159 research outputs found
Efficient Utilization Of InterContinental New Orleans Hotel Resources After Hurricane Katrina: A Case Study
A significant capital budgeting problem faced the InterContinental New Orleans Hotel after the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The problem was presented to students as a case study. Students were provided firm specific and market data to perform a detailed discounted cash flow analysis, including estimation of the weighted average cost of capital and the corresponding sensitivity analysis. The case is designed to be used in an upper level undergraduate corporate finance class
Lipohypertrophy in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes and the associated factors
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Despite the important implications of lipohypertrophy for diabetes control, there is a dearth of information and research about the subject in children. The aim of this study was to study the prevalence of lipohypertrophy in children with type 1 diabetes, and to evaluate the associated factors.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>119 children coming for regular follow up in the diabetes clinic were examined for the presence of lipohypertrophy by inspection and palpation. The last 4 readings of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels and other factors that may affect lipohypertrophy were documented. RESULTS: The patient's age ranged from 2 months to 21 years with a median of 10 years (inter-quartile range = 6). Lipohypertrophy occurred in 54.9% of patients, more commonly in males (62.7%) vs. females (48.4%) (P = 0.074). Grade 1 lipohypertrophy occurred in 42.5% and grade 2 in 12.4%. Lipohypertrophy was related significantly to the dose of insulin units per kg of body weight (Odds ratio [OR] = 16.4; 95% CI, 2.2 - 124.6; P = 0.007), the duration of diabetes, [OR] = 1.16; 95% CI, 1.05 - 1.32; P = 0.004)), and the body mass index (BMI) [OR] = 1.68; 95% CI, 1.25 - 2.15; P = 0.006). The mean HbA1c levels of patients with grade 1 and grade 2 lipohypertrophy did not differ from diabetics without lipohypertrophy (F = 0.178, P = 0.837)</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The presence of lipohypertrophy was significantly associated with the duration of diabetes and the body mass index. Children with lipohypertrophy needed a significantly higher dose of insulin units/kg of body weight to achieve fair control compared to children without lipohypertrophy. Further studies are needed to ascertain the clinical meaning of these findings.</p
The value of simultaneous co-registration of 99mTc- MDP and 131Iodine in metastatic differentiated thyroid carcinoma
BACKGROUND: The lack of anatomical details in standard 131Iodine
whole body scanning (131I WBS) interferes with the proper
localization of metastatic differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC)
lesions. In addition, nearby or overlapping variable physiological
distribution of 131I may affect the specificity of 131I uptake,
giving indeterminate results. The aim of this study was to demonstrate
the clinical usefulness of simultaneous co-registration
of 99mTc MDP bone scanning as an anatomical landmark with
131I scanning in the evaluation of metastatic DTC.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty-five patients (16 females
and 9 males, mean age ± SD = 52 ± 13 years) with metastatic
DTC (17 papillary, 8 follicular), were included. Whole
body scanning using a 256 x 1024 matrix and an 8 cm/min
scan rate were obtained 48 hours after oral administration of
185-370 MBq 131I and 2 hours after IV administration of 185-370 MBq 99mTc MDP using a dual head gamma camera
equipped with high energy parallel hole collimators. Occasionally,
additional simultaneous co-registration of localised
detailed images was also performed using a 256 x 256 matrix size. The two planar images were fused with optional fusion
of SPECT images.
The data from standard 131I scanning and fused 131I/ 99mTc-MDP
scanning were separately assessed by two nuclear medicine
physicians. Fusion images were considered to improve image
interpretation in comparison with standard 131I scanning when
they provided better localization of lesions.
RESULTS: All lesions in the present study were validated by
radiological images and clinical follow up for at least 12 months.
Forty-eight metastatic lesions were confirmed as follows: 2 in
the skull, 10 in the neck, 20 in the thorax, 12 in the pelvic-abdominal
region and 4 in the extremities. Standard 131I WBS
showed 54 extra-thyroidal foci with 8 false positive lesions of
which 2 were located in the scalp and 6 in the pelvic-abdominal
region extra-skeleton (i.e. sensitivity 100%, specificity 86%). Out
of the 48 validated lesions, 16 were indeterminately localized:
10 in the thorax (3 mediastinal nodal lesions, 5 vertebral lesions
and 2 ribs) and 6 in the pelvic-abdominal region (2 upper sacral,
2 sacroiliac region and 2 ischial bone). Fusion images confirmed
the precise localization of the pathological uptake in the
validated 48 lesions (sensitivity 100%, specificity 100%). There
were 2 (4%) indeterminate lesions in fused planar imaging that
were clearly localized via fused SPECT images.
CONCLUSIONS: Fusion images using simultaneous co-registration
of 131I and 99mTc MDP scanning is a simple and feasible
technique that improves the anatomically limited interpretation
of scintigraphy using 131I alone in patients with metastatic differentiated
thyroid carcinoma. The diagnostic advantage of this
technique seems to be more apparent in the thoracic and pelvic-
abdominal regions in contrast to the neck and extremities
A Comprehensive Study of Real-Time Object Detection Networks Across Multiple Domains: A Survey
Deep neural network based object detectors are continuously evolving and are
used in a multitude of applications, each having its own set of requirements.
