Agreement on endoscopic ultrasonography-guided tissue specimens: Comparing a 20-G fine-needle biopsy to a 25-G fine-needle aspiration needle among academic and non-academic pathologists

Background and Aim: A recently carried out randomized controlled trial showed the benefit of a novel 20-G fine-needle biopsy (FNB) over a 25-G fine-needle aspiration (FNA) needle. The current study evaluated the reproducibility of these findings among expert academic and non-academic pathologists. Methods: This study was a side-study of the ASPRO (ASpiration versus PROcore) study. Five centers retrieved 74 (59%) consecutive FNB and 51 (41%) FNA samples from the ASPRO study according to randomization; 64 (51%) pancreatic and 61 (49%) lymph node specimens. Samples were re-reviewed by five expert academic and five non-academic pathologists and rated in terms of sample quality and diagnosis. Ratings were compared between needles, expert academic and

Técnica de biópsia hepática em eqüino por laparoscopia Hepatic biopsy in horses by laparoscopy

Este trabalho experimental objetivou a avaliação do uso da laparoscopia para biópsia hepática em eqüino e o estudo das possíveis alterações clínicas e laboratoriais decorrentes de tal procedimento. Foram utilizados 10 animais, os quais foram submetidos a procedimento cirúrgico em posição quadrupedal, por abordagem pelo flanco direito, no 17º espaço intercostal, após jejum alimentar e hídrico de 36 e 18 horas respectivamente. A avaliação pós-operatória constou de exame físico diário e colheita de amostras de sangue seriadas. O procedimento possibilitou inspeção dos órgãos e estruturas anatômicas localizados dorsalmente à direita da cavidade abdominal, favorecendo a escolha do local de biópsia hepática. Não foram observadas alterações no exame físico dos animais. Os exames hematológicos e de função hepática não apresentaram alterações significativas. Concluiu-se que o emprego da laparoscopia para realização de biópsia hepática em eqüino é simples, eficaz e seguro.<br>The purpose of this research was to evaluate the use of laparoscopy in obtaining hepatic biopsy in horses and to determine a possible clinical and laboratorial changes related to the procedure. Ten animals were submitted to 36 hours of fastening and 18 hours of water deprivation and then operated in the standing position, through a right flank approach at the level of the 17th intercostal space. Post-operative evaluation consisted of daily physical examination and seriated blood sampling. The procedure allowed for wide visualization of the viscera and anatomical structures located on the right side of the abdominal cavity, favouring the choice of the spot for hepatic biopsy collection. No changes were noted in the physical state of the animals and alterations in hemogram and hepatic function tests were not statistically significant. It was concluded that laparoscopy is a simple, effective and safe technique for obtaining hepatic biopsy specimens in horses

Preliminary Study of Bloat in Genetic Programming with Behavior-Based Search

Abstract. Bloat is one of the most interesting theoretical problems in genetic programming (GP), and one of the most important pragmatic limitations in the development of real-world GP solutions. Over the years, many theories regarding the causes of bloat have been proposed and a variety of bloat control methods have been developed. It seems that one of the underlying causes of bloat is the search for fitness; as the fitness-causes-bloat theory states, selective bias towards fitness seems to unavoidably lead the search towards programs with a large size. Intuitively, however, abandoning fitness does not appear to be an option. This paper, studies a GP system that does not require an explicit fitness function, instead it relies on behavior-based search, where programs are described by the behavior they exhibit and selective pressure is biased towards unique behaviors using the novelty search algorithm. Initial results are encouraging, the average program size of the evolving population does not increase with novelty search; i.e., bloat is avoided by focusing on novelty instead of quality