Adaptive Impedance Tuning Network using Genetic Algorithm: ITuneGA

Adaptive impedance tuning algorithms are used to preserve the link quality of mobile phones under fluctuating user conditions. It is highly desirable to correct the complex impedance mismatch with high convergence rate. Presented here, is a novel technique for correcting impedance mismatch in adaptive impedance tuning network by exploiting the relationships among the genetic algorithm’s coefficient values derived from the matching network parameters. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed impedance tunable algorithm (ITuneGA) outperforms conventional GA and LMS, with its fast convergence speed and high accuracy. The robustness of ITuneGA has been verified by using Pi-networks with two and four tuning elements. ITuneGA corrects antenna impedance mismatches and reduces the reflected power, thereby significantly improving the quality of the signal

Green Synthesis of Gold Nanoparticles Using Zingiber Officinale Rhizomes Aqueous Extract and its Gastroprotective Activity Against Ethanol-Produced Stomach Ulcer in Rodents

Synthesis of gold nanoparticles exhibition wide range of bioactivities and was conventionally used for the remedy of numerous disorders. Our study aims to measure the gastroprotective effect of synthesized gold nanoparticles on absolute ethanol-induced stomach ulceration in rats. The rats were noticeably administered with two doses of gold nanoparticles (175 ppm and 350 ppm) with absolute alcohol and showed a significant improvement in the adverse effect of ethanol-produced stomach damage as confirmed by decreasing ulcer index and raising % of ulcer prevention. Increased mucus pH of stomach content reduced ulcerated portion, condensed or nonappearance of edema, and white blood cells permeation subcutaneous layer. In gastric tissue homogenate, synthesized gold nanoparticles presented a substantial increase in superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) actions, and a substantial lessening of malondialdehyde (MDA) amount. Besides, gold nanoparticle increases the intensity of periodic acid Schiff stained (PAS) of the gastric epithelium of the stomach. Gold nanoparticles confirmed gastro-protective effects which might be qualified to its antioxidant, increase mucus secretion, increase endogenous enzymes (SOD and CAT), and reduce MDA quantity

Automated grade classification of oral epithelial dysplasia using morphometric analysis of histology images

Oral dysplasia is a pre-malignant stage of oral epithelial carcinomas, e.g., oral squamous cell carcinoma, where significant changes in tissue layers and cells can be observed under the microscope. However, malignancy can be reverted or cured using proper medication or surgery if the grade of malignancy is assessed properly. The assessment of correct grade is therefore critical in patient management as it can change the treatment decisions and prognosis for the dysplastic lesion. This assessment is highly challenging due to considerable inter- and intraobserver variability in pathologists’ agreement, which highlights the need for an automated grading system that can predict more accurate and reliable grade. Recent advancements have made it possible for digital pathology (DP) and artificial intelligence (AI) to join forces from the digitization of tissue slides into images and using those images to train and predict more accurate grades using complex AI models. In this regard, we propose a novel morphometric approach exploiting the architectural features in dysplastic lesions i.e., irregular epithelial stratification where we measure the widths of different layers of the epithelium from the boundary layer i.e., keratin projecting inwards to the epithelium and basal layers to the rest of the tissue section from a clinically significant viewpoint

Prediction of malignant transformation and recurrence of oral epithelial dysplasia using architectural and cytological feature specific prognostic models

Oral epithelial dysplasia (OED) is a precursor state usually preceding oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Histological grading is the current gold standard for OED prognostication but is subjective and variable with unreliable outcome prediction. We explore if individual OED histological features can be used to develop and evaluate prognostic models for malignant transformation and recurrence prediction. Digitised tissue slides for a cohort of 109 OED cases were reviewed by three expert pathologists, where the prevalence and agreement of architectural and cytological histological features was assessed and association with clinical outcomes analysed using Cox proportional hazards regression and Kaplan–Meier curves. Within the cohort, the most prevalent features were basal cell hyperplasia (72%) and irregular surface keratin (60%), and least common were verrucous surface (26%), loss of epithelial cohesion (30%), lymphocytic band and dyskeratosis (34%). Several features were significant for transformation (p < 0.036) and recurrence (p < 0.015) including bulbous rete pegs, hyperchromatism, loss of epithelial cohesion, loss of stratification, suprabasal mitoses and nuclear pleomorphism. This led us to propose two prognostic scoring systems including a ‘6-point model’ using the six features showing a greater statistical association with transformation and recurrence (bulbous rete pegs, hyperchromatism, loss of epithelial cohesion, loss of stratification, suprabasal mitoses, nuclear pleomorphism) and a ‘two-point model’ using the two features with highest inter-pathologist agreement (loss of epithelial cohesion and bulbous rete pegs). Both the ‘six point’ and ‘two point’ models showed good predictive ability (AUROC ≥ 0.774 for transformation and 0.726 for recurrence) with further improvement when age, gender and histological grade were added. These results demonstrate a correlation between individual OED histological features and prognosis for the first time. The proposed models have the potential to simplify OED grading and aid patient management. Validation on larger multicentre cohorts with prospective analysis is needed to establish their usefulness in clinical practice

A digital score of peri‐epithelial lymphocytic activity predicts malignant transformation in oral epithelial dysplasia

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is amongst the most common cancers, with more than 377,000 new cases worldwide each year. OSCC prognosis remains poor, related to cancer presentation at a late stage, indicating the need for early detection to improve patient prognosis. OSCC is often preceded by a premalignant state known as oral epithelial dysplasia (OED), which is diagnosed and graded using subjective histological criteria leading to variability and prognostic unreliability. In this work, we propose a deep learning approach for the development of prognostic models for malignant transformation and their association with clinical outcomes in histology whole slide images (WSIs) of OED tissue sections. We train a weakly supervised method on OED cases (n = 137) with malignant transformation (n = 50) and mean malignant transformation time of 6.51 years (±5.35 SD). Stratified five-fold cross-validation achieved an average area under the receiver-operator characteristic curve (AUROC) of 0.78 for predicting malignant transformation in OED. Hotspot analysis revealed various features of nuclei in the epithelium and peri-epithelial tissue to be significant prognostic factors for malignant transformation, including the count of peri-epithelial lymphocytes (PELs) (p < 0.05), epithelial layer nuclei count (NC) (p < 0.05), and basal layer NC (p < 0.05). Progression-free survival (PFS) using the epithelial layer NC (p < 0.05, C-index = 0.73), basal layer NC (p < 0.05, C-index = 0.70), and PELs count (p < 0.05, C-index = 0.73) all showed association of these features with a high risk of malignant transformation in our univariate analysis. Our work shows the application of deep learning for the prognostication and prediction of PFS of OED for the first time and offers potential to aid patient management. Further evaluation and testing on multi-centre data is required for validation and translation to clinical practice. © 2023 The Authors. The Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland

Track A Basic Science

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138319/1/jia218438.pd

International nosocomial infection control consortium (INICC) report, data summary of 36 countries, for 2004-2009

The results of a surveillance study conducted by the International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium (INICC) from January 2004 through December 2009 in 422 intensive care units (ICUs) of 36 countries in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe are reported. During the 6-year study period, using Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN; formerly the National Nosocomial Infection Surveillance system [NNIS]) definitions for device-associated health care-associated infections, we gathered prospective data from 313,008 patients hospitalized in the consortium's ICUs for an aggregate of 2,194,897 ICU bed-days. Despite the fact that the use of devices in the developing countries' ICUs was remarkably similar to that reported in US ICUs in the CDC's NHSN, rates of device-associated nosocomial infection were significantly higher in the ICUs of the INICC hospitals; the pooled rate of central line-associated bloodstream infection in the INICC ICUs of 6.8 per 1,000 central line-days was more than 3-fold higher than the 2.0 per 1,000 central line-days reported in comparable US ICUs. The overall rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia also was far higher (15.8 vs 3.3 per 1,000 ventilator-days), as was the rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (6.3 vs. 3.3 per 1,000 catheter-days). Notably, the frequencies of resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates to imipenem (47.2% vs 23.0%), Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates to ceftazidime (76.3% vs 27.1%), Escherichia coli isolates to ceftazidime (66.7% vs 8.1%), Staphylococcus aureus isolates to methicillin (84.4% vs 56.8%), were also higher in the consortium's ICUs, and the crude unadjusted excess mortalities of device-related infections ranged from 7.3% (for catheter-associated urinary tract infection) to 15.2% (for ventilator-associated pneumonia). Copyright © 2012 by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

The determinants of individuals’ perceived e-security: Evidence from Malaysia

Despite the critical role of individuals’ perceived security in an online environment, previous research has not attempted to comprehensively study the influences and interrelations between the determinants of online individuals’ perceived security. This research employs five theories to examine the interrelations that might exist between the antecedents of individuals’ perceived security in online environment in Malaysia. It is the first attempt to empirically examine the interrelations of the confidentiality related factors identified in the literature which is a significant original contribution. A questionnaire was the primary research methodology and structural equation modeling was employed to test the hypotheses. The findings suggest that individuals’ perceptions about security are significantly influenced by their perceived technical protection while technical protection was found to be influenced by website design features. Moreover, it was found that individuals’ perceptions toward internally provided assurances are highly influenced by externally provided assurances. However, the results found no significant relations between internally and externally provided assurances about a website's security. The findings imply that e-retailers should launch well-designed websites and communicate the technical protection capabilities of their websites to address individuals’ security concerns. The results also suggest that e-traders should consider the factors influencing individuals’ security perceptions when designing/developing their websites

Waste quantification models for estimation of construction and demolition waste generation: a review

Quantification is crucial for construction and demolition waste management. Accurate estimation can be satisfied by developing waste quantification model that is applicable for regional or nation-wide C&D waste generation. This paper presents a review on quantification models for C&D waste from literatures and how they correlate. Most studies combine the empirical waste assessment data or waste generation factor obtained in the field with area of activity level extracted from national statistical database from their respective countries, which provides annual data on sector activities. National or regional estimates provide general figures and forecasts for annual C&D waste generation. Studies found that waste generation factor will differs according to locations. Since volume and characteristic of waste are crucial for waste quantification, quantitative data record from waste audit findings could benefit the authorities for the annual estimates. National C&D waste reduction plan should start from well-established waste minimisation plan at project sites. Copyright © 2012 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd