Image objects detection based on boosting neural network

This paper discusses the problem of object area detection of video frames. The goal is to design a pixel accurate detector for grass, which could be used for object adaptive video enhancement. A boosting neural network is used for creating such a detector. The resulted detector uses both textural features and color features of the frames

Retinoblastoma – a literature review and our experience

Retinoblastoma is the most common malignant eye tumor in children that is lethal if left untreated. The contemporary treatment modalities aim not only to save life, but also to preserve the eyes as an organwith form vision and the wich would greatly reflect on the quality of children’s lives. Historically, enucleation was the first successful therapeutic approach to reduce mortality, followed more than 100 years ago by the radiation therapy as the first attempt to save the eyes. Over the last two decades, conservative treatment of retinoblastoma has undergone an impressive development, allowing complete cure with minimal sequelae when timely diagnosed and treated. Today’s treatment protocol includes combination of selective chemotherapy, radiation therapy, laser therapy and, if necessary, systemic chemotherapy. The goal of this article is to review the up-to-date conservative management of retinoblastoma and to emphasize the importance of general practitions and pediatricians for timely diagnosis

Laser therapy in ROP: a literature review and our experience

Introduction: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a serious, vision threatening disease and among the leading causes of irreversible loss of vision. It affects prematurely born children, predominantly prior to the 32nd GW or with a body weight at birth below 1500 g. The highest risk for the development of ROP includes the time period of two weeks before to two weeks after the supposed due date. Materials and Methods: We included 10 prematurely born children with ROP requiring therapy. All of the children were screened by indirect ophthalmoscopy and the condition was documented by RetCam imaging. The treatment was conducted by the application of 810 nm diode laser. Results: Nine out of the 10 children were born before 32 GW and were with a body weight at birth below 1500 g. The disease was bilateral in 9 of the children. Laser therapy was applied to all 10 children and 18 eyes. Discussion and Conclusion: The active ophthalmological screening of all children born before 32 GW and with a body weight at birth below 1500 g, including all new-born children at risk, and the application of early laser treatment are the basis for the prevention of the development of irreversible visual loss

Identifying Place Histories from Activity Traces with an Eye to Parameter Impact.

Events that happened in the past are important for understanding the ongoing processes, predicting future developments, and making informed decisions. Important and/or interesting events tend to attract many people. Some people leave traces of their attendance in the form of computer-processable data, such as records in the databases of mobile phone operators or photos on photo sharing web sites. We developed a suite of visual analytics methods for reconstructing past events from these activity traces. Our tools combine geocomputations, interactive geovisualizations, and statistical methods to enable integrated analysis of the spatial, temporal, and thematic components of the data, including numeric attributes and texts.We also support interactive investigation of the sensitivity of the analysis results to the parameters used in the computations. For this purpose, statistical summaries of computation results obtained with different combinations of parameter values are visualized in a way facilitating comparisons. We demonstrate the utility of our approach on two large real data sets, mobile phone calls in Milano during 9 days and flickr photos made on British Isles during 5 years

BK channels in tail artery vascular smooth muscle cells of normotensive (WKY) and hypertensive (SHR) rats possess similar calcium sensitivity but different responses to the vasodilator iloprost

It has been reported that, in the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) model of hypertension, different components of the G-protein/adenylate cyclase (AC)/Calcium-activated potassium channel of high conductance (BK) channel signaling pathway are altered differently. In the upstream part of the pathway (G-protein/AC), a comparatively low efficacy has been established, whereas downstream BK currents seem to be increased. Thus, the overall performance of this signaling pathway in SHR is elusive. For a better understanding, we focused on one aspect, the direct targeting of the BK channel by the G-protein/AC pathway and tested the hypothesis that the comparatively low AC pathway efficacy in SHR results in a reduced agonist-induced stimulation of BK currents. This hypothesis was investigated using freshly isolated smooth muscle cells from WKY and SHR rat tail artery and the patch-clamp technique. It was observed that: (1) single BK channels have similar current–voltage relationships, voltage-dependence and calcium sensitivity; (2) BK currents in cells with a strong buffering of the BK channel activator calcium have similar current–voltage relationships; (3) the iloprost-induced concentration-dependent increase of the BK current is larger in WKY compared to SHR; (4) the effects of activators of the PKA pathway, the catalytic subunit of PKA and the potent and selective cAMP-analogue Sp-5,6-DCl-cBIMPS on BK currents are similar. Thus, our data suggest that the lower iloprost-induced stimulation of the BK current in freshly isolated rat tail artery smooth muscle cells from SHR compared with WKY is due to the lower efficacy of upstream elements of the G-Protein/AC/BK channel pathway

