560 research outputs found
Canopy structural modeling using object-oriented image classification and laser scanning
A terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) experiment was carried out in the EAGLE 2006 campaign to characterize and model
the canopy structure of the Speulderbos forest. Semi-variogram analysis was used to describe spatial variability of the
surface. The dependence of the spatial variability on the applied grid size showed, that in this forest spatial details of the
digital surface model are lost in the case of larger than 0.3-0.4 m grid size. Voxel statistics was used for describing the
density of the canopy structure. Five zones of the canopy were identified according to their density distribution. Basic
geometric structures were tested for modeling the forest at the individual tree level. The results create a firm basis for
modeling physical processes in the canopy
Internal Medicine Resident Perspectives Regarding Broad-Spectrum Antibiotic Usage.
Focus groups held with internal medicine residents discussed their perspectives regarding broad-spectrum antibiotic (BSA) usage. Residents knew of BSA-associated adverse events, but they did not associate such events with increased patient morbidity and mortality, and they were more likely to use BSA in situations with diagnostic uncertainty and sick patients
A review of data on abundance, trends in abundance, habitat use and diet of ice-breeding seals in the Southern Ocean
The development of models of marine ecosystems in the Southern Ocean is becoming increasingly important as a means of understanding and managing impacts such as exploitation and climate change. Collating data from disparate sources, and understanding biases or uncertainties inherent in those data, are important first steps for improving ecosystem models. This review focuses on seals that breed in ice habitats of the Southern Ocean (i.e. crabeater seal, Lobodon carcinophaga; Ross seal, Ommatophoca rossii; leopard seal, Hydrurga leptonyx; and Weddell seal, Leptonychotes weddellii). Data on populations (abundance and trends in abundance), distribution and habitat use (movement, key habitat and environmental features) and foraging (diet) are summarised, and potential biases and uncertainties inherent in those data are identified and discussed. Spatial and temporal gaps in knowledge of the populations, habitats and diet of each species are also identified
Stem Cell Aging and Age-Related Cardiovascular Disease: Perspectives of Treatment by Ex-vivo Stem Cell Rejuvenation.
Aging affects endogenous stem cells in terms of functionality and numbers. In particular, during aging, the stemness property can decrease because of enhanced apoptotic cell death and senescence. In addition, aging and aging-related co-morbidities affect the paracrine activity of stem cells and the efficiency of their transplantation. Collectively, this leads to a reduction of the capacity of organs to repair themselves, possibly due to a reduced functional capability of stem cells. Therefore, major efforts have been invested to improve the repair capability of stem cells in aged individuals by overexpressing antisenescence and antiapoptotic genes. In this review, we describe critical genes and signaling pathways in stem cell aging and discuss ex vivo genetic modification approaches aimed at stem cell rejuvenation that are of interest for the cardiovascular system
Risk Factors and Prevalence of Dilated Cardiomyopathy in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review
Highlights Prevalence of DCM varies widely in SSA.Cardiovascular risk factors are important in patients with DCM.The role of genetics in idiopathic DCM is not studied in major part of SSA
Targeted encouragement of GP consultations for possible cancer symptoms: a randomised controlled trial
BACKGROUND: For some common cancers, survival is lower in the UK than in comparable high-income countries. AIM: To assess the effectiveness of a targeted postal intervention (to promote awareness of cancer symptoms and earlier help seeking) on patient consultation rates. DESIGN AND SETTING: A two-arm randomised controlled trial was carried out on patients aged 50-84 years registered at 23 general practices in rural and urban areas of Greater London, Greater Manchester, and the North East of England. METHOD: Patients who had not had a consultation at their general practice in the previous 12 months and had at least two other risk factors for late presentation with cancer were randomised to intervention and control arms. The intervention consisted of a posted letter and leaflet. Primary outcome was the number of consultations at the practice with patients randomised to each arm in the 6 months subsequent to posting the intervention. All patients with outcome data were included in the intention-to-treat analyses. RESULTS: In total, 1513 patients were individually randomised to the intervention (n = 783) and control (n = 730) arms between Nov 2016 - May 2017; outcome data were available for 749 and 705 patients, respectively, with a statistically significantly higher rate of consultation in the intervention arm compared with the control arm: 436 versus 335 consultations (relative risk 1.40, 95% confidence interval = 1.11 to 1.77, P = 0.004). There was, however, no difference in the numbers of patients consulting. CONCLUSION: Targeted interventions of this nature can change behaviour; there is a need to develop interventions that can be more effective at engaging patients with primary care. This study demonstrates that targeted interventions promoting both awareness of possible cancer symptoms and earlier health seeking, can change behaviour. There is a need to develop and test interventions that can be more effective at engaging the most at-risk patients
Screening breast cancer patients for Norwegian ATM mutations
483 Norwegian breast cancer patients were screened for six different ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) mutations previously found to account for 83% of the disease alleles in Norwegian ataxia telangiectasia (AT) patients. Only one carrier was found. These results provide no evidence in favour of an excess risk of breast cancer associated with heterozygosity for classical AT mutations, but remain consistent with a maximum 2.4-fold increased risk. © 2000 Cancer Research Campaign http://www.bjcancer.co
Scandinavian clinical practice guideline on fluid and drug therapy in adults with acute respiratory distress syndrome.
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This article is open access.The objective of the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (SSAI) task force on fluid and drug therapy in adults with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) was to provide clinically relevant, evidence-based treatment recommendations according to standards for trustworthy guidelines.The guideline was developed according to standards for trustworthy guidelines, including a systematic review of the literature and use of the GRADE methodology for assessment of the quality of evidence and for moving from evidence to recommendations.A total of seven ARDS interventions were assessed. We suggest fluid restriction in patients with ARDS (weak recommendation, moderate quality evidence). Also, we suggest early use of neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs) in patients with severe ARDS (weak recommendation, moderate quality evidence). We recommend against the routine use of other drugs, including corticosteroids, beta2 agonists, statins, and inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) or prostanoids in adults with ARDS (strong recommendations: low- to high-quality evidence). These recommendations do not preclude the use of any drug or combination of drugs targeting underlying or co-existing disorders.This guideline emphasizes the paucity of evidence of benefit - and potential for harm - of common interventions in adults with ARDS and highlights the need for prudence when considering use of non-licensed interventions in this patient population.Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (SSAI
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