A method for space-variant deblurring with application to adaptive optics imaging in astronomy

Images from adaptive optics systems are generally affected by significant distortions of the point spread function (PSF) across the field of view, depending on the position of natural and artificial guide stars. Image reduction techniques circumventing or mitigating these effects are important tools to take full advantage of the scientific information encoded in AO images. The aim of this paper is to propose a method for the deblurring of the astronomical image, given a set of samples of the space-variant PSF. The method is based on a partitioning of the image domain into regions of isoplanatism and on applying suitable deconvolution methods with boundary effects correction to each region. The effectiveness of the boundary effects correction is proved. Moreover, the criterion for extending the disjoint sections to partially overlapping sections is validated. The method is applied to simulated images of a stellar system characterized by a spatially variable PSF. We obtain good photometric quality, and therefore good science quality, by performing aperture photometry on the deblurred images. The proposed method is implemented in IDL in the Software Package "Patch", which is available on http://www.airyproject.eu.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figures, 7 tables, accepted by A&

Deblurring of post-adaptive optics images

The novel and freely available ‘Patch’ software package can be used to deconvolve images that have spatially variable point spread functions

A Wearable System for Real-Time Continuous Monitoring of Physical Activity

Over the last decades, wearable systems have gained interest for monitoring of physiological variables, promoting health, and improving exercise adherence in different populations ranging from elite athletes to patients. In this paper, we present a wearable system for the continuous real-time monitoring of respiratory frequency (fR), heart rate (HR), and movement cadence during physical activity. The system has been experimentally tested in the laboratory (by simulating the breathing pattern with a mechanical ventilator) and by collecting data from one healthy volunteer. Results show the feasibility of the proposed device for real-time continuous monitoring of fR, HR, and movement cadence both in resting condition and during activity. Finally, different synchronization techniques have been investigated to enable simultaneous data collection from different wearable modules.Ministerio de Economía y Competitivida

Safety and Efficacy of Subcutaneous Rituximab in Previously Untreated Patients with CD20+ Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma or Follicular Lymphoma: Results from an Italian Phase IIIb Study

Subcutaneous (SC) rituximab may be beneficial in terms of convenience and tolerability, with potentially fewer and less severe administration-related reactions (ARRs) compared to the intravenous (IV) form. This report presents the results of a phase IIIb study conducted in Italy. The study included adult patients with CD20+ DLBCL or FL having received at least one full dose of IV RTX 375 mg/m2 during induction or maintenance. Patients on induction received ≥4 cycles of RTX SC 1400 mg plus standard chemotherapy and FL patients on maintenance received ≥6 cycles of RTX SC. Overall, 159 patients (73 DLBCL, 86 FL) were enrolled: 103 (54 DLBCL, 49 FL) completed induction and 42 patients with FL completed 12 maintenance cycles. ARRs were reported in 10 patients (6.3%), 3 (4.2%) with DLBCL and 7 (8.1%) with FL, all of mild severity, and resolved without dose delay/discontinuation. Treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) and serious adverse events occurred in 41 (25.9%) and 14 patients (8.9%), respectively. Two patients with DLBCL had fatal events: Klebsiella infection (related to rituximab) and septic shock (related to chemotherapy). Neutropenia (14 patients, 8.9%) was the most common treatment-related TEAE. Two patients with DLBCL (2.8%) and 6 with FL (7.0%) discontinued rituximab due to TEAEs. 65.2% and 69.7% of patients with DLBCL and 67.9% and 73.6% of patients with FL had complete response (CR) and CR unconfirmed, respectively. The median time to events (EFS, PFS, and OS) was not estimable due to the low rate of events. At a median follow-up of 29.5 and 47.8 months in patients with DLBCL and FL, respectively, EFS, PFS, and OS were 70.8%, 70.8%, and 80.6% in patients with DLBCL and 77.9%, 77.9%, and 95.3% in patients with FL, respectively. The switch from IV to SC rituximab in patients with DLBCL and FL was associated with low risk of ARRs and satisfactory response in both groups. This trial was registered with NCT01987505

Commissioning and improvements of the instrumentation and launch of the scientific exploitation of OARPAF, the Regional Astronomical Observatory of the Antola Park

The OARPAF telescope is an 80-cm-diameter optical telescope installed in the Antola Mount Regional Reserve, in Northern Italy. We present the results of the characterization of the site, as well as developments and interventions that have been implemented, with the goal of exploiting the facility for scientific and educational purposes. During the characterization of the site, an average background brightness of 22.40mAB (B filter) to 21.14mAB (I) per arcsecond squared, and a 1.5″ to 3.0″ seeing, have been measured. An estimate of the magnitude zero points for photometry is also reported. The material under commissioning includes three CCD detectors for which we provide the linearity range, gain, and dark current; a 31-orders échelle spectrograph with R ∼ 8500 to 15,000 and a dispersion of n = 1.39 × 10 − 6 px − 1λ + 1.45 × 10 − 4 nm / px, where λ is expressed in nm. The scientific and outreach potential of the facility is proven in different science cases, such as exoplanetary transits and active galactic nuclei variability. The determination of time delays of gravitationally lensed quasars, the microlensing phenomenon, and the tracking and the study of asteroids are also discussed as prospective science cases

