Long-Term Efficacy of Pulmonary Rehabilitation in Patients with Occupational Respiratory Diseases

Background: Pulmonary rehabilitation is a well-recognized treatment option in chronic obstructive lung disease improving exercise performance, respiratory symptoms and quality of life. In occupational respiratory diseases, which can be rather cost-intensive due to the compensation needs, very little information is available. Objectives: This study aims at the evaluation of the usefulness of pulmonary rehabilitation in patients with occupational respiratory diseases, partly involving complex alterations of lung function and of the sustainability of effects. Methods: We studied 263 patients with occupational respiratory diseases (asthma, silicosis, asbestosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) using a 4-week inpatient rehabilitation program and follow-up examinations 3 and 12 months later. The outcomes evaluated were lung function, 6-min walking distance (6MWD), maximum exercise capacity (Wmax), skeletal muscle strength, respiratory symptoms, exacerbations and associated medical consultations, quality of life (SF-36, SGRQ), anxiety/depression (HADS) and Medical Research Council and Baseline and Transition Dyspnea Index scores. Results: Compared to baseline, there were significant (p < 0.05) improvements in 6MWD, Wmax and muscle strength immediately after rehabilitation, and these were maintained over 12 months (p < 0.05). Effects were less pronounced in asbestosis. Overall, a significant reduction in the rate of exacerbations by 35%, antibiotic therapy by 27% and use of health care services by 17% occurred within 12 months after rehabilitation. No changes were seen in the questionnaire outcomes. Conclusions: Pulmonary rehabilitation is effective even in the complex settings of occupational respiratory diseases, providing sustained improvement of functional capacity and reducing health care utilization. Copyright (C) 2012 S. Karger AG, Base

Bias-Flip Technique for Frequency Tuning of Piezo-Electric Energy Harvesting Devices

Devices that harvest electrical energy from mechanical vibrations have the problem that the frequency of the source vibration is often not matched to the resonant frequency of the energy harvesting device. Manufacturing tolerances make it difficult to match the Energy Harvesting Device (EHD) resonant frequency to the source vibration frequency, and the source vibration frequency may vary with time. Previous work has recognized that it is possible to tune the resonant frequency of an EHD using a tunable, reactive impedance at the output of the device. The present paper develops the theory of electrical tuning, and proposes the Bias-Flip (BF) technique, to implement this tunable, reactive impedance

Quantitative characterization of the x-ray imaging capability of rotating modulation collimators with laser light

We developed a method for making quantitative characterizations of bi-grid rotating modulation collimators (RMC ’s) that are used in a Fourier transform x-ray imager. With appropriate choices of the collimator spacings, this technique can be implemented with a beam-expanded He -Ne laser to simulate the plane wave produced by a point source at infinity even though the RMC ’s are diffraction limited at the He -Ne wavelength of 632.8 nm. The expanded beam passes through the grid pairs at a small angle with respect to their axis of rotation, and the modulated transmission through the grids as the RMC ’s rotate is detected with a photomultiplier tube. In addition to providing a quantitative characterization of the RMC ’s, the method also produces a measured point response function and provides an end-to-end check of the imaging system. We applied our method to the RMC ’s on the high-energy imaging device (HEIDI) balloon payload in its preflight configuration. We computed the harmonic ratios of the modulation time profile from the laser measurements and compared them with theoretical calculations, including the diffraction effects on irregular grids. Our results indicate the 25-in. (64-cm) x-ray imaging optics on HEIDI are capable of achieving images near the theoretical limit and are not seriously compromised by imperfections in the grids

Short assessment of the Big Five: robust across survey methods except telephone interviewing

We examined measurement invariance and age-related robustness of a short 15-item Big Five Inventory (BFI–S) of personality dimensions, which is well suited for applications in large-scale multidisciplinary surveys. The BFI–S was assessed in three different interviewing conditions: computer-assisted or paper-assisted face-to-face interviewing, computer-assisted telephone interviewing, and a self-administered questionnaire. Randomized probability samples from a large-scale German panel survey and a related probability telephone study were used in order to test method effects on self-report measures of personality characteristics across early, middle, and late adulthood. Exploratory structural equation modeling was used in order to test for measurement invariance of the five-factor model of personality trait domains across different assessment methods. For the short inventory, findings suggest strong robustness of self-report measures of personality dimensions among young and middle-aged adults. In old age, telephone interviewing was associated with greater distortions in reliable personality assessment. It is concluded that the greater mental workload of telephone interviewing limits the reliability of self-report personality assessment. Face-to-face surveys and self-administrated questionnaire completion are clearly better suited than phone surveys when personality traits in age-heterogeneous samples are assessed

Neuronal intermediate filament inclusion disease may be incorrectly classified as a subtype of FTLD-FUS

