REST4Mobile: A framework for enhanced usability of REST services on smartphones

Considering end-user research and proliferation of smartphones and REpresentational State Transfer (REST) interfaces, we envisage that smartphone owners can innovate to compose applications on the small screen. This paper presents the design and evaluation of a REST service development framework (viz, REST4Mobile) with the aim to enhance the usability when consuming on smartphones. Our design process uses the usability factors identified in our previous work as primary constraints for modeling the framework and a corresponding composition tool. Thus, sample REST services are developed with and then without the framework, and usability of composing the services on smartphones is evaluated. Evaluation was conducted by deploying the component REST services, the composition tool, and the resulting composite apps on a local machine. As the task of service composition is conducted directly on the smartphone's screen, the evaluation process is designed to be repeatable on remote servers and on the cloud. Results showed that constraints can be added into the REST architectural style on the basis of the influences of domain specific terms and human cognitive capabilities on the naming and size of the Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs). In addition, the principles embodying the framework are found to be influential factors in enhancing the usability of REST services on smartphones

Parallel computing in information retrieval - An updated review

The progress of parallel computing in Information Retrieval (IR) is reviewed. In particular we stress the importance of the motivation in using parallel computing for Text Retrieval. We analyse parallel IR systems using a classification due to Rasmussen [1] and describe some parallel IR systems. We give a description of the retrieval models used in parallel Information Processing.. We describe areas of research which we believe are needed

Physical Activity After Surgery for Severe Obesity: The Role of Exercise Cognitions

# The Author(s) 2010. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com Background Physical activity after bariatric surgery is associated with sustained weight loss and improved quality of life. Some bariatric patients engage insufficiently in physical activity. This may be due to exercise cognitions, i.e., specific beliefs about benefits of and barriers to physical exercise. The aim of this study was to examine whether and to what extent both physical activity and exercise cognitions changed at 1 and 2 years post-surgery and whether exercise cognitions predict physical activity. Methods Forty-two bariatric patients (38 women, 4 men; mean age 38±8 years, mean body mass index prior to surgery 47±6 kg/m 2) filled out self-report instruments to examine physical activity and exercise cognitions pre- and post-surgery

APOLO-Bari, an internet-based program for longitudinal support of bariatric surgery patients: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background: Despite evidence of successful weight loss for bariatric surgery patients, some patients experience considerable weight regain over the long term. Given the strong association between post-surgery health behaviors and outcomes, aftercare intervention to address key behaviors appears to be a reasonable relapse-prevention strategy. As the burden of obesity rates increases in healthcare centers, an internet-based program appears to be a reasonable strategy for supporting bariatric surgery patients in the long term. The primary purpose of the current project is to develop and test the efficacy and perceived utility of APOLO-Bari.Methods/design: This study is a randomized control trial, which will be conducted in two hospital centers in the North of Portugal; it includes a control group receiving treatment as usual and an intervention group receiving the APOLO-Bari program for one year in addition to treatment as usual. A total of 180 male and female participants who underwent bariatric surgery (gastric sleeve or gastric bypass surgery) for 12 to 20 months will be recruited. Both groups will complete a similar set of questionnaires at baseline, every 4 months until the end of the intervention, and at 6 and 12 months follow-up. Assessment includes anthropometric variables and psychological self-report measures. The primary outcome measure will be weight regain measured at the end of treatment, and at 6 and 12 months follow-up. The secondary aims are to test the cost-effectiveness of the intervention and to investigate psychological predictors and trajectories of weight regain. APOLO-Bari was developed to address the weight regain problem in the bariatric population by offering additional guidance to bariatric patients during the postoperative period. The program includes: (a) a psychoeducational cognitive-behavioral-based self-help manual, (b) a weekly feedback messaging system that sends a feedback statement related to information reported by the participant, and (c) interactive chat sessions scheduled witThis research was partially supported by the Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia through a European Union COMPETE program grant to Eva Conceicao (IF/01219/2014 and PTDC/MHC-PCL/4974/2012), a doctoral scholarship to Ana Pinto-Bastos (SFRH/BD/104159/2014), a doctoral scholarship to Sofia Ramalho (SFRH/BD/104182/2014), and a postdoctoral scholarship to Ana Rita Vaz (SFRH/BPD/94490/2013), co-financed by FEDER under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (UID/PSI/01662/2013).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Conversion of Vertical Banded Gastroplasty to Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass Results in Restoration of the Positive Effect on Weight Loss and Co-morbidities: Evaluation of 101 Patients