Supplement: "Localization and broadband follow-up of the gravitational-wave transient GW150914" (2016, ApJL, 826, L13)

This Supplement provides supporting material for Abbott et al. (2016a). We briefly summarize past electromagnetic (EM) follow-up efforts as well as the organization and policy of the current EM follow-up program. We compare the four probability sky maps produced for the gravitational-wave transient GW150914, and provide additional details of the EM follow-up observations that were performed in the different bands

Global burden of 369 diseases and injuries in 204 countries and territories, 1990–2019: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background: In an era of shifting global agendas and expanded emphasis on non-communicable diseases and injuries along with communicable diseases, sound evidence on trends by cause at the national level is essential. The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) provides a systematic scientific assessment of published, publicly available, and contributed data on incidence, prevalence, and mortality for a mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive list of diseases and injuries. Methods: GBD estimates incidence, prevalence, mortality, years of life lost (YLLs), years lived with disability (YLDs), and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) due to 369 diseases and injuries, for two sexes, and for 204 countries and territories. Input data were extracted from censuses, household surveys, civil registration and vital statistics, disease registries, health service use, air pollution monitors, satellite imaging, disease notifications, and other sources. Cause-specific death rates and cause fractions were calculated using the Cause of Death Ensemble model and spatiotemporal Gaussian process regression. Cause-specific deaths were adjusted to match the total all-cause deaths calculated as part of the GBD population, fertility, and mortality estimates. Deaths were multiplied by standard life expectancy at each age to calculate YLLs. A Bayesian meta-regression modelling tool, DisMod-MR 2.1, was used to ensure consistency between incidence, prevalence, remission, excess mortality, and cause-specific mortality for most causes. Prevalence estimates were multiplied by disability weights for mutually exclusive sequelae of diseases and injuries to calculate YLDs. We considered results in the context of the Socio-demographic Index (SDI), a composite indicator of income per capita, years of schooling, and fertility rate in females younger than 25 years. Uncertainty intervals (UIs) were generated for every metric using the 25th and 975th ordered 1000 draw values of the posterior distribution. Findings: Global health has steadily improved over the past 30 years as measured by age-standardised DALY rates. After taking into account population growth and ageing, the absolute number of DALYs has remained stable. Since 2010, the pace of decline in global age-standardised DALY rates has accelerated in age groups younger than 50 years compared with the 1990–2010 time period, with the greatest annualised rate of decline occurring in the 0–9-year age group. Six infectious diseases were among the top ten causes of DALYs in children younger than 10 years in 2019: lower respiratory infections (ranked second), diarrhoeal diseases (third), malaria (fifth), meningitis (sixth), whooping cough (ninth), and sexually transmitted infections (which, in this age group, is fully accounted for by congenital syphilis; ranked tenth). In adolescents aged 10–24 years, three injury causes were among the top causes of DALYs: road injuries (ranked first), self-harm (third), and interpersonal violence (fifth). Five of the causes that were in the top ten for ages 10–24 years were also in the top ten in the 25–49-year age group: road injuries (ranked first), HIV/AIDS (second), low back pain (fourth), headache disorders (fifth), and depressive disorders (sixth). In 2019, ischaemic heart disease and stroke were the top-ranked causes of DALYs in both the 50–74-year and 75-years-and-older age groups. Since 1990, there has been a marked shift towards a greater proportion of burden due to YLDs from non-communicable diseases and injuries. In 2019, there were 11 countries where non-communicable disease and injury YLDs constituted more than half of all disease burden. Decreases in age-standardised DALY rates have accelerated over the past decade in countries at the lower end of the SDI range, while improvements have started to stagnate or even reverse in countries with higher SDI. Interpretation: As disability becomes an increasingly large component of disease burden and a larger component of health expenditure, greater research and developm nt investment is needed to identify new, more effective intervention strategies. With a rapidly ageing global population, the demands on health services to deal with disabling outcomes, which increase with age, will require policy makers to anticipate these changes. The mix of universal and more geographically specific influences on health reinforces the need for regular reporting on population health in detail and by underlying cause to help decision makers to identify success stories of disease control to emulate, as well as opportunities to improve. Funding: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. © 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 licens

