Efficiency analysis methodology of FPGAs based on lost frequencies, area and cycles

We propose a methodology to study and to quantify efficiency and the impact of overheads on runtime performance. Most work on High-Performance Computing (HPC) for FPGAs only studies runtime performance or cost, while we are interested in how far we are from peak performance and, more importantly, why. The efficiency of runtime performance is defined with respect to the ideal computational runtime in absence of inefficiencies. The analysis of the difference between actual and ideal runtime reveals the overheads and bottlenecks. A formal approach is proposed to decompose the efficiency into three components: frequency, area and cycles. After quantification of the efficiencies, a detailed analysis has to reveal the reasons for the lost frequencies, lost area and lost cycles. We propose a taxonomy of possible causes and practical methods to identify and quantify the overheads. The proposed methodology is applied on a number of use cases to illustrate the methodology. We show the interaction between the three components of efficiency and show how bottlenecks are revealed

Performance and toolchain of a combined GPU/FPGA desktop

Low-power, high-performance computing nowadays relies on accelerator cards to speed up the calculations. Combining the power of GPUs with the flexibility of FPGAs enlarges the scope of problems that can be accelerated. We describe the performance analysis of a desktop equipped with a GPU Tesla 2050 and an FPGA Virtex- 6 LX 240T. The balance between the I/O and the raw peak performance is analyzed using the roofline model. A well-tuned accelerator- based codesign, identifying the parallelism, the computation and data patterns of different classes of algorithms, will enable to maximize the performance of the combined GPU/FPGA system

Study of combining GPU/FPGA accelerators for high-performance computing

This contribution presents the performance modeling of a super desktop with GPU and FPGA accelerators, using OpenCL for the GPU and a high-level synthesis compiler for the FPGAs. The performance model is used to evaluate the different high-level synthesis optimizations, taking into account the resource usage, and to compare the compute power of the FPGA with the GP

Cost-effectiveness of hepatitis C virus screening, and subsequent monitoring or treatment among pregnant women in the Netherlands

Background The prevalence of diagnosed chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among pregnant women in the Netherlands is 0.26%, yet many cases remain undiagnosed. HCV screening and treatment of pregnant HCV carriers could reduce the burden of disease and limit vertical transmission from mother to child. We assessed the impact of HCV screening and subsequent treatment with new direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) among pregnant women in the Netherlands. Methods An HCV natural history Markov transition state model was developed, to evaluate the public-health and economic impact of HCV screening and treatment. Besides all 179,000 pregnant women in the Netherlands (cohort 1), we modelled 3 further cohorts: all 79,000 first-time pregnant women (cohort 2), 33,000 pregnant migrant women (cohort 3) and 16,000 first-time pregnant migrant women (cohort 4). Each cohort was analyzed in various scenarios:i no intervention, i.e., the current practice,ii screen-and-treat, i.e., the most extensive approach involving treatment of all individuals found HCV-positive, andiii screen-and-treat/monitor, i.e., a strategy involving treatment of symptomatic (F1-F4) patients and follow-up of asymptomatic (F0) HCV carriers with subsequent treatment only at progression. Results For all cohorts, comparison betweenscenarios(ii) and (i) resulted in ICERs between euro9,306 and euro10,173 per QALY gained and 5 year budget impacts varying between euro6,283,830 and euro19,220,405. For all cohorts, comparison betweenscenarios(iii) and (i) resulted in ICERs between euro1,739 and euro2,749 per QALY gained and budget impacts varying between euro1,468,670 and euro5,607,556. For all cohorts, the ICERs (scenario iiiversusii) involved in delayed treatment of asymptomatic (F0) HCV carriers varied between euro56,607 and euro56,892, well above the willingness-to-pay (WTP) threshold of euro20,000 per QALY gained and even above a threshold of euro50,000 per QALY gained. Conclusion Universal screening for HCV among all pregnant women in the Netherlands is cost-effective. However, it would be reasonable to consider smaller risk groups in view of the budget impact of the intervention

Prevalence and Risk Factors for Delirium in Elderly Patients With Severe Burns: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Little is known about delirium in elderly burn center patients. The aim of this study is to provide information on the prevalence of delirium and risk factors contributing to the onset of delirium. All patients aged 70 years or older admitted with burn injuries to the Burn Center, Maasstad Hospital, in 2011 to 2017 were eligible for inclusion. We retrospectively collected data regarding the presence of delirium, potential risk factors contributing to the onset of delirium and outcome after delirium. We included elderly 90 patients in this study. The prevalence of delirium in our population was 13% (N = 12). Risk factors for delirium were advanced age, increased American Society for Anesthesiologists score, physical impairment and the use of anticholinergic drugs during admission. Patients with delirium had a poorer outcome, with prolonged hospital stay and increased mortality 6 and 12 months after discharge. Delirium is diagnosed in 13% of the elderly patients admitted to our burn center. Risk factors for delirium found in this study are advanced age, poor physical health status, physical impairment, and the use of anticholinergic drugs. Delirium is related to poor outcomes, including prolonged hospital stay and mortality after discharge

