Detecting Dead Code Based on Captured Stack Traces

Large codebases, e.g., with millions of lines of code, can have sections that are dead - sections of code that are rarely or never executed in practice. Currently, developers cannot feasibly identify dead code, especially for client applications that are server driven. In the absence of evidence that a code section is dead, developers are obliged to migrate it to higher versions of the codebase. Dead code thus accumulates over time and adds a tax on all future changes. This disclosure describes techniques to detect dead code based on the behavior patterns of client software during runtime. With user permission, stack traces are sampled and captured during runtime across a large number of devices running a given client software. Symbolicated call stacks are listed by frequency of execution to determine sections of code that are rarely or never executed. Rare or never-executed sections of code are reported to developers for further analysis to identify and remove dead code

Dubens nepakankamumo lūžiai: diagnostika ir gydymo prioritetai

As the average of people lives increases pelvic insufficiency fractures, their timely diagnosis and treatment are becoming more severe problem. Purpose of this article is to review the main literature databases and provide relevant, diagnostic and therapeutic principles applicable to the pelvic insufficiency fractures. This literature review includes data from articles in Pubmed and Cochrane databases. Also overview and available data are provided from Republican Vilnius University Hospital which focuses on pelvic insufficiency fracture treatment.Lithuanian hospitals do not have a common database and conducted extensive research, which could be reliable to identify exact number of pelvic insufficiency fractures.Risk factors which impact fracture deficiencies are: long-term use of corticosteroids, rheumatoid arthritis, lumbar scoliosis, fracture and prior internal fixation of the proximal femur, osteochondrosis. If patient who has a risk factor is complaining about sudden, constant pain in lower back or any other pelvic area, then pelvic insufficiency fracture needs to be considered.When pelvic insufficiency fracture is suspected the main test to be carried out is plain radiography. Monitoring plain radiography or suspecting pubic bone fracture the CT scan is recommended. Effective treatment of pelvic insufficiency fracture needs to be in conjunction with the treatment of osteoporosis and bone fracture in the pelvis.Didėjant žmonių amžiaus vidurkiui, vis aktualesne problema tampa dubens nepakankamumo lūžiai, jų nepavėluota diagnostika ir gydymo taktika. Šio straipsnio tikslas yra apžvelgti pagrindinėse duomenų bazėse esamą literatūrą ir supažindinti su temos aktualumu, dubens nepakankamumo lūžių diagnostikos ir gydymo principais. Šioje literatūros apžvalgoje pateikiami duomenys iš „Pubmed“ ir „Cochrane“ duomenų bazių straipsnių, taip pat Respublikinės Vilniaus universitetinės ligoninės turimi duomenys apie dubens nepakankamumo lūžių gydymą, apžvelgiama diagnostikos ir gydymo taktika, taikoma šios ligoninės ortopedijos-traumatologijos skyriuose.Lietuvos ligoninėse neturime bendros duomenų bazės, stinga ir atliktų išsamių tyrimų, kuriais galėtume remtis, kad sužinotume tikslų dubens nepakankamumo lūžių skaičių.Nepakankamumo lūžiams daro įtaką šie rizikos veiksniai: ilgalaikis kortikosteroidų vartojimas, reumatoidinis artritas, juosmeninės dalies skoliozė, iš anamnezės žinomas šlaunikaulio proksimalinio galo lūžis, juosmeninės stuburo dalies artroziniai pakitimai. Visada reikia įtarti dubens nepakankamumo lūžį, jei pacientas, turintis rizikos veiksnių, skundžiasi staiga atsiradusiu, nuolatiniu apatinės juosmens dalies ir (ar) kitos dubens srities skausmu. Skausmas gali atsirasti ir nesant traumos arba po mažos kinetinės energijos traumos. Pagrindinis tyrimas, kuris turi būti atliktas įtariant nepakankamumo lūžį, yra dubens tiesinė rentgenograma. Jeigu ji rodo ar leidžia įtarti gaktikaulio šakų lūžį, rekomenduojama atlikti dubens kompiuterinę tomografiją. Dubens nepakankamumo lūžiai gali būti efektyviai gydomi tik kartu gydant osteoporozę ir dubens kaulų lūžį

Water transport and absorption in pharmaceutical tablets – a numerical study

The quality of a coated pharmaceutical tablet can be strongly affected by the interactions of water droplets with the porous substrate during processes such as coating process. Three different mechanisms co-exist in the coating process: water spreading, absorption and evaporation. Disentangling the fundamental understanding of these phenomena can therefore be crucial for achieving a higher quality of the products (e.g. a longer shelf-life of the tablets) and for controlling the efficiency of the process. This paper aims to investigate the spreading and absorption mechanisms after droplet impingement on a tablet using a Lattice-Boltzmann methodology. Our numerical results (droplet height and spreading, penetration depth and absorbed volume) are in a good agreement with experimental data and numerical simulations available in the literature. In particular, the spreading phase is characterised by the capillary spreading time scale, as confirmed by previous studies. In contrast to previous studies, we find that the absorption process begins at times shorter than the capillary spreading time but with a different power-law in the absorbed volume. We explain this behaviour through a modified Washburn law that takes into account three-dimensional effects. Our data can be used as a benchmark to test novel mathematical models

Hyperthyroidism and human chorionic gonadotrophin production in gestational trophoblastic disease

