Controlling Posterior Collapse by an Inverse Lipschitz Constraint on the Decoder Network

Variational autoencoders (VAEs) are one of the deep generative models that have experienced enormous success over the past decades. However, in practice, they suffer from a problem called posterior collapse, which occurs when the encoder coincides, or collapses, with the prior taking no information from the latent structure of the input data into consideration. In this work, we introduce an inverse Lipschitz neural network into the decoder and, based on this architecture, provide a new method that can control in a simple and clear manner the degree of posterior collapse for a wide range of VAE models equipped with a concrete theoretical guarantee. We also illustrate the effectiveness of our method through several numerical experiments.Comment: accepted to ICML 2023, some notations adjusted from the submitted versio

A Meta-Analysis of the Short- And Long-Term Results of Randomized Controlled Trials That Compared Laparoscopy-Assisted and Open Colectomy for Colon Cancer

Purpose: We conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate and compare the short- and long-term results of laparoscopy-assisted colectomy (LAC) and open colectomy (OC) for colon cancer

Mineral trioxide aggregate induces osteoblastogenesis via Atf6

AbstractMineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) has been recommended for various uses in endodontics. To understand the effects of MTA on alveolar bone, we examined whether MTA induces osteoblastic differentiation using MC3T3-E1 cells. MTA enhanced mineralization concomitant with alkaline phosphatase activity in a dose- and time-dependent manner. MTA increased production of collagens (Type I and Type III) and matrix metalloproteinases (MMP-9 and MMP-13), suggesting that MTA affects bone matrix remodeling. MTA also induced Bglap (osteocalcin) but not Bmp2 (bone morphogenetic protein-2) mRNA expression. We observed induction of Atf6 (activating transcription factor 6, an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response transcription factor) mRNA expression and activation of Atf6 by MTA treatment. Forced expression of p50Atf6 (active form of Atf6) markedly enhanced Bglap mRNA expression. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assay was performed to investigate the increase in p50Atf6 binding to the Bglap promoter region by MTA treatment. Furthermore, knockdown of Atf6 gene expression by introduction of Tet-on Atf6 shRNA expression vector abrogated MTA-induced mineralization. These results suggest that MTA induces in vitro osteoblastogenesis through the Atf6–osteocalcin axis as ER stress signaling. Therefore, MTA in endodontic treatment may affect alveolar bone healing in the resorbed region caused by pulpal infection

Assessment of QOL Using the ESAS-r-J

Purpose To evaluate the perioperative symptoms of gastric cancer patients undergoing gastrectomy using the Edmonton Symptom Assessment System Revised Japanese version (ESAS-r-J), which is a nine-item visual analogue scale to rate patient symptoms. Methods Between February 2015 and March 2017, 246 patients completed the ESAS-r-J before and after gastrectomy. We evaluated the changes in the prevalence and score of each ESAS-r-J item before and after gastrectomy. In addition, we compared them after gastrectomy between patients who underwent the different approaches. Results Before gastrectomy, anxiety and well-being were the most prevalent items (80%), followed by depression (45%). After gastrectomy, well-being was the most prevalent item (87%), followed by pain (68%). The prevalence of anxiety decreased from 80% to 59% (P = 0.002). The depression and anxiety scores decreased from 1.6 to 1.1 (P < 0.001) and from 2.6 to 1.7 (P = 0.002), respectively. The total score was higher in patients who underwent open surgery than in patients who underwent laparoscopic surgery (16.9 vs 12.9 ; P = 0.031). Conclusions After gastrectomy, psychological symptoms such as depression and anxiety improved despite more physical complaints than before gastrectomy. The laparoscopy was less invasive. It is very important to take care of psychological aspects before gastrectomy

Laterality of the Activation of the Vastus Lateralis Muscle in Females with Parkinson\u27s Disease during the Medication State Compared with Healthy Controls

This study quantified the laterality of motor unit activation properties in females with Parkinson’s disease during force production (low to high-intensity contraction) using high-density surface electromyography. Sixteen females with Parkinson’s disease (age = ± 7.6 years, disease duration = 4.9 ± 5.1 years) and 14 healthy female subjects (age = 68.6 ± 3.6 years) performed submaximal ramp-up contractions during isometric knee extension. High-density surface electromyography signals were recorded from both vastus lateralis muscles. The level of heterogeneity was calculated in the spatial distribution patterns of the high-density surface electromyography signals to determine the modified entropy, coefficient of variation of the root mean square and correlation coefficient to evaluate motor unit activation properties. Pearson’s correlation coefficients were calculated to examine the relationships between disease severity and the root mean square and electromyography variables. The root mean square value and heterogeneity were significantly higher and lower on the more-affected side in females with Parkinson’s disease than on the contralateral side in females with Parkinson’s disease or either side in control subjects (p \u3c 0.05). Females with Parkinson’s disease that exhibited temporal changes of spatial motor unit activation properties showed significant laterality when compared to healthy control subjects in both the low and high-intensity contractions. Moderate-to-strong correlations were observed between disease severity and root mean square and electromyography variables in females with Parkinson’s disease (r\u3e 0.6, p \u3c 0.001). The laterality of motor unit activation properties was compared between the subjects with Parkinson’s disease and the control subjects. The findings suggest that females with Parkinson’s disease have asymmetrical motor unit activation properties, independent of the magnitude of force production

LPD after RHC for ascending colon cancer

Laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD) has been widely adopted in institutions with sufficiently skilled practitioners. This technique requires attentive dissection around the superior mesenteric vein (SMV) and artery. Dissection around the SMV and Henle’s trunk is one of the key aspects of right hemicolectomy (RHC) ; adhesions and fibrosis around these vessels may impede LPD in patients with a history of RHC. We encountered three cases of periampullary tumors in patients with a history of RHC who were successfully treated with LPD. Cases 1, 2, and 3 were of 60-, 73-, and 74-year-old men with periampullary tumors. The operative durations in cases 1, 2, and 3 were 316, 267, and 265 min, respectively. The estimated blood loss volumes in cases 1, 2, and 3 were 20, 50, and 720 mL, respectively. The postoperative hospital stay durations in cases 1, 2, and 3 were of 13, 35, and 15 days, respectively. In conclusion, LPD following RHC may be safely completed with laparoscopy

Pre-Operative Left Ventricular Torsion, QRS Width/CRT, and Post-Mitral Surgery Outcomes in Patients With Nonischemic, Chronic, Severe Secondary Mitral Regurgitation

SummaryThe selection of appropriate candidates for mitral surgery among symptomatic patients with nonischemic, chronic, secondary severe mitral regurgitation (NICSMR) remains a clinical challenge. We studied 50 consecutive symptomatic NICSMR patients for a median follow-up of 2.5 years after mitral surgery and concluded that the pre-operative 2-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography-derived left ventricular torsional profile and QRS width/cardiac resynchronization therapy are potentially important prognostic indicators for post-surgery survival and reverse remodeling