Novel Architecture of OneM2M-Based Convergence Platform for Mixed Reality and IoT

There have been numerous works proposed to merge augmented reality/mixed reality (AR/MR) and Internet of Things (IoT) in various ways. However, they have focused on their specific target applications and have limitations on interoperability or reusability when utilizing them to different domains or adding other devices to the system. This paper proposes a novel architecture of a convergence platform for AR/MR and IoT systems and services. The proposed architecture adopts the oneM2M IoT standard as the basic framework that converges AR/MR and IoT systems and enables the development of application services used in general-purpose environments without being subordinate to specific systems, domains, and device manufacturers. We implement the proposed architecture utilizing the open-source oneM2M-based IoT server and device platforms released by the open alliance for IoT standards (OCEAN) and Microsoft HoloLens as an MR device platform. We also suggest and demonstrate the practical use cases and discuss the advantages of the proposed architecture

Generating and Adding Flows on Locally Complete Metric Spaces

As a generalization of a vector field on a manifold, the notion of an arc field on a locally complete metric space was introduced in \cite{BC}. In that paper, the authors proved an analogue of the Cauchy-Lipschitz Theorem i.e they showed the existence and uniqueness of solution curves for a time independent arc field. In this paper, we extend the result to the time dependent case, namely we show the existence and uniqueness of solution curves for a time dependent arc field. We also introduce the notion of the sum of two time dependent arc fields and show existence and uniqueness of solution curves for this sum.Comment: 29 pages,6 figure

Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of Korean patients with hepatitis C virus genotype 6

Background/AimsThe distribution of hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotypes varies geographically. In Korea, genotypes 1 and 2 comprise more than 90% of HCV infections, while genotype 6 is very rare. This study compared the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of patients with genotype 6 HCV infection with those infected with HCV genotypes 1 and 2.MethodsThis was a prospective, multicenter HCV cohort study that enrolled 1,173 adult patients, of which 930 underwent HCV genotype analysis, and only 9 (1.0%) were found to be infected with genotype 6 HCV. The clinical and epidemiological parameters of the genotypes were compared.ResultsThe patients with genotype 6 HCV had a mean age of 41.5 years, 77.8% were male, and they had no distinct laboratory features. A sustained virologic response (SVR) was observed in four (67%) of six patients who received antiviral therapy. Risk factors such as the presence of a tattoo (n=6, 66.7%), more than three sexual partners (n=3, 33.3%), and injection drug use (n=3, 33.3%) were more common among genotype 6 patients than among genotypes 1 or 2.ConclusionsThe epidemiology and treatment response of patients infected with genotype 6 HCV differed significantly from those with genotypes 1 or 2, warranting continuous monitoring

Prevalence of Neuropathic Pain and Patient-Reported Outcomes in Korean Adults with Chronic Low Back Pain Resulting from Neuropathic Low Back Pain

Study DesignA noninterventional, multicenter, cross-sectional study.PurposeWe investigated the prevalence of neuropathic pain (NP) and patient-reported outcomes (PROs) of the quality of life (QoL) and functional disability in Korean adults with chronic low back pain (CLBP).Overview of LiteratureAmong patients with CLBP, 20%–55% had NP.MethodsPatients older than 20 years with CLBP lasting for longer than three months, with a visual analog scale (VAS) pain score higher than four, and with pain medications being used for at least four weeks before enrollment were recruited from 27 general hospitals between December 2014 and May 2015. Medical chart reviews were performed to collect demographic/clinical features and diagnosis of NP (douleur neuropathique 4, DN4). The QoL (EuroQoL 5-dimension, EQ-5D; EQ-VAS) and functional disability (Quebec Back Pain Disability Scale, QBPDS) were determined through patient surveys. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to compare PROs between the NP (DN4≥4) and non-NP (DN4<4) groups.ResultsA total of 1,200 patients (females: 65.7%; mean age: 63.4±13.0 years) were enrolled. The mean scores of EQ-5D, EQ-VAS, and QBPDS were 0.5±0.3, 55.7±19.4, and 40.4±21.1, respectively. Among all patients, 492 (41.0%; 95% confidence interval, 38.2%–43.8%) suffered from NP. The prevalence of NP was higher in male patients (46.8%; p<0.01), in patients who had pain based on radiological and neurological findings (59.0%; p<0.01), and in patients who had severe pain (49.0%; p<0.01). There were significant mean differences in EQ-5D (NP group vs. non-NP group: 0.4±0.3 vs. 0.5±0.3; p<0.01) and QBPDS (NP group vs. non-NP group: 45.8±21.2 vs. 36.3±20.2; p<0.01) scores. In the multiple linear regression, patients with NP showed lower EQ-5D (β=−0.1; p<0.01) and higher QBPDS (β=7.0; p<0.01) scores than those without NP.ConclusionsNP was highly prevalent in Korean patients with CLBP. Patients with CLBP having NP had a lower QoL and more severe dysfunction than those without NP. To enhance the QoL and functional status of patients with CLBP, this study highlights the importance of appropriately diagnosing and treating NP

