Nonrigid Object Contact Estimation With Regional Unwrapping Transformer

Acquiring contact patterns between hands and nonrigid objects is a common concern in the vision and robotics community. However, existing learning-based methods focus more on contact with rigid ones from monocular images. When adopting them for nonrigid contact, a major problem is that the existing contact representation is restricted by the geometry of the object. Consequently, contact neighborhoods are stored in an unordered manner and contact features are difficult to align with image cues. At the core of our approach lies a novel hand-object contact representation called RUPs (Region Unwrapping Profiles), which unwrap the roughly estimated hand-object surfaces as multiple high-resolution 2D regional profiles. The region grouping strategy is consistent with the hand kinematic bone division because they are the primitive initiators for a composite contact pattern. Based on this representation, our Regional Unwrapping Transformer (RUFormer) learns the correlation priors across regions from monocular inputs and predicts corresponding contact and deformed transformations. Our experiments demonstrate that the proposed framework can robustly estimate the deformed degrees and deformed transformations, which makes it suitable for both nonrigid and rigid contact.Comment: Accepted by ICCV202

Obesity is associated with impaired postprandial pancreatic polypeptide secretion

ObjectiveThis study aims to compare the levels of serum pancreatic polypeptide (PP), insulin (INS), C-peptide (C-P), and glucagon (GCG) before and after glucose stimulation in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients with different body mass indexes (BMI), analyze the relevant factors associated with PP secretion, and further investigate the role of PP in the development of obesity and diabetes.MethodsData were collected from 83 patients from the hospital. The subjects were divided into normal-weight group, overweight group, and obese group according to their BMI. All subjects were tested with the standard bread meal test (SBMT). PP and relevant parameters were measured, and the area under the curve (AUC) was calculated after 120 min of SBMT. AUCpp (AUC of PP) was used as the dependent variable, and the potential influencing factors were used as independent variables for multiple linear regression analysis.ResultsThe obese and overweight groups had significantly lower PP secretion than the normal-weight group (485.95 pg·h/ml, 95% CI 76.16–895.74, p = 0.021; 664.61 pg·h/ml, 95% CI 285.46–1043.77, p = 0.001) at 60 min postprandial. PP secretion in the obese and overweight groups was also significantly lower than that in the normal-weight group (520.07 pg·h/ml, 95% CI 186.58–853.56, p = 0.003; 467.62 pg·h/ml, 95% CI 159.06–776.18, p = 0.003) at 120 min postprandial. AUCpp was negatively associated with BMI (r = -0.260, p = 0.017) and positively associated with AUCGCG (r = 0.501, p< 0.001). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that there was a linear correlation between AUCGCG, BMI, and AUCpp (p< 0.001, p = 0.008). The regression equation was calculated as follows: AUCpp = 1772.255–39.65 × BMI + 0.957 × AUCGCG (R2 = 54.1%, p< 0.001).ConclusionCompared with normal-weight subjects, overweight and obese subjects had impaired PP secretion after glucose stimulation. In T2DM patients, PP secretion was mainly affected by BMI and GCG.Clinical trial registryThe Ethics Committee of the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University.Clinical trial registrationhttp://www.chictr.org.cn, identifier ChiCTR2100047486

Efficacy and Affecting Factors of 131I Thyroid Remnant Ablation After Surgical Treatment of Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma

Purpose: Radioiodine (131I) thyroid remnant ablation is an important treatment of differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) and various factors affecting its efficacy have been reported but not well defined. The aim of our study was to evaluate the efficacy and the affecting factors of 131I ablation after total or near-total thyroidectomy in a relative large DTC cohort.Methods: 261 DTC patients with negative thyroglobulin antibody received 100–200 mCi 131I for thyroid remnant ablation after total or near-total thyroidectomy between January 2012 and October 2015 in our hospital. The efficacy and affecting factors of 131I ablation therapy were retrospectively investigated.Results: The success rate of the first 131I thyroid remnant ablation was 65.90%. Univariate analysis demonstrated that larger tumor size, higher level of pre-ablation stimulated thyroglobulin (sTg), intermediate to high risk stratification for recurrence, and lymph node and distant metastases were associated with a lower success rate of the first 131I ablation (all p < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that tumor size, pre-ablation sTg, and lymph node and distant metastases were independent factors affecting the efficacy of the first 131I ablation. Areas under receiver operating characteristic curves for sTg, sTg/TSH ratio, and tumor size to predict unsuccessful ablation were 0.831, 0.824, and 0.648, respectively. The threshold values were 4.595 ng/ml, 0.046 mg/IU, and 1.350 cm, respectively. The sensitivities were 95.51, 96.63, and 73.03% and the specificities were 64.54, 61.63, and 49.41%, respectively. The excellent response (ER) ratio of the successful group was significantly higher than that of the unsuccessful group.Conclusions: The efficacy of the first 131I thyroid remnant ablation after surgical treatment of DTC is well demonstrated, and tumor size, pre-ablation sTg, lymph node, and distant metastases are independent factors affecting its efficacy