While safety-critical applications need high accuracy and reliability,
low-latency tasks need resource and energy-efficient networks. Real-time
detectors, which are a necessity in high-impact real-world applications, are
continuously proposed, but they overemphasize the improvements in accuracy and
speed while other capabilities such as versatility, robustness, resource and
energy efficiency are omitted. A reference benchmark for existing networks does
not exist, nor does a standard evaluation guideline for designing new networks,
which results in ambiguous and inconsistent comparisons. We, thus, conduct a
comprehensive study on multiple real-time detectors (anchor-, keypoint-, and
transformer-based) on a wide range of datasets and report results on an
extensive set of metrics. We also study the impact of variables such as image
size, anchor dimensions, confidence thresholds, and architecture layers on the
overall performance. We analyze the robustness of detection networks against
distribution shifts, natural corruptions, and adversarial attacks. Also, we
provide a calibration analysis to gauge the reliability of the predictions.
Finally, to highlight the real-world impact, we conduct two unique case
studies, on autonomous driving and healthcare applications. To further gauge
the capability of networks in critical real-time applications, we report the
performance after deploying the detection networks on edge devices. Our
extensive empirical study can act as a guideline for the industrial community
to make an informed choice on the existing networks. We also hope to inspire
the research community towards a new direction in the design and evaluation of
networks that focuses on a bigger and holistic overview for a far-reaching
impact.Comment: Published in Transactions on Machine Learning Research (TMLR) with
Survey Certificatio
The protective effects of adenosine deaminase inhibitor and ouercetin against hepatocellular carcinoma induced by thioacetamide in male rats via downregulation of iNOS, Ki67 and Pan-CK
The liver is the largest and most vulnerable organ in the body, several factors can cause liver cirrhosis and the onset of hepatocellular carcinoma. This study aims to investigate the possibility for adenosine deaminase inhibitor (EHNA) which reduces liver injury, neutrophil infiltration and the levels of proinflammatory cytokines and also it is considering as a target of liver cirrhosis and beginning of hepatocellular carcinoma protective, quercetin which is one of the most common flavonoids has an antioxidant, antitumor and chemopreventive effect on the liver-induced preneoplastic lesions and their combination against thioacetamide as a hepatotoxic and a carcinogenic compound. Biochemical, histopathological and immunohistochemical studies were carried out on male albino rats model to evaluate this possibility. Thioacetamide-treated rats showed a significant increase in liver function tests, alpha-fetoprotein level, expression of inducible Nitric Oxide Synthesis (iNOS), Ki67 and Pan-Cytokeratin (Pan-CK) in hepatic tissue of rats. The results of the present study show that treatment with quercetin, EHNA or their combination attenuated changes in liver functions, histopathological changes, reduced collagen deposition and decreased the expression of iNOS, Ki67 and Pan-CK induced by thioacetamide
Clinical significance of metabolic superscan in patients with hyperthyroidism
BACKGROUND: Hyperthyroid patients commonly complain of
generalized bony aches, which are frequently overlooked due
to the more prominent symptoms of cardiovascular and nervous
disturbances. Hyperthyroid patients are expected to have
abnormal bone metabolism as part of the generalized hypermetabolic
status.
The aim of this study is to verify the presence of metabolic bone
superscan in association with the hypermetabolic stats in various
groups of hyperthyroidism. Secondly, to correlate these
superscan features with the various laboratory results in hyperthyroid
patients.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: Forty-five hyperthyroid patients
confirmed by clinical and laboratory results were enrolled in
this work. In all patients, a 99mTc-pertechnetate thyroid uptake
scan was acquired. On a different day, total body bone scan
was acquired three hours post IV injection of 555-925 MBq of
99mTc-MDP. Serum FT3, FT4, TSH, Ca++, alkaline phosphatase
(AP) and parathyroid hormone (PTH) were monitored in all patients
as markers of thyroid and bone metabolism. Ten cases
with no thyroid diseases were included as a control group. Patients
with thyroiditis or long history of antithyroid drugs for more
than one year were excluded from the study.
RESULTS: The patients were subdivided into three groups:
Graves´ disease (GD) (n = 30), toxic nodular goiter (TNG) (n = 10) and autonomous toxic adenoma (AT) (n = 5). The TSH for the whole group was significantly suppressed compared to
the control group with higher suppression in the Graves´ disease
group than in the TNG or AT groups. 99mTc-pertechnetate
uptake values in the Graves´ disease group were significantly
higher than the TNG and AT groups (p < 0.05).
Metabolic superscan (MSS) was noted in 90% of the Graves´
cases, 20% in TNG and in none of the AT group. There were no
significant differences regarding Ca+, AP and PTH between
the Graves´ and non-Graves´ groups (p > 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: Disturbances in bone metabolism are more
prevalent in Graves´ disease than in other types of hyperthyroidism.
