be applicable to the forensic context. The aim of this study was to evaluate the metrical standards of three different measurements of sella turcica (length, depth, diameter) in 177 lateral cephalometric radiograms belonging to male and female individuals aged between 7 and 13 years in order to find standards useful for age estimation. Results were evaluated by two-way ANOVA. Sella diameter was significantly larger in older children (p<0.01), while sella depth was larger in males than in females (p<0.01); there was no significant gender x age interaction in any variable. Principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted to highlight the sources of variability in data. The first principal component accounted for 76% of the overall variance and it was closely correlated with length and diameter (r=0.93 and r=0.92, respectively, p<0.01). The linear regression model fitted on age and diameter measures yielded the following equation: age (years)=3.81*diameter (cm)+6.12. Slope and intercept 95% CI were respectively 4.64 to 7.61 years/cm and 2.34 to 5.28 years. The related coefficient of determination was R2=0.123, while the root mean square error was 1.74 years. The present results provide a novel method useful for age estimation in the living minors: further studies are needed in order to test its applicability to the forensic scenario

How frequent is ponticulus posticus in italian people? A lateral cephalometric study in an orthodontic population

The term “ponticulus posticus” refers to a partial or complete bony arch over the vertebral artery as it crosses the superolateral surface of the posterior arch of the atlas. This anatomical modification is linked to different symptoms, ranging from neckache to headache and migraine (1). This bony arch may also be incorrectly assessed during orthopedic surgery for fixation of C1-C2, with consequent risk of damaging the vertebral artery (2). Its frequency in the general population has been widely analysed by literature in different geographic contexts (3), but an analysis of the prevalence of such feature in the Italian population is still missing. The present investigation aims at providing data concerning the prevalence of ponticulus posticus in a sample of 221 patients. All the patients underwent lateral cephalometry for odontoiatric purposes and none of them was affected by congenital diseases or skeletal deformities. In the analysed sample ponticulus posticus had a prevalence of 7.7% for the complete form, and 9.0% for the incomplete form. Complete and partial forms were observed respectively in 8.8% and 11.0% of males, and in 6.9% and 7.7% of females, without statistically significant differences (chi-square test, p>0.01). Italian prevalence seems lower than that observed in American populations, and higher than that reported in India and Far East countries. The current investigation provided the first data concerning the frequency of posticulus posticus in Italy: further studies are needed in order to widen the sample and improve the analysis by more advanced radiological examinations such as CT and cone beam CT scans

Variations of midfacial soft-tissue thickness between 6 and 18 years for the reconstruction of the profile: a help for facial reconstruction of children

Facial approximation techniques used in forensic anthropology are based on soft-tissue thickness databases. A potentially relevant application concerns the facial reconstruction of children in cases where only the skull can be recovered. Although several databases concerning facial soft tissues thicknesses already exist [1-3], no study has so far taken into consideration the Italian population. This study aims at providing data concerning facial thickness on the midline in a population of Italian children. Diagnostic cephalometric X-ray films were obtained from 222 healthy Caucasoid children (91 boys and 131 girls), aged between 6 and 18 years. After setting the Frankfurt plane horizontal, 15 measurements were taken at the mid-facial landmarks: supraglabella, glabella, nasion, nasale, subnasale, nasal tip, superior labial sulcus, labrale superius, stomion, labrale inferius, inferior labial sulcus, suprapogonion, pogonion, gnathion, menton. Mean and standard deviation of soft-tissues thickness at each point were calculated. A two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to test the modifications of facial parameters with age and sex (

Erectile dysfunction is common among men with acromegaly and is associated with morbidities related to the disease

Background: The prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) and its correlates in men with acromegaly has never been investigated. Aim: To evaluate sexual function in men with acromegaly. Methods: Multicenter-based, retrospective analysis of a non-selected series of 57 acromegalic subjects (mean age: 52.7 14.2 years) was performed. Acromegalic subjects reporting ED (n = 24) were compared with matched ED- patients without acromegaly or pituitary disease (con- trols), selected from a cohort of more than 4000 subjects enrolled in the Flrence Sexual Medicine and Andrology Unit. Patients were interviewed using SIEDY structured interview, a 13-item tool for the assessment of ED-related morbidities. Several clinical and biochemical parameters were taken. Penile colour-Doppler ultrasound (PCDU) was performed in a subgroup of 37 acromegalic subjects. Results: ED was reported by 42.1% of acromegalic sub- jects. After adjusting for age and testosterone, acromegalic subjects with ED had a higher prevalence of hypertension, and more often reported an impairment of sleep-related erections and a longer smoking habit. Accordingly, acro- megaly-associated ED was characterized by a higher organic component and worse PCDU parameters. No rela- tionship between ED and testosterone levels or other acro- megaly-related parameters was found. However, acromegalic subjects with severe ED reported a longer dis- ease duration. In a case-control analysis, comparing acromegalic subjects with ED-matched-controls free from acromegaly (1:5 ratio), acromegalic men had a worse ED problem and a higher organic component of ED, as derived from SIEDY score. In line with these data, acrome- galic patients with ED had a higher prevalence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) history at enrol- ment and lower PCDU parameters. Conclusions: Subjects with complicated acromegaly are at an increased risk of developing ED, especially those with cardiovascular morbidities. Our data suggest including a sexual function evaluation in routine acromegaly follow- up

