Solving Area Coverage Problem with UAVs: A Vehicle Routing with Time Windows Variation

In real life, providing security for a set of large areas by covering the area with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) is a difficult problem that consist of multiple objectives. These difficulties are even greater if the area coverage must continue throughout a specific time window. We address this by considering a Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows (VRPTW) variation in which capacity of agents is one and each customer (target area) must be supplied with more than one vehicles simultaneously without violating time windows. In this problem, our aim is to find a way to cover all areas with the necessary number of UAVs during the time windows, minimize the total distance traveled, and provide a fast solution by satisfying the additional constraint that each agent has limited fuel. We present a novel algorithm that relies on clustering the target areas according to their time windows, and then incrementally generating transportation problems with each cluster and the ready UAVs. Then we solve transportation problems with the simplex algorithm to generate the solution. The performance of the proposed algorithm and other implemented algorithms to compare the solution quality is evaluated on example scenarios with practical problem sizes

Easymeet

There are no certain rules of conduct for social engagement that one can learn and obide so he can suceed. Most of the times we observe others, most probably our elders, and imitate the actions hoping for fulfillment. Some people miss out on this advantage and obtain certain disabilities in becoming acquainted with others.Today, with the structure of the internet technology, we live in the information overload era. We have access to more information than ever before, so it is only the process of limiting the information to best suit our needs. Easymeet aims to help the so called socially challenged by limiting their choices to a margin of least error in social conducts thus making meeting people easier

Gastric Cancer And The İmportance Of Early Diagnosis

Mide kanseri; dünyada malign tümörler arasında dördüncü sıklıkla görülür, Türkiye’de ise beşinci sıklıkla görülür. Tüm dünyada kansere bağlı ölüm nedenleri arasında ikinci sıklıktadır. Geçmiş yıllarda beş yıllık survey %15 iken günümüzde bu oran %32’dir. Bu duruma erken evrede tanı ve etkin tedavi yöntemleri temel etken olmuştur. Bu makale aromaterapinin yararları, etki mekanizması ve hemşirelik için önemini açıklamak amacıyla planlanmıştırGastric carcinoma is the fourth-most common cancer worldwide and the fifth-most common malignancy in Turkey. Gastric cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. The overall 5-year survival rate is 15% in the past decade however it has risen over %32 in the recent years. The major factors influencing survival are diagnosis at early stage and more effective treatment methods

Agresif tip maksillar santral dev hücreli granulomada konservatif tedavi yaklaşımı: 2 olgu sunumu

The central giant cell granuloma (CGCG) is a common benign tumor which was first described by Jaffe to define a benign reactive intraosseos lesion usually located in the maxilla and mandible. This lesion is mainly located in the anterior mandible and has predilection to young women. Based on radiographic and clinical features, CGCGs exhibit a spectrum of behaviour ranging from non-aggressive to aggressive. The purpose of this article was to discuss the aggressive type maxillary central giant cell granulomas related to maxillary sinus and to assess its destruction and growth potential, and the response with surgical curettage treatment.   ÖZET İlk kez Jaffe tarafından selim reaktif intraosseoz lezyon olarak tanımlanan santral dev hücreli granuloma genellikle maksilla ve mandibulada lokalize olan yaygın selim bir tümördür. Bu lezyon genellikle mandibulanın anterior bölgesinde lokalize olup bayanlarda görülme eğilimi daha sıktır. Radyografik ve klinik özellikleri esas alındığında bu lezyon agresif ve agresif olmayan tip olmak üzere ikiye ayrılmaktadır. Bu makalede maksillada meydana gelen, sinüs ile ilişkili agresif tip santral dev hücreli granulomaların büyüme potansiyelini, oluşturduğu destrüksiyonları ve cerrahi küretaj tedavisine karşı cevabını tartışmak amaçlanmıştır. Anahtar kelimeler: Santral dev hücreli granüloma, agresif tip, maksill

Evaluation of preoperative model surgery and the use of a maxillary sinus surgical template in sinus floor augmentation surgery

Maxillary sinus augmentation is an accepted technique for dental implant placement in presence of insufficient maxillary bone. There are various techniques in the literature, either by crestal or lateral approach in maxillary sinus augmentation that have high percentage of success, while all have complications. Schneiderian membrane perforation is the most common complication encountered during surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the benefits of preoperative model surgery and the ease of use of a maxillary sinus surgical template (MSST) during maxillary sinus augmentation surgery with a lateral approach. Ten patients included in the study needed rehabilitation of a partially or totally edentulous maxilla with an implant-supported fixed prosthesis and requiring sinus augmentation. A questionnaire was asked to performing surgeons, and study results showed the use of an MSSTwas found to be effective in terms of adaptation (62.5%), window preparation (87.5%), ease of elevation (95.9%), ease of grafting (95.9%), reduction of perforation risk (91.7%), and achieving immobility during the procedure (62.5%); however, the use of an MSST was also found to prolong the surgical procedure (100%) and restrict the view of the surgical area (79.2%). Maxillary sinus augmentation appears to be a useful tool for locating an appropriate entrance to the sinus cavity, allowing for safe elevation of the sinus membrane and effectively grafting the sinus floor