Background: The majority of cases of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) are characterized by focal cortical atrophy with an underlying tau or TDP-43 proteinopathy. A subset of FTLD cases, however, lack tau and TDP-43 immunoreactivity, but have neuronal inclusions positive for ubiquitin, referred to as atypical FTLD (aFTLD-U). Studies have demonstrated that ubiquitin-positive inclusions in aFTLD-U are immunoreactive for fused in sarcoma (FUS). As such, the current nosology for this entity is FTLD-FUS, which is thought to include not only aFTLD-U but also neuronal intermediate filament inclusion disease (NIFID) and basophilic inclusion body disease. Objective: To compare pathological features of cases of aFTLD-U and NIFID. Methods: We reviewed the neuropathology of 15 patients (10 males and 5 females; average age at death 54 years (range 41-69 years)) with an antemortem clinical diagnosis of a frontotemporal dementia and pathological diagnosis of aFTLD-U (n=8) or NIFID (n=7). Sections were processed for immunohistochemistry and immunoelectron microscopy with FUS, TDP-43, and α-internexin (αINX) antibodies. Results: Eight cases had pathologic features consistent with FTLD-FUS, with severe striatal atrophy (7/8 cases), as well as FUS-positive neuronal cytoplasmic and vermiform intranuclear inclusions, but no αINX immunoreactivity. Five cases had features consistent with NIFID, with neuronal inclusions positive for both FUS and αINX. Striatal atrophy was present in only two of the NIFID cases. Two cases had αINX-positive neuronal inclusions consistent with NIFID, but both lacked striatal atrophy and FUS immunoreactivity. Surprisingly, one of these two NIFID cases had lesions immunoreactive for TDP-43. Discussion: While FUS pathology remains a prominent feature of aFTLD-U, there is pathologic heterogeneity, including rare cases of NIFID with TDP-43- rather than FUS-positive inclusions

Who Should Predict? Exact Algorithms For Learning to Defer to Humans

Automated AI classifiers should be able to defer the prediction to a human decision maker to ensure more accurate predictions. In this work, we jointly train a classifier with a rejector, which decides on each data point whether the classifier or the human should predict. We show that prior approaches can fail to find a human-AI system with low misclassification error even when there exists a linear classifier and rejector that have zero error (the realizable setting). We prove that obtaining a linear pair with low error is NP-hard even when the problem is realizable. To complement this negative result, we give a mixed-integer-linear-programming (MILP) formulation that can optimally solve the problem in the linear setting. However, the MILP only scales to moderately-sized problems. Therefore, we provide a novel surrogate loss function that is realizable-consistent and performs well empirically. We test our approaches on a comprehensive set of datasets and compare to a wide range of baselines.Comment: AISTATS 202

Intensive Cultural Resources Survey or the Weatherford East Loop, Weatherford, Parker County, Texas

