Model-Free Deep Recurrent Q-Network Reinforcement Learning for Quantum Circuit Architectures Design

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology leads to new insights into the manipulation of quantum systems in the Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) era. Classical agent-based artificial intelligence algorithms provide a framework for the design or control of quantum systems. Traditional reinforcement learning methods are designed for the Markov Decision Process (MDP) and, hence, have difficulty in dealing with partially observable or quantum observable decision processes. Due to the difficulty of building or inferring a model of a specified quantum system, a model-free-based control approach is more practical and feasible than its counterpart of a model-based approach. In this work, we apply a model-free deep recurrent Q-network (DRQN) reinforcement learning method for qubit-based quantum circuit architecture design problems. This paper is the first attempt to solve the quantum circuit design problem from the recurrent reinforcement learning algorithm, while using discrete policy. Simulation results suggest that our long short-term memory (LSTM)-based DRQN method is able to learn quantum circuits for entangled Bell–Greenberger–Horne–Zeilinger (Bell–GHZ) states. However, since we also observe unstable learning curves in experiments, suggesting that the DRQN could be a promising method for AI-based quantum circuit design application, more investigation on the stability issue would be required

Incidence of Postoperative Pneumonia and Oral Microbiome for Patients with Cancer Operation

Postoperative pneumonia is a serious problem for patients and medical staff. In Japan, many hospitals introduced perioperative oral care management for the efficient use of medical resources. However, a high percentage of postoperative pneumonia still developed. Therefore, there is a need to identify the specific respiratory pathogens to predict the incidence of pneumonia The purpose of this study was to find out the candidate of bacterial species for the postoperative pneumonia. This study applied case-control study design for the patients who had a cancer operation with or without postoperative pneumonia. A total of 10 patients undergoing a cancer operation under general anesthesia participated in this study. The day before a cancer operation, preoperative oral care management was applied. Using the next generation sequence, oral microbiome of these patients was analyzed at the time of their first visit, the day before and after a cancer operation. Porphyromonas gingivalis and Fusobacterium nucleatum group can be a high risk at first visit. Atopobium parvulum and Enterococcus faecalis before a cancer operation can be a high risk. Poor oral hygiene increased the risk of incidence of postoperative pneumonia. Increased periodontal pathogens can be a high risk of the incidence of postoperative pneumonia. In addition, increased intestinal bacteria after oral care management can also be a high risk for the incidence of postoperative pneumonia

Effects of the Dental Caries Preventive Procedure on the White Spot Lesions during Orthodontic Treatment—An Open Label Randomized Controlled Trial

(1) Background: The aim of this study was to assess the preventive effect of tooth surface disinfection treatment, in addition to fluoride application, during fixed orthodontic treatment. (2) Methods: An open label randomized control trial for the evaluation of the dental caries preventive procedure was performed for the patients with high caries risk who had been visited at Department of Orthodontics, Tsurumi University Dental Hospital for orthodontics treatment. The follow-up period was six months. White spot lesions (WSLs) were evaluated by quantitative light-induced fluorescence (QLF). Cariogenic bacteria were monitored and evaluated by bacterial culture. In addition, the oral microbiome was evaluated by a next-generation sequence (NGS). (3) Results: By the mixed effect modeling, tooth surface disinfection treatment significantly reduced cariogenic bacteria and all parameters obtained by QLF. (4) Conclusions: Tooth surface disinfection treatment, in addition to PMTC and fluoride application, were effective for dental caries prevention and keeping a healthy microbiome during orthodontic treatment

Incidence of Postoperative Pneumonia and Oral Microbiome for Patients with Cancer Operation

Postoperative pneumonia is a serious problem for patients and medical staff. In Japan, many hospitals introduced perioperative oral care management for the efficient use of medical resources. However, a high percentage of postoperative pneumonia still developed. Therefore, there is a need to identify the specific respiratory pathogens to predict the incidence of pneumonia The purpose of this study was to find out the candidate of bacterial species for the postoperative pneumonia. This study applied case-control study design for the patients who had a cancer operation with or without postoperative pneumonia. A total of 10 patients undergoing a cancer operation under general anesthesia participated in this study. The day before a cancer operation, preoperative oral care management was applied. Using the next generation sequence, oral microbiome of these patients was analyzed at the time of their first visit, the day before and after a cancer operation. Porphyromonas gingivalis and Fusobacterium nucleatum group can be a high risk at first visit. Atopobium parvulum and Enterococcus faecalis before a cancer operation can be a high risk. Poor oral hygiene increased the risk of incidence of postoperative pneumonia. Increased periodontal pathogens can be a high risk of the incidence of postoperative pneumonia. In addition, increased intestinal bacteria after oral care management can also be a high risk for the incidence of postoperative pneumonia