Coats disease ‒ case report

Coats disease is a rare, in about 90% of cases unilateral idiopathic eye pathology. It is characterized by telangiectatic and aneurysmally altered retinal blood vessels and progressive intra- and subretinal exudation, which can lead to exudative retinal detachment. Most often the symptoms manifest in the advanced stages. Purpose: To report a case with Coats disease. 10 year old boy, admitted to the Eye Clinic of the University Alexandrovska Hospital – Sofia, with leucocoria and strabismus of the right eye. Method: Full ophthalmic and orthoptic examination, OCT. Results: 3B stage of Coats disease of the right eye was established. The chance for improvement after surgery was evaluated as very little, so our patient remained under observation with protective glasses and prevention of complications. Conclusion: It is of great importance to early diagnose the disease, so to have more treatment options

Postsocialist disability matrix

This paper explores injustices experienced by disabled people in the postsocialist countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Drawing on Nancy Fraser’s theory of social justice, the analysis proposes a ‘matrix’ that reveals the negative impact of two factors – state socialist legacy and postsocialist neoliberalization – on disabled people’s parity of participation in three dimensions of justice – economic redistribution, cultural recognition, and political representation. The legacy of state socialism has underpinned: segregated service provision; medical-productivist understanding of disability for assessment purposes; denial of disability on everyday level; and weak disability organizing. Neoliberal restructuring has resulted in: retrenchment of disability support through decentralization, austerity, and workfare; stigmatization of ‘dependency’ through the discourse of ‘welfare dependency’; responsibilization of disabled people; and depoliticization of disability organizations by restricting their activities to service provision and incorporating them in structures of tokenistic participation. The analysis is informed by reports and academic studies of disability in the postsocialist region

Vitamin D status in children with myopia

Introduction. A dramatic increase of myopia worldwide has been observed in recent years. New risk factors for the development of myopia have been the target of numerous investigations. The basis of our research is the correlation between serum levels of vitamin D [25(OH)D] and myopia itself.Purpose: To find out the relationship between serum levels of 25(OH) D and myopia. Patients and methods: The study included 222 children with different refraction status. Full ophthalmologic examination, cycloplegic refraction, echobiometry were performed. The serum levels of 25(OH)D were measured by liquid chromatographic mass spectrometry (level of insufficiency < 80 nmol/L).Results: The average patients’ age (51% boys and 48,2% girls) was 11,7 y (SD ± 3,03). They were subdivided into two groups – children with myopia (84,7%) and those without myopia (15,3%). The mean serum 25(OH)D level of all tested was 61,48 nmol/L (16-140 nmol/L; SD ± 20,15); of myopia – 59,67 nmol/L (16-140 nmol/L; SD ± 19,30) and of the non-myopia group – 71,91 nmol/L (33-111 nmol/L; SD ± 21,79). There was a statistically significant difference in serum levels between the two groups (Р = 0,001). The risk of myopia was higher with the decrease of 25(OH)D values (OR = 1,028 ; 95% CI 1,008-1,048). Conclusion. In our investigation group we established low serum levels of 25(OH)D which indicated the need for conducting a population study of its status among Bulgarian children. The correlation between the higher risk of myopia and the vitamin D scarcity has to be further studied, also considering the factor of outdoor/sun-exposure time.