65 research outputs found
BoMb-OT: On Batch of Mini-batches Optimal Transport
Mini-batch optimal transport (m-OT) has been successfully used in practical
applications that involve probability measures with intractable density, or
probability measures with a very high number of supports. The m-OT solves
several sparser optimal transport problems and then returns the average of
their costs and transportation plans. Despite its scalability advantage, the
m-OT does not consider the relationship between mini-batches which leads to
undesirable estimation. Moreover, the m-OT does not approximate a proper metric
between probability measures since the identity property is not satisfied. To
address these problems, we propose a novel mini-batching scheme for optimal
transport, named Batch of Mini-batches Optimal Transport (BoMb-OT), that finds
the optimal coupling between mini-batches and it can be seen as an
approximation to a well-defined distance on the space of probability measures.
Furthermore, we show that the m-OT is a limit of the entropic regularized
version of the BoMb-OT when the regularized parameter goes to infinity.
Finally, we carry out extensive experiments to show that the BoMb-OT can
estimate a better transportation plan between two original measures than the
m-OT. It leads to a favorable performance of the BoMb-OT in the matching and
color transfer tasks. Furthermore, we observe that the BoMb-OT also provides a
better objective loss than the m-OT for doing approximate Bayesian computation,
estimating parameters of interest in parametric generative models, and learning
non-parametric generative models with gradient flow.Comment: 36 pages, 20 figure
TSRNet: Simple Framework for Real-time ECG Anomaly Detection with Multimodal Time and Spectrogram Restoration Network
The electrocardiogram (ECG) is a valuable signal used to assess various
aspects of heart health, such as heart rate and rhythm. It plays a crucial role
in identifying cardiac conditions and detecting anomalies in ECG data. However,
distinguishing between normal and abnormal ECG signals can be a challenging
task. In this paper, we propose an approach that leverages anomaly detection to
identify unhealthy conditions using solely normal ECG data for training.
Furthermore, to enhance the information available and build a robust system, we
suggest considering both the time series and time-frequency domain aspects of
the ECG signal. As a result, we introduce a specialized network called the
Multimodal Time and Spectrogram Restoration Network (TSRNet) designed
specifically for detecting anomalies in ECG signals. TSRNet falls into the
category of restoration-based anomaly detection and draws inspiration from both
the time series and spectrogram domains. By extracting representations from
both domains, TSRNet effectively captures the comprehensive characteristics of
the ECG signal. This approach enables the network to learn robust
representations with superior discrimination abilities, allowing it to
distinguish between normal and abnormal ECG patterns more effectively.
Furthermore, we introduce a novel inference method, termed Peak-based Error,
that specifically focuses on ECG peaks, a critical component in detecting
abnormalities. The experimental result on the large-scale dataset PTB-XL has
demonstrated the effectiveness of our approach in ECG anomaly detection, while
also prioritizing efficiency by minimizing the number of trainable parameters.
Our code is available at https://github.com/UARK-AICV/TSRNet.Comment: Accepted at ISBI 202
SAM3D: Segment Anything Model in Volumetric Medical Images
Image segmentation remains a pivotal component in medical image analysis,
aiding in the extraction of critical information for precise diagnostic
practices. With the advent of deep learning, automated image segmentation
methods have risen to prominence, showcasing exceptional proficiency in
processing medical imagery. Motivated by the Segment Anything Model (SAM)-a
foundational model renowned for its remarkable precision and robust
generalization capabilities in segmenting 2D natural images-we introduce SAM3D,
an innovative adaptation tailored for 3D volumetric medical image analysis.
Unlike current SAM-based methods that segment volumetric data by converting the
volume into separate 2D slices for individual analysis, our SAM3D model
processes the entire 3D volume image in a unified approach. Extensive
experiments are conducted on multiple medical image datasets to demonstrate
that our network attains competitive results compared with other
state-of-the-art methods in 3D medical segmentation tasks while being
significantly efficient in terms of parameters. Code and checkpoints are
available at https://github.com/UARK-AICV/SAM3D.Comment: Accepted at ISBI 202
Female Germline Stem Cells: A Source for Applications in Reproductive and Regenerative Medicine
One of the most significant findings in stem cell biology is the establishment of female germline stem cells (FGSCs) in the early 21st century. Besides the massive contribution of FGSCs to support ovarian function and fertility of females, the ability to create transgenic animals from FGSCs have high efficiency. Whether FGSCs can differentiate into mature oocytes for fertilization and complete embryonic development is a significant question for scientists. FGSCs were shown to produce oocytes, and the fertilized oocytes could generate offspring in mice and rats. This discovery has opened a new direction in human FGSCs research. Recently, cryopreservation of ovarian cortical tissue was already developed for women with cancer. Thus, isolation and expansion of FGSCs from this tissue before or after cryopreservation may be helpful for clinical fertility therapies. Scientists have suggested that the ability to produce transgenic animals using FGSCs would be a great tool for biological reproduction. Research on FGSCs opened a new direction in reproductive biotechnology to treat infertility and produce biological drugs supported in pre-menopausal syndrome in women. The applicability of FGSCs is enormous in the basic science of stem cell models for studying the development and maturation of oocytes, especially applications in treating human disease
Development of blood transfusion external quality assessment program at national scale
Introduction: External quality assessment is a crucial component in ensuring the quality of blood transfusion testing laboratories.