No Excess Mortality in Patients Aged 50 Years and Older Who Received Treatment for Ductal Carcinoma In Situ of the Breast

Background. The incidence of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) has increased at a fast rate.The aim of this study was to assess the incidence and treatment in the Netherlands and estimate the excess mortality risk of DCIS. Methods. From the Netherlands Cancer Registry, adult female patients (diagnosed 1997–2005) with DCIS were selected. Treatment was described according to age. Relative mortality at 10 years of follow-up was calculated by dividing observed mortality over expected mortality. Expected mortality was calculated using the matched Dutch general population. Results. Overall, 8421 patients were included in this study. For patients aged 50–64, and 65–74 an increase in breast-conserving surgery was observed over time (P < 0.001). For patients over 75 years of age, 8.0% did not undergo surgery; this percentage remained stable over time (P = 0.07). Overall, treated patients aged >50 years experienced no excess mortality regardless of treatment (relative mortality 1.0). Conclusion. The present population-based study of almost 8500 patients showed no excess mortality in surgically treated women over 50 years with DCIS

Outcomes of open repair of postdissection abdominal aortic aneurysms

Background: Evidence to guide management of postdissection abdominal aortic aneurysms (PDAAA) is lacking. This study describes the outcomes of open repair of PDAAA. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted of all consecutive patients treated with open repair for PDAAA after a Stanford type A or type B thoracic aortic dissection between January 2006 and December 2017 in two vascular referral centers. Preceding type B dissection treatment could include conservative or surgical management. Primary outcomes were 30-day mortality, complication rates, survival, and reintervention-free survival. Survival and reintervention-free survival were analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method. Reintervention was defined as any endovascular or surgical intervention after the index procedure. Results: Included were 36 patients (27 men [75%]) with a median age of 64 years (range, 35-81 years). The 30-day mortality was 2.7%. The median follow-up was 16 months (range, 0-88 months). The postoperative course was uneventful in 21 patients (58%). The most frequent complications were postoperative bleeding requiring repeat laparotomy (n = 4), pneumonia (n = 3), congestive heart failure (n = 2), new-onset atrial fibrillation (n = 2), mesenteric ischemia requiring left hemicolectomy (n=1), and ischemic cerebrovascular accident (n = 1). Renal failure requiring hemodialysis developed in one patient. The overall survival at 1 year was 88.8%. Reintervention-free survival was 95.5% after 1 year and 88.6% after 2 years. Conclusions: Open repair of PDAAA can be performed with a low mortality rate and an acceptable complication rate, comparable with elective open repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms without dissection

Characterising resting-state functional connectivity in a large sample of adults with ADHD

AbstractAttention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common childhood psychiatric disorder that often persists into adulthood. While several studies have identified altered functional connectivity in brain networks during rest in children with ADHD, few studies have been performed on adults with ADHD. Existing studies have generally investigated small samples. We therefore investigated aberrant functional connectivity in a large sample of adult patients with childhood-onset ADHD, using a data-driven, whole-brain approach. Adults with a clinical ADHD diagnosis (N=99) and healthy, adult comparison subjects (N=113) underwent a 9-minute resting-state fMRI session in a 1.5T MRI scanner. After elaborate preprocessing including a thorough head-motion correction procedure, group independent component analysis (ICA) was applied from which we identified six networks of interest: cerebellum, executive control, left and right frontoparietal and two default-mode networks. Participant-level network maps were obtained using dual-regression and tested for differences between patients with ADHD and controls using permutation testing. Patients showed significantly stronger connectivity in the anterior cingulate gyrus of the executive control network. Trends were also observed for stronger connectivity in the cerebellum network in ADHD patients compared to controls. However, there was considerable overlap in connectivity values between patients and controls, leading to relatively low effect sizes despite the large sample size. These effect sizes were slightly larger when testing for correlations between hyperactivity/impulsivity symptoms and connectivity strength in the executive control and cerebellum networks. This study provides important insights for studies on the neurobiology of adult ADHD; it shows that resting-state functional connectivity differences between adult patients and controls exist, but have smaller effect sizes than existing literature suggested