Background: Gestational trophoblastic disease (GTD) is a rare complication of pregnancy, ranging from molar pregnancy to choriocarcinoma. Patients with persistent disease require treatment with chemotherapy. For the vast majority, prognosis is excellent. Occasionally, GTD is complicated by hyperthyroidism, which may require treatment. This is thought to occur due to molecular mimicry between human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), and hence cross-reactivity with the TSH receptor. Hyperthyroidism usually resolves as the GTD is successfully treated and correspondingly HCG levels normalise. Methods: This paper reviews cases of GTD treated over a 5-year period at one of the three UK centres and identifies the prevalence of hyperthyroidism in this population. Four cases with clinical hyperthyroidism are discussed. Results: On review of the 196 patients with gestational trophoblastic neoplasia treated with chemotherapy in Sheffield since 2005, 14 (7%) had biochemical hyperthyroidism. Of these, four had evidence of clinical hyperthyroidism. Conclusion: Concomitant biochemical thyroid disease in patients with GTD is relatively common, and measurement of thyroid function in patients with persistent GTD is, therefore, important. The development of hyperthyroidism is largely influenced by the level of HCG and disease burden, and usually settles with treatment of the persistent GTD. However, rarely the thyroid stimulation can have potentially life-threatening consequences

The free β-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin as a prognostic factor in renal cell carcinoma

The free β-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin β is expressed in several nontrophoblastic tumours and this is usually associated with aggressive disease. Little is known about human chorionic gonadotropin β expression in renal cancer. We determined the pretreatment levels of human chorionic gonadotropin β in serum of patients with renal cell carcinoma, and studied whether elevated levels predicted the clinical outcome. Serum samples were collected before surgery from 177 patients with renal cell carcinoma and from 84 apparently healthy controls. Human chorionic gonadotropin β in serum was measured by a highly sensitive time-resolved immunofluorometric assay. The prognostic value of human chorionic gonadotropin β, and of usual clinical and pathological variables was analyzed by the Kaplan-Meier method, the log rank test and Cox multiple hazard regression. The serum concentrations of human chorionic gonadotropin β were increased in 23% of the renal cell carcinoma patients and they were significantly higher in patients with renal cell carcinoma than in controls (P<0.0001). The concentrations did not correlate with clinical stage and histopathological grade, but patients with increased human chorionic gonadotropin β levels had significantly shorter survival time than those with levels below the median (cut-off 1.2 pmol l−1, P=0.0029). In multivariate analysis human chorionic gonadotropin β, tumour stage and grade were independent prognostic variables. The serum concentration of human chorionic gonadotropin β is an independent prognostic variable in renal cell carcinoma. The preoperative value of human chorionic gonadotropin β in serum may be used to identify patents with increased risk of progressive disease

Human chorionic gonadotropin and its relation to grade, stage and patient survival in ovarian cancer

Background: An influence of gonadotropins (hCG) on the development of ovarian cancer has been discussed. Therefore, we quantified serum hCG levels in patients with benign and malignant ovarian tumors and the hCG expression in ovarian cancer tissue in order to analyze its relation to grade, stage, gonadotropin receptor (LH-R, FSH-R) expression and survival in ovarian cancer patients. Methods: Patients diagnosed and treated for ovarian tumors from 1990 to 2002 were included. Patient characteristics, histology including histological subtype, tumor stage, grading and follow-up data were available. Serum hCG concentration measurement was performed with ELISA technology, hCG tissue expression determined by immunohistochemistry. Results: HCG-positive sera were found in 26.7% of patients with benign and 67% of patients with malignant ovarian tumors. In addition, significantly higher hCG serum concentrations were observed in patients with malignant compared to benign ovarian tumors (p = 0.000). Ovarian cancer tissue was positive for hCG expression in 68%. We identified significant differences in hCG tissue expression related to tumor grade (p = 0.022) but no differences with regard to the histological subtype. In addition, mucinous ovarian carcinomas showed a significantly increased hCG expression at FIGO stage III compared to stage I (p = 0.018). We also found a positive correlation of hCG expression to LH-R expression, but not to FSH-R expression. There was no significant correlation between tissue hCG expression and overall ovarian cancer patient survival, but subgroup analysis revealed an increased 5-year survival in LH-R positive/FSH-R negative and hCG positive tumors (hCG positive 75.0% vs. hCG negative 50.5%). Conclusions: Serum human gonadotropin levels differ in patients with benign and malignant ovarian tumors. HCG is often expressed in ovarian cancer tissue with a certain variable relation to grade and stage. HCG expression correlates with LH-R expression in ovarian cancer tissue, which has previously been shown to be of prognostic value. Both, the hormone and its receptor, may therefore serve as targets for new cancer therapies

The autocrine role of tumor necrosis factor in the proliferation and functional differentiation of human lymphokine-activated T killer cells (T-LAK) in vitro

The autocrine role of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF) in the proliferation and functional differentiation of human lymphokine-activated T-killer cells (T-LAK) in vitro was investigated. Human peripheral blood lymphocytes initially stimulated with IL-2 and phytohemagglutinin-P (PHA) for 48 h will proliferate for long periods in vitro in the presence of IL-2. These T-LAK cells have been shown to be 95% CD3 positive. Employing ELISA techniques, greater than 500 pg/ml of TNF was found to be released in the supernatants of these cells during the first 5 days of culture. However, the levels dropped to 100-200 pg/ml by days 7-10. T-LAK cells grown from days 7 to 10 in the presence of IL-2 and rabbit anti-TNF were significantly growth inhibited (up to 23%). The cytolytic activity of T-LAK cells grown from days 0 to 7 in the presence of anti-TNF was also decreased (up to 75%). Phenotypic analysis of these anti-TNF treated T-LAK cells revealed a decrease in CD8 expression (up to 12%) and increase in CD4 expression (up to 27%) when compared with control cells. The data suggest that TNF has a regulatory role in the growth and functional differentiation of these human T-LAK cells

BMQ

BMQ: Boston Medical Quarterly was published from 1950-1966 by the Boston University School of Medicine and the Massachusetts Memorial Hospitals