Interaction between electrical storm and left ventricular ejection fraction as predictors of mortality in patients with implantable cardioverter defibrillator: A Chinese cohort study

AimsTo determine the interaction of electrical storm (ES) and impaired left ventircular ejection fraction (LVEF) on the mortality risk of patients with implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD).Methods and resultsA total of 554 Chinese ICD recipients from 2010 to 2014 were retrospectively included and the mean follow-up was 58 months. The proportions of dilated cardiomyopathy and the hypertrophic cardiomyopathy were 26.0% (144/554) and 5.6% (31/554), respectively. There were 8 cases with long QT syndrome, 6 with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy and 2 with Brugada syndrome. Patients with prior MI accounted for 15.5% (86/554) and pre-implantation syncope accounted for 23.3% (129/554). A total of 199 (35.9%) patients had primary prevention indications for ICD therapy. Both ES and impaired LVEF (<40%) were independent predictors for all-cause mortality [hazard ratio (HR) 2.40, 95% CI 1.57–3.68, P < 0.001; HR 1.94, 95% CI 1.30–2.90, P = 0.001, respectively] and cardiovascular mortality (HR 4.63, 95% CI 2.68–7.98, P < 0.001; HR 2.56, 95% CI 1.47–4.44, p = 0.001, respectively). Compared with patients with preserved LVEF (≥40%) and without ES, patients with impaired LVEF and ES had highest all-cause and cardiovascular mortality risks (HR 4.17, 95% CI 2.16–8.06, P < 0.001; HR 11.91, 95% CI 5.55–25.56, P < 0.001, respectively). In patients with impaired LVEF, ES increased the all-cause and cardiovascular mortality risks (HR 1.84, 95% CI 1.00–3.37, P = 0.034; HR 4.86, 95% CI 2.39–9.86, P < 0.001, respectively). In patients with ES, the deleterious effects of impaired LVEF seemed confined to cardiovascular mortality (HR 2.54, 95% CI 1.25–5.14, p = 0.038), and the HR for all-cause mortality was not significant statistically (HR 1.14, 95% CI 0.54–2.38, P = 0.735).ConclusionBoth ES and impaired LVEF are independent predictors of mortality risk in this Chinese cohort of ICD recipients. The interaction of ES and impaired LVEF in patients significantly amplifies the deleterious effects of each other as distinct disease

Safety and efficacy of lentinan nasal drops in patients infected with the variant of COVID-19: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial

Objective: Lentinan has antiviral, anti-tumor, immunomodulatory, stimulating interferon production, and other pharmacological effects. Previous animal experiments have shown that lentinan nasal drops can assist [Corona Virus Disease 2019) COVID-19] vaccine to induce high levels of neutralizing antibodies and can effectively resist the invasion of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This study aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of lentinan nasal drops in patients infected with Omicron (SARS-CoV-2 variant) through a dose-escalation study and a placebo-controlled trial.Methods: A randomized, placebo-controlled trial. The study was divided into two phases: Phase I: a dose escalation trial in which 24 COVID-19 patients were enrolled, that is, 12 in the escalation dose group (50, 75, and 100 µg/day) and 12 in the standard treatment group. The aim was to evaluate the safety and tolerance of lentinan nasal drops. The second stage was a placebo-controlled study. The optimal dose group of the first stage was used as the therapeutic dose, and the sample size was expanded to verify the anti-COVID-19 efficacy of lentinan nasal drops.Results: In the dose-increasing study, lentinan nasal drops showed good safety, and no serious adverse reactions occurred. The virus shedding time of the 100 µg dose group was significantly shorter than that in the control group (7.75 ± 1.71 VS 13.41 ± 3.8 days) (p = 0.01), and the 100 µg/day lentinan nasal drops were tolerated well. The results of the placebo-controlled study showed that compared with that in the placebo group, the time for COVID-19 antigen to turn negative was significantly shorter in the 100 µg lentinan nasal drop group (p = 0.0298), but no significant difference was observed in symptom improvement between the two groups. In the placebo-controlled study, two patients experienced mild nasal discomfort with nasal drops, but the symptoms relieved themselves.Conclusion: Lentinan nasal drops are tolerated well and can shorten the time of virus clearance

BRAF V600E Status Sharply Differentiates Lymph Node Metastasis-associated Mortality Risk in Papillary Thyroid Cancer

[Context]: How lymph node metastasis (LNM)-associated mortality risk is affected by BRAF V600E in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) remains undefined. [Objective]: To study whether BRAF V600E affected LNM-associated mortality in PTC. [Design, Setting, and Participants]: We retrospectively analyzed the effect of LNM on PTC-specific mortality with respect to BRAF status in 2638 patients (2015 females and 623 males) from 11 centers in 6 countries, with median age of 46 [interquartile range (IQR) 35-58] years and median follow-up time of 58 (IQR 26-107) months. [Results]: Overall, LNM showed a modest mortality risk in wild-type BRAF patients but a strong one in BRAF V600E patients. In conventional PTC (CPTC), LNM showed no increased mortality risk in wild-type BRAF patients but a robustly increased one in BRAF V600E patients; mortality rates were 2/659 (0.3%) vs 4/321 (1.2%) in non-LNM vs LNM patients (P = 0.094) with wild-type BRAF, corresponding to a hazard ratio (HR) (95% CI) of 4.37 (0.80-23.89), which remained insignificant at 3.32 (0.52-21.14) after multivariate adjustment. In BRAF V600E CPTC, morality rates were 7/515 (1.4%) vs 28/363 (7.7%) in non-LNM vs LNM patients (P < 0.001), corresponding to an HR of 4.90 (2.12-11.29) or, after multivariate adjustment, 5.76 (2.19-15.11). Adjusted mortality HR of coexisting LNM and BRAF V600E vs absence of both was 27.39 (5.15-145.80), with Kaplan-Meier analyses showing a similar synergism. [Conclusions]: LNM-associated mortality risk is sharply differentiated by the BRAF status in PTC; in CPTC, LNM showed no increased mortality risk with wild-type BRAF but a robust one with BRAF mutation. These results have strong clinical relevance.This work was supported partly by the following funding at the individual participating centers: Polish National Center of Research and Development MILESTONE Project—molecular diagnostics and imaging in individualized therapy for breast, thyroid and prostate cancer, grant No. STRATEGMED2/267398/4/ NCBR/2015 (Poland, AC, BJ); Grants No. PID2019-105303RB-I00 (AEI from MICINN), GCB14142311CRES (AECC Foundation), and B2017/BMD-3724 TIRONET2-CM (Spain; PS and GR-E); Grant No. AZV 16-32665A and MH CZ-DRO (Institute of Endocrinology-EU, 00023761) (Czech Republic; BB, VS); NIH/ National Institute on Aging Grant No. 5R03AG042334-02 (LY); and grants from the Qingdao Science and Technology Project for People’s Livelihood No.13-1-3-58-nsh (China; FW) and the Innovative Platform Project of Qingdao No.12-1-2-15-jch (China; YW)

Enhancing the Precision of Timing Gear Used in Automobile by Making Use of Azotizing Deformation

Statistic analysis about the effect of heat treatment deformation on tooth profile deviation distribution of the timing gear used in automobile is done with mathematical statistics. Based on the research on the effect of the heat treatment deformation on tooth profile deviation, helical deviation and common normal length etc, the processing measure, tolerance and correcting quantity before and after azotizing treatment can be adjusted to optimize the gear process and to enhance processing precision of the gear