Estimating Waterbird Abundance on Catfish Aquaculture Ponds Using an Unmanned Aerial System

In this study, we examined the use of an unmanned aerial system (UAS) to monitor fish-eating birds on catfish (Ictalurus spp.) aquaculture facilities in Mississippi, USA. We tested 2 automated computer algorithms to identify bird species using mosaicked imagery taken from a UAS platform. One algorithm identified birds based on color alone (color segmentation), and the other algorithm used shape recognition (template matching), and the results of each algorithm were compared directly to manual counts of the same imagery. We captured digital imagery of great egrets (Ardea alba), great blue herons (A. herodias), and double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) on aquaculture facilities in Mississippi. When all species were combined, template matching algorithm produced an average accuracy of 0.80 (SD = 0.58), and color segmentation algorithm produced an average accuracy of 0.67 (SD = 0.67), but each was highly dependent on weather, image quality, habitat characteristics, and characteristics of the birds themselves. Egrets were successfully counted using both color segmentation and template matching. Template matching performed best for great blue herons compared to color segmentation, and neither algorithm performed well for cormorants. Although the computer-guided identification in this study was highly variable, UAS show promise as an alternative monitoring tool for birds at aquaculture facilities

Quality of Life of Oligometastatic and Polymetastatic Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Patients

Objective: Evidence suggests that distant metastasis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma is a spectrum of disease. Previous studies show that oligometastasis has favorable survival compared with polymetastasis. The quality of life of patients with oligometastasis remains unknown. To further solidify the position of oligometastasis as a separate entity, we hypothesized that oligometastatic patients experience better quality of life than polymetastatic patients.Methods: Patients with distant metastasis were stratified into three groups: oligometastasis (≤3 metastatic foci in ≤2 anatomic sites), explosive metastasis (≥4 metastatic foci at one anatomic site), and explosive-disseminating metastasis (spread to ≥3 anatomic sites). Quality of life was assessed every 2 months post distant metastasis diagnosis. Results: Between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2021, a total of 161 patients with distant metastasis were identified, with a total of 397 measurements. In this group, 57 (35.4%) patients had oligometastasis, 35 (21.7%) patients had explosive metastasis, and 69 (42.9%) patients had explosive-disseminating metastasis. Their median post-distant metastasis survivals were 8.5 months, 3.2 months, and 3.2 months respectively (p &lt; 0.001). A significantly better overall quality of life was observed in the oligometastasis group compared with the polymetastatic groups (+0.75 out of 7, p &lt; 0.05). Furthermore, oligometastatic patients performed better in the subdomains of “physical functioning,” “fatigue,” and “pain.”. Conclusion: Results from this study underscore that subgroups exist regarding quality of life and survival within distant metastasis, with polymetastatic patients performing worse than oligometastatic patients. This highlights the significance of tailored interventions that consider the unique challenges faced by each metastatic group of patients. Level of Evidence: 3, retrospective cohort study Laryngoscope, 2024.</p

Learnings From Longitudinal Patient-Reported and Clinical Outcomes in Palliative Head and Neck Cancer Care

Objective: Patients with palliative head and neck cancer experience many symptoms in a short period of time. Longitudinal data on patient-reported outcomes in this phase are lacking. The aim of this study is to use structurally obtained patient-reported outcome data combined with clinical patient data and obtain insight in patient-reported outcomes, survival, circumstances of death, and interventions and treatment during the palliative phase in order to improve the quality of end-of-life care and patient-centered counseling. Study Design: Longitudinal observational cohort study. Setting: Tertiary cancer center. Method: Quality of life was prospectively collected using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer QLQ-C15-PAL. Tumor- and patient-specific data were retrospectively collected. Descriptive statistics, linear mixed models, and regression analyses were performed. Results: A significant deterioration was found in global health status, physical functioning, fatigue, dyspnea, appetite loss, and constipation over time. However, emotional functioning improved. Median survival was 5.1 months, and only a low percentage of in-hospital death was observed (7.8%). Higher global health status at intake was associated with prolonged survival. Conclusion: Structural measurement of patient-reported outcome together with clinical outcomes provides unique insight, which enables improvement of patient-centered counseling and care.</p

Individualized Dynamic Prediction Model for Patient-Reported Voice Quality in Early-Stage Glottic Cancer

Objective: Early-stage glottic cancer (ESGC) is a malignancy of the head and neck. Besides disease control, preservation and improvement of voice quality are essential. To enable expectation management and well-informed decision-making, patients should be sufficiently counseled with individualized information on expected voice quality. This study aims to develop an individualized dynamic prediction model for patient-reported voice quality. This model should be able to provide individualized predictions at every time point from intake to the end of follow-up. Study Design: Longitudinal cohort study. Setting: Tertiary cancer center. Methods: Patients treated for ESGC were included in this study (N = 294). The Voice Handicap Index was obtained prospectively. The framework of mixed and joint models was used. The prognostic factors used are treatment, age, gender, comorbidity, performance score, smoking, T-stage, and involvement of the anterior commissure. The overall performance of these models was assessed during an internal cross-validation procedure and presentation of absolute errors using box plots. Results: The mean age in this cohort was 67 years and 81.3% are male. Patients were treated with transoral CO2 laser microsurgery (57.8%), single vocal cord irradiation up to (24.5), or local radiotherapy (17.5%). The mean follow-up was 43.4 months (SD 21.5). Including more measurements during prediction improves predictive performance. Including more clinical and demographic variables did not provide better predictions. Little differences in predictive performance between models were found. Conclusion: We developed a dynamic individualized prediction model for patient-reported voice quality. This model has the potential to empower patients and professionals in making well-informed decisions and enables tailor-made counseling.</p