Pre-operative Serum CEA and CA19-9 Levels in Patients with Gastric Cancer: A Single-Center Experience

Introduction: To evaluate the preoperative CEA and CA19-9 levels and their association with clinicopathologic features and mortality. Methods: This retrospective study was conducted on patients who underwent gastric surgery due to gastric adenocarcinoma from 2008 to 2015. Preoperative serum CEA and CA19-9 levels were compared according to the TNM classification and survival data were compared. Results: A total of 335 patients were included in the study with the mean age of 66.1±11.0 years. CEA and CA19-0 positivity were 29.1% and 28.1%, respectively. According to the CEA groups, T stages of the cases were statistically significant (p = 0.013). The rates of T stage 1 in group 1 (CEA positive) were significantly higher than the group 2 (CEA negative) (p=0.007). According to the CA19-9 positivity; rate of stage 2 was significantly higher in the group 1 (CA19-9 positive) (p=0.001); however, rates of stage 2 and 3 were significantly higher in the group 2 (CA19-9 negative) (p=0.004 and p=0.007, respectively). Mortality information could be accessed for 309 cases and 108 deaths (36%) were observed. The mean survival time was 45.21±2.42 months. No significant difference was observed between the groups (p>0.05). Conclusion: Patients with higher levels of CEA and CA19-9 seem to have higher grades of gastric cancer. However, CEA and CA19-9 level does not seem to be in association in our study population

ACTIVE FOLLOW-UP DECISION IN PROSTATE CANCER; HOW SAFE IS THE BIOPSY GLEASON SCORE?

Amaç: Prostat spesifik antijenin tanımlanmasından sonra insidental prostat kanseri oranı yükselmiş ve hastalar gereksiz tedavilere maruz kalabilmişlerdir. İnsidental prostat kanseri olan hastalarda herhangi bir tedavi uygulanmadan yakın izlem kılavuzlara girmiş ve hastalara uygulanmaya başlamıştır. Ancak transrektal ultrasonografi eşliğinde biyopsi patolojilerindeki veriler ile radikal prostatektomi spesimen patolojilerindeki verilerin uyumsuzluğu, küratif tedavi ihtiyacı olabilecek hastaları riske atmaktadır. Bu çalışmada; radikal prostatektomi spesimenlerindeki Gleason skorları ile TRUS-bx Gleason skorlarının karşılaştırılması amaçlanmıştır. Materyal – Metot: Mart 2011 ile Haziran 2016 tarihleri arasında, kliniğimizde radikal prostatektomi cerrahisi geçirmiş hastaların verileri retrospektif olarak değerlendirildi. Hastaların transrektal ultrasonografi eşliğinde biyopsi öncesi PSA değerleri, biyopsi kor sayıları, kanser pozitif biyopsi kor sayıları, biyopsideki kanser yüzdeleri ve Gleason skorları tespit edilerek, radikal prostatektomi sonrası Gleason skorları, doku kanser oranları, cerrahi sınırlar ve patolojik evre ile karşılaştırıldı. Bulgular: Toplam 44 hastanın verileri değerlendirildi. Transrektal ultrasonografi eşliğinde biyopsi patolojisinde Gleason skoru 7 olan hastaların 1’inde (%16,6) prostat spesimen Gleason skoru >7 olarak tespit edildi Sonuç: Transrektal ultrasonografi eşliğinde biyopsi patolojilerinde bildirilen Gleason skorları ile radikal prostatektomi Gleason skorları arasında fark olabilmekte, bu fark özellikle biyopsi Gleason skoru 7 at 1 (16,6%) patient in both transrectal ultrasonography guided biopsy and radical prostatectomy Conclusion: There are differences between transrectal ultrasonography guided biopsy Gleason scores and the radical prostatectomy Gleason scores. This differences especially are obvious in patients with Gleason score <7. The reliability of gleason scores reported by the pathologists might be questionable so, in order to decide active surveillance for patients, other variables (core-tumor ratio, tumor core number, PSA) must also be considered

Evaluation of Extrapulmonary Tuberculosis Cases Presenting with Different Clinical Findings