Global age-sex-specific fertility, mortality, healthy life expectancy (HALE), and population estimates in 204 countries and territories, 1950-2019 : a comprehensive demographic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background: Accurate and up-to-date assessment of demographic metrics is crucial for understanding a wide range of social, economic, and public health issues that affect populations worldwide. The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019 produced updated and comprehensive demographic assessments of the key indicators of fertility, mortality, migration, and population for 204 countries and territories and selected subnational locations from 1950 to 2019. Methods: 8078 country-years of vital registration and sample registration data, 938 surveys, 349 censuses, and 238 other sources were identified and used to estimate age-specific fertility. Spatiotemporal Gaussian process regression (ST-GPR) was used to generate age-specific fertility rates for 5-year age groups between ages 15 and 49 years. With extensions to age groups 10–14 and 50–54 years, the total fertility rate (TFR) was then aggregated using the estimated age-specific fertility between ages 10 and 54 years. 7417 sources were used for under-5 mortality estimation and 7355 for adult mortality. ST-GPR was used to synthesise data sources after correction for known biases. Adult mortality was measured as the probability of death between ages 15 and 60 years based on vital registration, sample registration, and sibling histories, and was also estimated using ST-GPR. HIV-free life tables were then estimated using estimates of under-5 and adult mortality rates using a relational model life table system created for GBD, which closely tracks observed age-specific mortality rates from complete vital registration when available. Independent estimates of HIV-specific mortality generated by an epidemiological analysis of HIV prevalence surveys and antenatal clinic serosurveillance and other sources were incorporated into the estimates in countries with large epidemics. Annual and single-year age estimates of net migration and population for each country and territory were generated using a Bayesian hierarchical cohort component model that analysed estimated age-specific fertility and mortality rates along with 1250 censuses and 747 population registry years. We classified location-years into seven categories on the basis of the natural rate of increase in population (calculated by subtracting the crude death rate from the crude birth rate) and the net migration rate. We computed healthy life expectancy (HALE) using years lived with disability (YLDs) per capita, life tables, and standard demographic methods. Uncertainty was propagated throughout the demographic estimation process, including fertility, mortality, and population, with 1000 draw-level estimates produced for each metric. Findings: The global TFR decreased from 2·72 (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 2·66–2·79) in 2000 to 2·31 (2·17–2·46) in 2019. Global annual livebirths increased from 134·5 million (131·5–137·8) in 2000 to a peak of 139·6 million (133·0–146·9) in 2016. Global livebirths then declined to 135·3 million (127·2–144·1) in 2019. Of the 204 countries and territories included in this study, in 2019, 102 had a TFR lower than 2·1, which is considered a good approximation of replacement-level fertility. All countries in sub-Saharan Africa had TFRs above replacement level in 2019 and accounted for 27·1% (95% UI 26·4–27·8) of global livebirths. Global life expectancy at birth increased from 67·2 years (95% UI 66·8–67·6) in 2000 to 73·5 years (72·8–74·3) in 2019. The total number of deaths increased from 50·7 million (49·5–51·9) in 2000 to 56·5 million (53·7–59·2) in 2019. Under-5 deaths declined from 9·6 million (9·1–10·3) in 2000 to 5·0 million (4·3–6·0) in 2019. Global population increased by 25·7%, from 6·2 billion (6·0–6·3) in 2000 to 7·7 billion (7·5–8·0) in 2019. In 2019, 34 countries had negative natural rates of increase; in 17 of these, the population declined because immigration was not sufficient to counteract the negative rate of decline. Globally, HALE increased from 58·6 years (56·1–60·8) in 2000 to 63·5 years (60·8–66·1) in 2019. HALE increased in 202 of 204 countries and territories between 2000 and 2019

Economic consequences of investing in anti-HCV antiviral treatment from the Italian NHS perspective : a real-world-based analysis of PITER data

OBJECTIVE: We estimated the cost consequence of Italian National Health System (NHS) investment in direct-acting antiviral (DAA) therapy according to hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment access policies in Italy. METHODS: A multistate, 20-year time horizon Markov model of HCV liver disease progression was developed. Fibrosis stage, age and genotype distributions were derived from the Italian Platform for the Study of Viral Hepatitis Therapies (PITER) cohort. The treatment efficacy, disease progression probabilities and direct costs in each health state were obtained from the literature. The break-even point in time (BPT) was defined as the period of time required for the cumulative costs saved to recover the Italian NHS investment in DAA treatment. Three different PITER enrolment periods, which covered the full DAA access evolution in Italy, were considered. RESULTS: The disease stages of 2657 patients who consecutively underwent DAA therapy from January 2015 to December 2017 at 30 PITER clinical centres were standardized for 1000 patients. The investment in DAAs was considered to equal €25 million, €15 million, and €9 million in 2015, 2016, and 2017, respectively. For patients treated in 2015, the BPT was not achieved, because of the disease severity of the treated patients and high DAA prices. For 2016 and 2017, the estimated BPTs were 6.6 and 6.2 years, respectively. The total cost savings after 20 years were €50.13 and €55.50 million for 1000 patients treated in 2016 and 2017, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This study may be a useful tool for public decision makers to understand how HCV clinical and epidemiological profiles influence the economic burden of HCV