Opportunistic Bacteria in Tonsil and Dental Plaque are Indicator for Oral Care

Background of the study: Detection of the opportunistic microorganisms can be the indicator for the oral hygiene. However, there are many sampling sites in one subject.Context and purpose of study: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the suitable sampling site for opportunistic pathogens as an indicator of the oral hygiene.Results: In the 21 healthy females’ swab samples of tonsil, meticillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus, Pneumobacillus, Haemophilus influenzae, H. parainfluenzae, Lancefield group A streptococci, Lancefield group G streptococci, Haemophilus sp. were detected; detection rates were 33.3%, 4.8%, 19.0%, 4.8%, 4.8% and 14.3%, respectively. The detection rates of methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus and Haemophilus sp. were the highest when compared to the other sampling sites. For H. influenzae, the detection rates were relatively high; 14.3% for tongue, 38.1% for dental plaque and 52.4% for saliva.Main findings: Detections of the commensal and opportunistic pathogens from tonsil and saliva were independent. Microbial flora form nasal cavity was independent form pharynx.Conclusion: Tonsil and saliva are the suitable sampling site to detect the opportunistic pathogens for the indicator of the oral hygiene.Brief Summary: Opportunistic pathogens in tonsil or saliva can be the indicator of the oral hygiene.Potential implications of the study: For the prevention of pneumonia, oral care is useful. In this situation, MRSA, P. aeruginosa, β-hemolytic streptococci, S. marcescens, M. catarrhallis or H. influenza in tonsil or saliva can be the indicator of the oral care.</p

Structure and Validity of Questionnaire for Oral Frail Screening

Oral frailty is defined as the mild decline in oral function and located at the early and reversible stage of frailty. Therefore, early detection and early treatment of oral frailty is very useful. Simple and easy questionnaires, such as an oral frailty checklist, have been widely used for the screening and enlightenment of oral frailty of the Japanese people. We evaluate the structure and validity of the oral frailty checklist. The questionnaire of oral frailty was distributed for the citizens more than 50 years old from December 2018 to January 2019. The structural validity of the questionnaire is analyzed by structural equation modeling (SEM). The characteristics of the items are analyzed by Item Response Theory (IRT). The data of 725 subjects (360 men, 359 women, 6 no answer, mean age 71.3 &plusmn; 9.05) are analyzed. The questionnaire consisted of three latent variables. Items of &ldquo;Brushing teeth at least twice a day&rdquo;, &ldquo;Regular attendance of dental clinic&rdquo;, and &ldquo;Using denture&rdquo;, had low discrimination ability. The questionnaire used in this study is a useful tool for the screening of oral frailty. However, its scoring system needs to be improved

Nutritional Status and Oral Frailty: A Community Based Study

Compromised oral health can alter food choices. Poor masticatory function leads to imbalanced food intake and undesirable nutritional status. The associations among nutritional status, oral health behavior, and self-assessed oral functions status were investigated using a community-based survey. In total, 701 subjects more than 50 years old living Ebina city located southwest of the capital Tokyo were investigated. The number of remaining teeth was counted by dental hygienists. Oral health behavior and self-assessed oral functions were evaluated by oral frailty checklist. Nutritional status was evaluated by the brief-type self-administered diet history questionnaire using Dietary Reference Intakes for Japanese as reference. More than 80% of subjects&rsquo; intakes of vitamin B12, pantothenic acid, copper, and proteins were sufficient. In contrast, only 19% of subjects&rsquo; intake of vitamin A was sufficient and 35.5% for vitamin B1. More than 90% of subjects&rsquo; intakes of vitamin D and vitamin K were sufficient. Only 35.5% of subjects&rsquo; intakes of dietary fiber were sufficient. Overall, 88.9% of subjects had excess salt. The number of remaining teeth was not correlated with nutritional intakes. Oral health behavior significantly correlated with nutritional intakes. Oral functions are important for food choice; however, oral functions were not directly correlated with nutritional intakes. Comprehensive health instructions including nutrition and oral health education is necessary for health promotion