Introduction: Extrapulmonary tuberculosis cases may display different clinical symptoms and this causes a delay in diagnosis. Nutritional deficiencies, migrations, and wars facilitate the development and the spreading speed of the disease. The aim of this article is to examine extrapulmonary tuberculosis patients with different clinical presentations.Method: In this study, 15 extrapulmoner tuberculosis cases who were hospitalized and treated in our pediatrics clinic in the last two years, has been evaluated retrospectively.Results: The average age of our group was 11.7 ± 4.5 and six of the assessed patients were Syrian origin. The shared complaints of five patients diagnosed with peritoneal tuberculosis were abdominal pain and bloating. Abdominal ultrasonography findings of the patients in concordance with diffuse ascites. Two of these patients, Mycobacterium tuberculosis had peritoneal effusion. All of the five patients diagnosed with lymph node tuberculosis had swelling on the neck, and all had pulmonary involvement. However, only one patient's lymph node biopsy was concordant with tuberculosis. One patient bone tuberculosis patient applied to our clinic with hip and back pain symptom. Pott’s abscess was observed in the patient's thorax MRI and hip MRI was concordant with tuberculous arthritis. Our patient with renal tuberculosis was diagnosed during evaluation of sterile pyuria attacks and in her urine ARB (+) was detected and M. tuberculosis grew in urine culture. One patient with central nervous system involvement applied to our clinic with clouding of consciousness and headache. The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) findings of the patient were concordant with tuberculosis and growth was observed in the CSF culture. One case with miliary tuberculosis had hypercalcemia and pulmonary involvement. The patient's M. tuberculosis DNA PCR test was positive in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Another patient with pericardial tuberculosis applied due to respiratory distress and had cardiomegaly and pericardial effusion. Nine of our patients also had a contact history, 12 had purified protein derivative of tuberculin (PPD) (+), and 11 had pulmonary involvement.Conclusion: Patients were admitted to our outpatient clinic with various clinical symptoms. After careful physical examinations were performed, detailed patient histories were taken and laboratory tests performed for differentials, patients were diagnosed with extrapulmonary tuberculosis. It was desired to emphasize that this disease may appear with different clinical presentations in endemic regions like our country

The association of silicosis severity with pectoralis major muscle and subcutaneous fat volumes and the pulmonary artery/aorta ratio evaluated by CT

PURPOSESilicosis is an incurable occupational disease that sometimes rapidly progresses with fatal outcomes. We aimed to evaluate the association between disease severity and the change in the pectoralis major muscle volume (PMV), subcutaneous fat volume (SFV), and the pulmonary artery/aorta (P/Ao) ratio in patients with silicosis using computed tomography (CT).METHODSThe study included 41 male silicosis patients and 41 control group subjects with available chest CT images. Using dedicated software, we measured PMV and SFV from the axial CT images. We calculated the P/Ao ratio and obtained body mass index (BMI) and forced expiratory volume/forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC) results from hospital records. We used the chest X-ray profusion score according to the International Labor Organization (ILO) classification to evaluate the severity of the silicosis.RESULTSThe mean age was 33.5±4.4 and 34.7±4.7 years in the silicotic and control groups, respectively. The mean BMI, PMV, SFV, and P/Ao values significantly differed between the study and control groups (P = 0.0009, P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001, and P = 0.0029, respectively). According to the ILO classification, there were 12 silicosis patients in category 1, 13 in category 2, and 16 in category 3. A significant difference was found between disease categories in terms of PMV, SFV, P/Ao, BMI, and FEV1/FVC values (P = 0.0425, P = 0.0341, P = 0.0002, P = 0.0492, and P = 0.0004, respectively).CONCLUSIONDisease severity had a stronger association with decreased PMV and SFV and increased P/Ao ratios than BMI in patients with silicosis caused by denim sandblasting. Thus, CT evaluation might be a useful indicator of disease severity

Therapeutic and protective effects of montelukast against doxorubicin-induced acute kidney damage in rats

Objective(s): The current study was designed to investigate the therapeutic and protective effects of montelukast (ML) against doxorubicin (DOX)-induced acute kidney damage in rats.Materials and Methods: Thirty-five Wistar albino female rats were randomly divided into 5 groups as follows: Group I: Control; Group II: Control+ML; Group III: DOX; Group IV: DOX+ML; Group V: ML+DOX. At the end of the experiment, the kidney tissues of rats were collected. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS), reduced glutathione, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase levels were determined from the kidney tissues. In addition, the kidney tissues were examined histologically.Results: DOX induced a significant increase in the kidney TBARS levels, whereas SOD contents significantly decreased when compared with the control group.  On the other hand, ML administration before and after DOX injection caused significant decreases in TBARS production and also increases in SOD levels. Histologically, the most remarkable damage was glomerulosclerosis and tubular changes in the DOX group. Moreover, marked tubular necrosis and swelling in tubular epithelial cells were observed in this group. Contrarily, although glomerulosclerosis was recognized as alleviated also in both DOX+ML and ML+DOX groups, the lesions did not completely ameliorate. However, treatment with ML after DOX injection was more effective than treatment with ML before DOX injection with respect to the protection of tubular structures. Conclusion: It was determined that ML treatment after DOX injection caused therapeutic effects against DOX-induced kidney damage. Thence, ML treatment is of some clinical properties for oxidative stress damage in kidney tissues