BACKGROUND: Vertical banded gastroplasty (VBG) is a widely used restrictive procedure in bariatric surgery. However, the re-operation rate after this operation is high. In the case of VBG failure, a conversion to Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGBP) is an option. A study was undertaken to evaluate the results of the conversion from VBG to RYGBP. METHODS: 101 patients had conversion from VBG to RYGBP. Patients were separated into 3 groups, based on the indication for conversion: weight regain (group 1), excessive weight loss (group 2) and severe eating difficulties (group 3). Data for the study were collected by retrospective analysis of prospectively recorded data. RESULTS: Weight regain (group 1) was the reason for conversion in 73.3% of patients. Staple-line disruption was the most important cause for the weight regain (74.3%). Excessive weight loss (group 2) affected 14% of patients and was caused by outlet stenosis in 78.6% of patients. The remaining 13% had severe eating difficulties as a result of outlet stenosis (46.1%), pouch dilatation (30.8%) and pouch diverticula (23.1%). Mean BMI before conversion to RYGBP was 40.5, 22.3 and 29.8 kg/m2 in group 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Minor or major direct postoperative complications were observed in 2.0% to 7.0%. Long-term complications were more frequent, and consisted mainly of anastomotic stenosis (22.7%) and incisional hernia (16.8%). Follow-up after conversion was achieved in all patients (100%), with a mean period of 38 +/- 29 months. BMI decreased from 40.5 to 30.1 kg/m2, increased from 22.3 to 25.3 kg/m2. and decreased slightly from 29.8 to 29.0 kg/m2 in group 1, 2 and 3, respectively. All patients in group 3 noticed an improvement in eating difficulties. CONCLUSION: Complications after conversion from failed VBG to RYGBP are substantial and need to be considered. However, the conversion itself is a successful operation in terms of effect on body weight and treating eating difficulties after VBG

Quality of life after bariatric surgery - a comparative study of laparoscopic banding vs. bypass

: Laparoscopic gastric banding and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass are widely used for the treatment of morbid obesity. The impact of these two procedures on health-related quality of life has not been analyzed in comparative studies. METHODS: A matched-pair analysis of a prospectively collected database was performed. Fifty-two consecutive patients with laparoscopic gastric bypass were randomly matched to fifty-two patients with laparoscopic gastric banding according to age, BMI, and gender. Quality of life was assessed using two standardized questionnaires (SF 36 and Moorehead-Ardelt II). RESULTS: Mean preoperative BMI was 45.7 kg/m(2) for the bypass patients and 45.3 kg/m(2) for the banding patients. Mean BMI after 3 years follow-up of was 30.4 kg/m(2) and 33.1 kg/m(2) (p = 0.036). In the SF 36 questionnaire, gastric bypass patients yielded a mean total score of 613 versus 607 points in the gastric banding group (p = 0.543), which is comparable to the normal population in Europe. In the Moorhead-Ardelt II questionnaire, the gastric bypass patients scored a mean total of 1.35 points and the gastric banding patients 1.28 points (p = 0.747). Of the patients, 97% with a gastric bypass and 83% with a gastric banding were satisfied with the result of the operation (p = 0.145). CONCLUSION: The patients after laparoscopic gastric bypass and laparoscopic gastric banding have a high level of satisfaction 3 years after the operation and have similar quality of life scores compared to the normal population. Quality of life indexes were not different between the two procedures and were independent of weight loss in successfully operated patients