Parker County proposes to build the eastern segment of a loop north of the City of Weatherford, in Parker County, Texas). This portion of the loop, designated East Loop, is approximately 6.65 miles long. It begins at the intersection of the eastern terminus of the Ric Williamson Memorial Highway (or West Loop) at State Highway 51 north of the city. The proposed route continues eastward for approximately 4 miles, crosses Farm-to-Market 730 before turning south for approximately 2 miles, crosses US Highway 180 at Center Point Road, and follows Center Point Road to terminate at Interstate Highway 20. The East Loop project is owned and funded by Parker County. As a political subdivision of the State of Texas, Parker County is required to comply with the Antiquities Code of Texas (9 Texas Natural Resources Code 191). A permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is also required for the proposed project. Therefore, the USACE, as a federal agency, has the responsibility for complying with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), as amended (Section 106). Section 106 requires consideration of the effects of the proposed project on properties listed in, or determined eligible for, the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), and ultimately designation as a State Antiquities Landmark (SAL). Freese and Nichols, Inc., the design and environmental consultant to Parker County, contracted with Cox|McLain Environmental Consulting, Inc. (CMEC), to conduct the intensive archeological and reconnaissance historic resources surveys necessary for compliance with the Antiquities Code and Section 106. Melissa M. Green (Principal Investigator) and Brett Lang carried out the archeological survey for Parker County under Texas Antiquities Permit 8127, and Emily Reed and Izabella Dennis conducted the historic resources survey; all are staff of CMEC. Fieldwork was conducted in September 2017. Widths of the proposed roadway vary between 120 and 390 feet, but the average width is 200 feet. The archeological area of potential effects (APE) consists of the entire 195.39-acre footprint of new location roadway and a 600-foot long, 30-foot wide drainage ditch easement added to the project for a total 196.62-acre APE. The historic resources APE consists of a 300-foot-wide buffer area around the proposed project corridor. The APE is located primarily on uplands but crosses Willow Creek, Holder Branch, Underwood Branch, and a number of small intermittent channels. The land is mostly undeveloped with some residential/commercial areas, particularly near each terminus, that will be impacted. Ground surfaces within the APE were mostly covered in grasses, allowing for some limited visibility ranging from 0 to 30 percent, though ground visibility in forested areas and eroded pastures allowed for higher ground visibility at 70 to 100 percent. Existing impacts to the project corridor include residential and commercial development, buried utilities and other infrastructures associated with the developments, oil and gas production and storage, stock tank construction, livestock grazing or training, and erosion resulting from all of the above. A total of 48 shovel test units were excavated judgmentally across the area of potential effects; 36 were sterile for cultural materials and 12 were associated with sites. Initially, right-of-entry was not allowed on several individual parcels representing approximately 2.14 miles (48.29 acres) of the proposed corridor during the original survey in September 2017, but were investigated in June and July of 2018 once right-of-entry was granted. Potential for prehistoric archeological deposits in the area of potential effects is considered low, and the potential for historic deposits is considered moderate. The proposed roadway corridor partially impacts previously recorded sites 41PR163/41PR164, 41PR165, and 41PR166, as well as the NRHP-listed Byron Farmstead Historic District. The district comprises 85.5 acres with three recorded archeological sites (41PR163, 41PR164, now combined, and 41PR166), or contributing elements, within its boundary. All of these sites were revisited during the survey. Although located outside of the project corridor, site 41PR163, the original log cabin of the Byron Farmstead, and site 41PR164, the later bungalow on the farmstead were visited due to their close proximity to the project and to help assess the indirect impacts to these sites and contributing elements of the historic district. Based on the field visit, the boundaries of sites 41PR163 and 41PR164 have been adjusted and combined and now include a previously unrecorded dairy location, but contributing element to the district, within the new combined site limit (41PR163/41PR164). Since site 41PR163/41PR164 is already a contributing element of the Byron Farmstead Historic District, it is recommended for designation as a SAL. Site 41PR166 is the dairy operation owned by a separate family member and not originally a contributing element to the district. The site is mostly intact and retains most of its integrity. It has now been recommended as a contributing element to the historic district, and ultimately for SAL designation, demonstrating the long-time use of the larger property for and family commitment to cattle and dairying. Site 41PR166 will be partially impacted by the proposed road corridor. In addition to the archeological sites located on the Byron Farmstead Historic District, there are three contributing buildings, two contributing structures, one contributing site, and one noncontributing site. For unknown reasons, an additional 13 resources located within the historic district’s boundary were not documented in the NRHP nomination form or assigned contributing/non-contributing status. As a result of this survey, eight of the previously undocumented resources are recommended as contributing and five are recommended as non-contributing to the Byron Farmstead Historic District. Due to the construction of the proposed roadway through the Byron Farmstead Historic District, there would be an adverse effect on the district by diminishing the integrity of feeling, setting, and association. Although previously recorded site 41PR165, remnants of a small farmstead, would be partially impacted by the proposed roadway corridor, the site as a whole was not investigated during this survey so it is unknown if any of the remaining components would add any additional information concerning cattle ranching in the area. Therefore, its NRHP eligibility or designation as an SAL is recommended as unknown. One additional historic site, 41PR185, was recorded during the survey. This site is a mid- to late twentieth century farmstead on a hilltop west of Holder Branch measuring 35 meters east/west by 55 meters north/south. The site is composed of a collapsed rock root cellar, rock and mortar pile, six fence posts, and large sections of sheet metal siding. The site will be entirely impacted by the proposed construction and is recommended as not eligible for listing in the NRHP or for SAL designation. All materials (notes, photographs, administrative documents, and other project data) generated from this work will be housed at the Center for Archaeological Studies at Texas State University in San Marcos, where they will be made permanently available to future researchers per 13 Texas Administrative Code 26.16-17. CMEC submitted the previous version of this report to the Texas Historical Commission (THC) on March 1, 2018, for review. In the response letter dated March 30, 2018, THC concurred with the eligibility recommendations for the historic resources and requested additional information regarding recorded archeological sites. THC also requested further review of the applicability of Section 106 in relationship to the USACE areas of jurisdiction (Appendix B). Since that time, USACE has indicated Section 106 is applicable to the Byron Farmstead Historic District, and CMEC has been granted access to previously inaccessible parcels to complete the archeological survey. This version of the report has been updated to provide additional information from the archeological survey and to reflect the applicability of Section 106, including an assessment of effects to historic properties and archeological sites. Continued coordination between the USACE, Parker County, the City of Weatherford, and the THC is anticipated in order to satisfy all Section 106 requirements associated with this project but is not detailed in this report. If any unanticipated cultural materials or deposits are found at any stage of clearing, preparation, or construction, the work should cease and THC personnel should be notified immediately. The THC concurred with the results and recommendations of this report on December 12, 2018