Objectives: To develop a procedure for generating external quality assessment items for blood transfusion testing to evaluate participants' performance.
Methods: Experimental research was conducted at Quality Control Center for Medical laboratory- University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Three items, including red blood cell, serum, and atypical antibody serum samples, were assessed for homogeneity and stability; 5 assessment areas, including ABO grouping, Rh grouping, compatible cross matches, Coombs test, and screening of atypical antibodies, were utilized to evaluate the performance of 38 participants in the 2020-2021 period.
Results: Red blood cell and serum samples maintained quality for a specific period at controlled temperatures, while serum samples with atypical antibodies showed stability at different temperatures. The participants demonstrated high satisfactory performance in ABO grouping, Rh grouping, Coombs test, and screening for atypical antibodies. However, the most unsatisfactory performance was reported in crossmatching, with 15% of participants unsatisfactory results.
Conclusion: The procedure of production of proficiency testing items has been successfully developed, and its application at the national level is suggested to improve the quality of blood transfusion laboratories
Urinary catecholamine excretion, cardiovascular variability, and outcomes in tetanus
Severe tetanus is characterized by muscle spasm and cardiovascular system disturbance. The pathophysiology of muscle spasm is relatively well understood and involves inhibition of central inhibitory synapses by tetanus toxin. That of cardiovascular disturbance is less clear, but is believed to relate to disinhibition of the autonomic nervous system. The clinical syndrome of autonomic nervous system dysfunction (ANSD) seen in severe tetanus is characterized principally by changes in heart rate and blood pressure which have been linked to increased circulating catecholamines. Previous studies have described varying relationships between catecholamines and signs of ANSD in tetanus, but are limited by confounders and assays used. In this study, we aimed to perform detailed characterization of the relationship between catecholamines (adrenaline and noradrenaline), cardiovascular parameters (heart rate and blood pressure) and clinical outcomes (ANSD, mechanical ventilation required, and length of intensive care unit stay) in adults with tetanus, as well as examine whether intrathecal antitoxin administration affected subsequent catecholamine excretion. Noradrenaline and adrenaline were measured by ELISA from 24-h urine collections taken on day 5 of hospitalization in 272 patients enrolled in a 2 × 2 factorial-blinded randomized controlled trial in a Vietnamese hospital. Catecholamine results measured from 263 patients were available for analysis. After adjustment for potential confounders (i.e., age, sex, intervention treatment, and medications), there were indications of non-linear relationships between urinary catecholamines and heart rate. Adrenaline and noradrenaline were associated with subsequent development of ANSD, and length of ICU stay
Awareness and preparedness of healthcare workers against the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional survey across 57 countries.
BACKGROUND: Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, there have been concerns related to the preparedness of healthcare workers (HCWs). This study aimed to describe the level of awareness and preparedness of hospital HCWs at the time of the first wave. METHODS: This multinational, multicenter, cross-sectional survey was conducted among hospital HCWs from February to May 2020. We used a hierarchical logistic regression multivariate analysis to adjust the influence of variables based on awareness and preparedness. We then used association rule mining to identify relationships between HCW confidence in handling suspected COVID-19 patients and prior COVID-19 case-management training. RESULTS: We surveyed 24,653 HCWs from 371 hospitals across 57 countries and received 17,302 responses from 70.2% HCWs overall. The median COVID-19 preparedness score was 11.0 (interquartile range [IQR] = 6.0-14.0) and the median awareness score was 29.6 (IQR = 26.6-32.6). HCWs at COVID-19 designated facilities with previous outbreak experience, or HCWs who were trained for dealing with the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak, had significantly higher levels of preparedness and awareness (p<0.001). Association rule mining suggests that nurses and doctors who had a 'great-extent-of-confidence' in handling suspected COVID-19 patients had participated in COVID-19 training courses. Male participants (mean difference = 0.34; 95% CI = 0.22, 0.46; p<0.001) and nurses (mean difference = 0.67; 95% CI = 0.53, 0.81; p<0.001) had higher preparedness scores compared to women participants and doctors. INTERPRETATION: There was an unsurprising high level of awareness and preparedness among HCWs who participated in COVID-19 training courses. However, disparity existed along the lines of gender and type of HCW. It is unknown whether the difference in COVID-19 preparedness that we detected early in the pandemic may have translated into disproportionate SARS-CoV-2 burden of disease by gender or HCW type
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