COVID Feel Good-An Easy Self-Help Virtual Reality Protocol to Overcome the Psychological Burden of Coronavirus

Background: Living in the time of the COVID-19 means experiencing not only a global health emergency but also extreme psychological stress with potential emotional side effects such as sadness, grief, irritability, and mood swings. Crucially, lockdown and confinement measures isolate people who become the first and the only ones in charge of their own mental health: people are left alone facing a novel and potentially lethal situation, and, at the same time, they need to develop adaptive strategies to face it, at home. In this view, easy-to-use, inexpensive, and scientifically validated self-help solutions aiming to reduce the psychological burden of coronavirus are extremely necessary. Aims: This pragmatic trial aims to provide the evidence that a weekly self-help virtual reality (VR) protocol can help overcome the psychological burden of the Coronavirus by relieving anxiety, improving well-being, and reinforcing social connectedness. The protocol will be based on the 'Secret Garden' 360 VR video online (www.covidfeelgood.com) which simulates a natural environment aiming to promote relaxation and self-reflection. Three hundred sixty-degree or spherical videos allow the user to control the viewing direction. In this way, the user can explore the content from any angle like a panorama and experience presence and immersion. The 'Secret Garden' video is combined with daily exercises that are designed to be experienced with another person (not necessarily physically together), to facilitate a process of critical examination and eventual revision of core assumptions and beliefs related to personal identity, relationships, and goals. Methods: This is a multicentric, pragmatic pilot randomized controlled trial involving individuals who experienced the COVID-19 pandemic and underwent a lockdown and quarantine procedures. The trial is approved by the Ethics Committee of the Istituto Auxologico Italiano. Each research group in all the countries joining the pragmatic trial, aims at enrolling at least 30 individuals in the experimental group experiencing the self-help protocol, and 30 in the control group, over a period of 3 months to verify the feasibility of the intervention. Conclusion: The goal of this protocol is for VR to become the 'surgical mask' of mental health treatment. Although surgical masks do not provide the wearer with a reliable level of protection against the coronavirus compared with FFP2 or FFP3 masks, surgical masks are very effective in protecting others from the wearer's respiratory emissions. The goal of the VR protocol is the same: not necessarily to solve complex mental health problems but rather to improve well-being and preserve social connectedness through the beneficial social effects generated by positive emotions

A large genome-wide association study of age-related macular degeneration highlights contributions of rare and common variants.

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Nature Publishing Group via http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ng.3448Advanced age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in the elderly, with limited therapeutic options. Here we report on a study of >12 million variants, including 163,714 directly genotyped, mostly rare, protein-altering variants. Analyzing 16,144 patients and 17,832 controls, we identify 52 independently associated common and rare variants (P < 5 × 10(-8)) distributed across 34 loci. Although wet and dry AMD subtypes exhibit predominantly shared genetics, we identify the first genetic association signal specific to wet AMD, near MMP9 (difference P value = 4.1 × 10(-10)). Very rare coding variants (frequency <0.1%) in CFH, CFI and TIMP3 suggest causal roles for these genes, as does a splice variant in SLC16A8. Our results support the hypothesis that rare coding variants can pinpoint causal genes within known genetic loci and illustrate that applying the approach systematically to detect new loci requires extremely large sample sizes.We thank all participants of all the studies included for enabling this research by their participation in these studies. Computer resources for this project have been provided by the high-performance computing centers of the University of Michigan and the University of Regensburg. Group-specific acknowledgments can be found in the Supplementary Note. The Center for Inherited Diseases Research (CIDR) Program contract number is HHSN268201200008I. This and the main consortium work were predominantly funded by 1X01HG006934-01 to G.R.A. and R01 EY022310 to J.L.H

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements