A Comparison of Grading Models for Neighborhood Level of Family Housing Units

More recently Turkey has witnessed fast housing development and real estate sector growth because of the mortgage preparations. With this development, property location quality has been considered important for selecting and paying them. This study uses a data set of new single family housing units in Kocaeli University Campus Area. By using 4 location quality criteria, 27 single family housing units are graded at the neighborhood level. It is aimed to examine the applications of grading property at the neighborhood level based on property location quality by testing with three methods. Traditional method and fuzzy logic method were discussed in our antecedent studies. In this study, an easy used numerical calculation method; Neural Networks (NN), is introduced. Its grading performance is compared with the previous methods. NN method is found to be more accurate and realistic than traditional grading approach where its designing stage is more practical and faster than fuzzy logic approach.

Case Report Community Acquired Chronic Arthritis due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a Previously Healthy Pregnant Woman

Septic arthritis caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa is uncommon in the immunocompetent population, despite its occurrence in younger patients with open injuries and in intravenous drug abusers. Here we report a case of septic arthritis caused by P. aeruginosa. This case is unique for several reasons. First, it is a case of septic arthritis in a pregnant woman with no traditional risk factors reported in the literature including history of prior traumatic events, hospitalisation, or chronic underlying disease. She was suspected of having transient osteoporosis associated with pregnancy to involve both hip joints. Second, this is the first reported case of a community acquired chronic septic arthritis due to P. aeruginosa involving large joints of both upper and lower extremities. The patient was treated successfully with a combination of ceftazidime and amikacin for 4 weeks followed by oral ciprofloxacin 750 mg twice daily for 8 weeks

The effect of N95 respirators on vital parameters, PETCO2, among healthcare providers at the pandemic clinics

Background Wearing face shields and masks, which used to have very limited public use before the COVID-19 outbreak, has been highly recommended by organizations, such as CDC and WHO, during this pandemic period. Aims The aim of this prospective study is to scrutinize the dynamic changes in vital parameters, change in end tidal CO2 (PETCO2) levels, the relationship of these changes with taking a break, and the subjective complaints caused by respiratory protection, while healthcare providers are performing their duties with the N95 mask. Methods The prospective cohort included 54 healthcare workers (doctors, nurses, paramedics) who worked in the respiratory unit of the emergency department (ED) and performed their duties by wearing valved N95 masks and face shields. The vital parameters and PETCO2 levels were measured at 0-4th-5th and 9th hours of the work-shift. Results Only the decrease in diastolic BP between 0 and 9 h was statistically significant (p = 0.038). Besides, mean arterial pressure (MAP) values indicated a significant decrease between 0-9 h and 5-9 h (p = 0.024 and p = 0.049, respectively). In terms of the vital parameters of the subjects working with and without breaks, only PETCO2 levels of those working uninterruptedly increased significantly at the 4th hour in comparison to the beginning-of-shift baseline levels (p = 0.003). Conclusion Although the decrease in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and MAP values is assumed to be caused by increased fatigue due to workload and work pace as well as increase in muscle activity, the increase in PETCO2 levels in the ED healthcare staff working with no breaks between 0 and 4 h should be noted in terms of PPE-induced hypoventilation

User Selection for NOMA based MIMO with Physical Layer Network Coding in Internet of Things Applications

Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) based multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), which has the potential to provide both massive connectivity and high spectrum efficiency, is considered as one of the efficient techniques for sixth generation (6G) wireless systems. In massive Internet of Things (IoT) networks, user-set selection is crucial for enhancing the overall performance of NOMA based systems when compared with orthogonal multiple access (OMA) techniques. In this paper, we propose a user-set selection algorithm for IoT uplink transmission to improve the sum data rate of the NOMA based MIMO systems. In order to exchange data between the selected IoT pairs, we propose to employ wireless physical layer network coding (PNC) to further improve the spectral efficiency and reduce the delay to fulfill the requirements of future IoT applications. Performance evaluations are provided based on both sum data rate and bit error rate for the proposed NOMA based MIMO with PNC in the considered massive IoT scenarios

Dizajn maske za lice s UVC-LED zračenjem i njezina djelotvornost protiv uobičajenih klica

During the Covid-19 pandemic, one of the best means of personal protection was using face masks. In this context, the World Health Organization has declared the attempts to produce masks inactivating airborne virus species a welcome initiative. This preliminary study aimed to prove that airborne germs passing through a mask filter cartridge can be destroyed by the rays emitted from UVC LEDs placed in such cartridge. We therefore designed such a face mask and tested the efficiency of UVC LEDs placed in its cartridge against common contaminants, gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus, gram-negative Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and the influenza A/Puerto Rico/8/1934 virus because of its similarity with SARS CoV-2. Eight UVC LEDs with a total power of 75 mW provided sufficient germicidal effect for all three germs. In terms of safety, ozone production released during UVC LED emission was negligible. Our findings are promising, as they show that well-designed UVC-based face masks can be effective against airborne germs, but further research on a greater sample may help us learn more and optimise such face masks.Tijekom pandemije Covida-19 jedan od najboljih oblika osobne zaštite bilo je nošenje maski za lice. U tom je smislu Svjetska zdravstvena organizacija pozdravila pokušaje izrade maski koje ubijaju virusne vrste koje se prenose zrakom. Cilj je ovoga preliminarnog istraživanja bio dokazati da se zrakom nošene klice koje prolaze kroz filtarske uloške mogu uništiti zračenjem UVC ledica smještenih u takve uloške. Stoga smo osmislili masku za lice s tom namjenom i iskušali djelotvornost UVC ledica protiv uobičajenih izvora zaraza: gram-pozitivnoga Staphylococcus aureus, gram-negativnoga Pseudomonas aeruginosa i virusa influence A/Puerto Rico/8/1934 zbog njegove sličnosti s virusom SARS CoV-2. Osam UVC ledica ukupne snage 75 mW iskazale su dovoljan germicidni učinak protiv svih triju klica. U smislu sigurnosti primjene, ozon proizveden tijekom UVC-LED zračenja pokazao se zanemarivim. Naši su rezultati obećavajući jer pokazuju da dobro osmišljene maske za lice s UVC zračenjem mogu biti djelotvorne protiv zrakom nošenih klica, ali će tek daljnja istraživanja na većem uzorku pomoći da doznamo više i usavršimo takve maske za lice

Single-stage repair of adult aortic coarctation and concomitant cardiovascular pathologies: a new alternative surgical approach

BACKGROUND: Coarctation of the aorta in the adulthood is sometimes associated with additional cardiovascular pathologies that require intervention. Ideal approach in such patients is uncertain. Anatomic left-sided short aortic bypass from the arcus aorta to descending aorta via median sternotomy allows simultaneuos repair of both complex aortic coarctation and concomitant cardiac operation. MATERIALS: Four adult patients were underwent Anatomic left-sided short aortic bypass operation for complex aortic coarctation through median sternotomy using deep hypothermic circulatory arrest. Concomitant cardiac operations were Bentall procedure for annuloaortic ectasia in one patient, coronary artery bypass grafting for three vessel disease in two patient, and patch closure of ventricular septal defect in one patient. RESULTS: All patients survived the operation and were alive with patent bypass at a mean follow-up of 36 months. No graft-related complications occurred, and there were no instances of stroke or paraplegia. CONCLUSION: We conclude that single-stage repair of adult aortic coarctation with concomitant cardiovascular lesions can be performed safely using this newest technique

Enabling patient adherence via personalised, just-in time adaptive interventions in ADLIFE architecture

Chronic diseases introduce challenges for the patients to continuously be involved in their care activities and manage the changing requirements of their disease. Patient empowerment activities are a critical component to assist patients in their long-term care journey. In the ADLIFE project (H2020, SC1-DTH-11-2019, 875209), an integrated care planning approach is used where patients are assigned various care plan activities by multidisciplinary care teams. To increase patients’ adherence to the care plan, a continuous behavioral monitoring architecture is developed for delivering digital personalised, just-in time adaptive interventions

The comparison of high and standard definition computed tomography techniques regarding coronary artery imaging

Objective: The aim was to compare coronary high-definition CT (HDCT) with standard-definition CT (SDCT) angiography as to radiation dose, image quality and accuracy. Material and Methods: 28 patients with history of coronary artery disease scanned by HDCT (Discovery CT750 HD) and SDCT (Somatom Definition AS). The scan modes were both axial prospective ECG-triggered. The vessel diameters and vessel attenuation values of totally 280 measurements from 140 coronary arteries were analyzed by two experienced radiologists. All data was analyzed by intraclass correlation test. Image quality graded by motion and stair step artifacts (grade 1, poor, to grade 4, excellent), accuracy of vessel inner and outer diameters were compared between the two CT units using the independent samples t-test and Mann-Whitney U test. Results: The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of measured vessel attenuation values in SDCT between the two radiologists was exceedingly good. The ICC was higher in HDCT. The radiation dose of HDCT was higher than that of SDCT. The mean tube current was 180 (mA) in HDCT and 147(mA) in SDCT with the same tube voltage (kVp). There was no significant difference between image quality. Conclusion: HDCT has a higher radiation dose but has much more atenuation and the spatial resolution which improve measurement accuracy for imaging coronary arteries