The addition of the bone scan to the diagnostic work
up of patients with Graves´ disease is a sensitive indicator for
metabolic bone changes and could help in the future management
and follow up for this group of patients
BONE MINERAL DENSITY AND VITAMIN D RECEPTOR GENETIC VARIANTS IN EGYPTIAN CHILDREN WITH BETA THALASSEMIA ON VITAMIN D SUPPLEMENTATION
Background: Low bone mineral density (BMD) is a characteristic feature of Beta thalassemia major (βTM) patients. Vitamin D is important for bone mineralization. Vitamin D receptors (VDR) genetic variants may be related to vitamin D status and BMD.
Objectives: To evaluate the effect of VDR genetic variants on vitamin D levels and BMD in βTM Egyptian patients supplemented with vitamin D.
Methods: This study was conducted on forty children with βTM and forty unrelated healthy sex and age-matched controls. Serum calcium, phosphorus, ALP, ferritin and vitamin D were measured. VDR genetic variants (BsmI, TaqI, and FokI) were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). BMD was measured by dual-energy X-ray densitometry (DEXA) of the lumbar spine.
Results: In βTM patients, 22.5% had deficient, 50% had insufficient and only 27.5% had sufficient levels of vitamin D. BMD Z score was significantly lower in βTM patients compared to controls (p<0.001). Osteopenia and osteoporosis of lumbar spines were observed in 70% and 22.5% of βTM patients respectively. BsmI bb and FokI Ff and ff genotypic variants were significantly associated with lower vitamin D and BMD Z score. No association was observed with TaqI genotypic variants.
Conclusions: We reported a high prevalence of low BMD in βTM despite vitamin D supplementation. The BsmI bb, FokI Ff and ff genotypic variants of VDR can be considered as risk factors for the occurrence of osteoporosis in these children. Vitamin D doses should be adjusted individually according to the genetic makeup of each patient
A Phase 2, Six-Month Safety and Efficacy Study of TransCon hGH Compared to Daily hGH in Pre-Pubertal Children with Growth Hormone Deficiency (GHD)
This study demonstrates the safety and efficacy of TransCon hGH in children with GHD over a treatment period of six months. Safety and efficacy (annualized height velocity), as well as PK and PD data of 53 GHD patients treated over a six-month period with TransCon hGH or daily hGH will be presented. All TransCon hGH doses demonstrated an excellent safety (comparable to daily hGH) and local tolerability profile (only mild and sporadic reactions comparable to daily hGH / no nodule formation and lypodystrophy) and an excellent growth within the expected ranges - mean annualized height velocities ranging between 11.9 cm to 13.9 cm for the different dose levels of TransCon hGH compared to 11.6 cm mean annualized height velocity for daily hGH treatment
Mode of gene action and heterosis for physiological, biochemical, and agronomic traits in some diverse rice genotypes under normal and drought conditions
Water scarcity is a crucial environmental stress that constrains rice growth and production. Thus, breeding for developing high-yielding and drought-tolerant rice genotypes is decisive in sustaining rice production and ensuring global food security, particularly under stress conditions. To this end, this study was conducted to evaluate the effects of water deficit on 31 genotypes of rice (seven lines, viz., Puebla, Hispagran, IET1444, WAB1573, Giza177, Sakha101, and Sakha105, and three testers, viz., Sakha106, Sakha107, and Sakha108) and their 21 crosses produced by line × tester mating design under normal and water deficit conditions; this was to estimate the combining ability, heterosis, and gene action for some traits of physiological, biochemical, and yield components. This study was performed during the summer seasons of 2017 and 2018. The results showed that water deficit significantly decreased relative water content, total chlorophyll content, grain yield, and several yield attributes. However, osmolyte (proline) content and antioxidant enzyme activities (CAT and APX) were significantly increased compared with the control condition. Significant mean squares were recorded for the genotypes and their partitions under control and stress conditions, except for total chlorophyll under normal irrigation. Significant differences were also detected among the lines, testers, and line × tester for all the studied traits under both irrigation conditions. The value of the σ²GCA variance was less than the value of the σ²SCA variance for all the studied traits. In addition, the dominance genetic variance (σ2D) was greater than the additive genetic variance (σ2A) in controlling the inheritance of all the studied traits under both irrigation conditions; this reveals that the non-additive gene effects played a significant role in the genetic expression of the studied traits. The two parental genotypes (Puebla and Hispagran) were identified as good combiners for most physiological and biochemical traits, earliness, shortness, grain yield, and 1,000-grains weight traits. Additionally, the cross combinations Puebla × Sakha107, Hispagran × Sakha108, and Giza177 × Sakha107 were the most promising. These results demonstrated the substantial and desirable specific combining ability effects on all the studied traits, which suggested that it could be considered for use in rice hybrid breeding programs
- …