Differences in Clinical Characteristics and Chest Images between Coronavirus Disease 2019 and Influenza-Associated Pneumonia

Background: Concerns are arising about the simultaneous occurrence of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the influenza epidemic, the so-called “twindemic”. In this study, we compared clinical characteristics and chest images from patients with COVID-19 and influenza. Methods: We conducted a case-control study of COVID-19 and age- and sex-matched influenza patients. Clinical characteristics and chest imaging findings between patients with COVID-19 and matched influenza patient controls were compared. Results: A total of 47 patients were enrolled in each group. Anosmia (14.9%) and ageusia (21.3%) were only observed in COVID-19 patients. There were 31 (66%) and 23 (48.9%) patients with COVID-19 and influenza who had pulmonary lesions confirmed by chest computed tomography (CT), respectively. The interval between symptom onset and pneumonia was significantly longer in patients with COVID-19. Round opacities were more common in images from COVID-19 patients (41.9% vs. 8.7%, p = 0.007), whereas pure consolidation (0% vs. 34.9%, p p = 0.028) were more common in images from influenza patients. Notably, the difference in the number of involved pulmonary lobes observed on CT and pulmonary fields observed on radiographic images was significantly higher in COVID-19-associated pneumonia than that in influenza-associated pneumonia (2.32 ± 1.14 vs. 1.48 ± 0.99, p = 0.010). Conclusions: Chest images and thorough review of clinical findings could provide value for proper differential diagnoses of COVID-19 patients, but they are not sufficiently sensitive for initial diagnoses. In addition, chest radiography could underestimate COVID-19 lung involvement because of the lesion characteristics of COVID-19-associated pneumonia

Differences in Clinical Characteristics and Chest Images between Coronavirus Disease 2019 and Influenza-Associated Pneumonia

Background: Concerns are arising about the simultaneous occurrence of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the influenza epidemic, the so-called “twindemic”. In this study, we compared clinical characteristics and chest images from patients with COVID-19 and influenza. Methods: We conducted a case-control study of COVID-19 and age- and sex-matched influenza patients. Clinical characteristics and chest imaging findings between patients with COVID-19 and matched influenza patient controls were compared. Results: A total of 47 patients were enrolled in each group. Anosmia (14.9%) and ageusia (21.3%) were only observed in COVID-19 patients. There were 31 (66%) and 23 (48.9%) patients with COVID-19 and influenza who had pulmonary lesions confirmed by chest computed tomography (CT), respectively. The interval between symptom onset and pneumonia was significantly longer in patients with COVID-19. Round opacities were more common in images from COVID-19 patients (41.9% vs. 8.7%, p = 0.007), whereas pure consolidation (0% vs. 34.9%, p &lt; 0.001) and pleural effusion (0% vs. 17.4%, p = 0.028) were more common in images from influenza patients. Notably, the difference in the number of involved pulmonary lobes observed on CT and pulmonary fields observed on radiographic images was significantly higher in COVID-19-associated pneumonia than that in influenza-associated pneumonia (2.32 ± 1.14 vs. 1.48 ± 0.99, p = 0.010). Conclusions: Chest images and thorough review of clinical findings could provide value for proper differential diagnoses of COVID-19 patients, but they are not sufficiently sensitive for initial diagnoses. In addition, chest radiography could underestimate COVID-19 lung involvement because of the lesion characteristics of COVID-19-associated pneumonia

In vitro propagation method for production of morphologically and genetically stable plants of different strawberry cultivars

Abstract Background As strawberries are susceptible to somaclonal variation when propagated by tissue culture techniques, it is challenging to obtain the true-to-type plants necessary for continuous production of fruits of stable quality. Therefore, we aimed to develop an in vitro propagation method for the production of true-to-type plants of five different strawberry cultivars from meristems cultured in media containing different concentrations of kinetin (Kn). Results For all the cultivars, shoot induction was successful only in the meristems cultured in the medium without Kn and the medium containing 0.5 mg L−1 Kn. The shoots obtained from explants cultured in media supplemented with 0.5 mg L−1 Kn exhibited better plant growth parameters than those cultured in media without Kn and were genetically stable when compared with conventionally propagated plants for all the cultivars. Vegetative and sexual characters and fruit quality attributes observed in the plants derived from meristems cultured on 0.5 mg L−1 Kn and the conventionally propagated plants were not significantly different when grown for three continuous growing seasons under greenhouse conditions. Conclusion The culture of meristems in the medium containing 0.5 mg L−1 Kn is suitable for the efficient propagation of true-to-type plants of different strawberry cultivars and continuous production of fruits with stable quality. Hence, we expect that the method presented in this study will be helpful for the commercial production of true-to-type plants generated in vitro for other strawberry cultivars