A survey on utilization of data mining approaches for dermatological (skin) diseases prediction

Due to recent technology advances, large volumes of medical data is obtained. These data contain valuable information. Therefore data mining techniques can be used to extract useful patterns. This paper is intended to introduce data mining and its various techniques and a survey of the available literature on medical data mining. We emphasize mainly on the application of data mining on skin diseases. A categorization has been provided based on the different data mining techniques. The utility of the various data mining methodologies is highlighted. Generally association mining is suitable for extracting rules. It has been used especially in cancer diagnosis. Classification is a robust method in medical mining. In this paper, we have summarized the different uses of classification in dermatology. It is one of the most important methods for diagnosis of erythemato-squamous diseases. There are different methods like Neural Networks, Genetic Algorithms and fuzzy classifiaction in this topic. Clustering is a useful method in medical images mining. The purpose of clustering techniques is to find a structure for the given data by finding similarities between data according to data characteristics. Clustering has some applications in dermatology. Besides introducing different mining methods, we have investigated some challenges which exist in mining skin data

Perfect transfer of m-qubit GHZ states

By using some techniques such as spectral distribution and stratification associated with the graphs, employed in [1,2] for the purpose of Perfect state transfer (PST) of a single qubit over antipodes of distance-regular spin networks and PST of a $d$-level quantum state over antipodes of pseudo-distance regular networks, PST of an m-qubit GHZ state is investigated. To do so, we employ the particular distance-regular networks (called Johnson networks) J(2m,m) to transfer an m-qubit GHZ state initially prepared in an arbitrary node of the network (called the reference node) to the corresponding antipode, perfectly. Keywords: Perfect state transferenc, GHZ states, Johnson network, Stratification, Spectral distribution PACs Index: 01.55.+b, 02.10.YnComment: 17 page

Relationship between platelet parameters and sudden sensorineural hearing loss: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Sudden deafness or sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHO is defined as sensorineural hearing loss of greater than 30 dB over 3 contiguous puretone frequencies occurring within 3 days' periodObjective: To investigate the relationship of some platelet parameters including platelet count (PC), mean platelet volume (MPV) and platelet distribution width (PDW) with the occurrence of SSNHL.Data source: A PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, OVID, EMBASE and Google Scholar search (date last searchedApril2016) search was done. No restrictions of time, language and location were placed.Study selection: All case-control studies which have been studied the relationship of PC, MPV and PDW with the occurrence of SSNHL were included in the meta-analysis.Data extraction: The required data from selected studies including the title, authors, publication date, location of study, sample size of patients and control groups, number of withdrawals, the mean and standard deviation of PC, MPV and PDW for patients and control groups and the result of different tests were extracted and entered to EX CELL.Data synthesis: A total of 9 case-control studies were r found in our search from them 8 studies have reported mean PC, 7 studies have reported mean MPV and 4 studies have reported mean PDW. Our analysis showed that mean PC of patients is 0.03 (-0.14-0.20) unit higher than that of controls with 95% CI which is not statistically significant. Also, mean MPV of patients is 0.31 (-0.03-0.65) unit higher than that of controls with 95% CI which is statistically not significant too. Finally, mean PDW of patients is 0.70 (0.03- 1.37) unit higher than that of controls with 95% CI which is statistically significant.Conclusions: Our study confirmed only the probable relationship of PDW and SSNHL but due to the limited studies on this subject more studies is needed

A Qualitative Study to Identify Skills and Competency Required for Hospital Managers

Introduction: Hospital managers aim to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their institutions through leadership and guidance of medical personnel. Fulfilling these objectives requires a holistic approach to both the management of people and institutional prioritization. The aim of this study was to identify the skills and competencies that hospital managers must demonstrate in order to achieve their objectives. Methods: In 2015, a regional, multi-center qualitative study was undertaken in Shiraz, Iran. Interviews and focus group discussions were conducted with university hospital managers, senior managers, faculty members, and post-graduate students, and the results were analyzed using the content analysis method by MAXQDA software. Results: Eight key skill themes (communication, experience, appreciation of institution logistics/infrastructure, management skills, motivation, systematic problem solving, ethics, and financial/legal awareness) were identified among the hospital managers. The common challenges that face hospital institutions include problems with hierarchical and organizational structure, excessive rules and regulations, lack of resources, poor post-graduate education, and overall management. Recurring themes with respect to how these could be addressed included changing the culture and belief structure of the hospital, restructuring the organizational hierarchy, and empowering the people. Conclusion: In our cohort, practical skills, such as communication and experience, were considered more important than theoretical skills for the effective management and administration of hospitals. Therefore, we suggest that practical, skill-based training should be emphasized for students of these disciplines so they will be better suited to deal with real world challenges. Further organizational improvements also can be attained by the active and constructive involvement of senior university managers

Generating GHZ state in 2m-qubit spin network

We consider a pure 2m-qubit initial state to evolve under a particular quantum me- chanical spin Hamiltonian, which can be written in terms of the adjacency matrix of the Johnson network J(2m;m). Then, by using some techniques such as spectral dis- tribution and stratification associated with the graphs, employed in [1, 2], a maximally entangled GHZ state is generated between the antipodes of the network. In fact, an explicit formula is given for the suitable coupling strengths of the hamiltonian, so that a maximally entangled state can be generated between antipodes of the network. By using some known multipartite entanglement measures, the amount of the entanglement of the final evolved state is calculated, and finally two examples of four qubit and six qubit states are considered in details.Comment: 22 page

A general algorithm for manipulating non-linear and linear entanglement witnesses by using exact convex optimization

A generic algorithm is developed to reduce the problem of obtaining linear and nonlinear entanglement witnesses of a given quantum system, to convex optimization problem. This approach is completely general and can be applied for the entanglement detection of any N-partite quantum system. For this purpose, a map from convex space of separable density matrices to a convex region called feasible region is defined, where by using exact convex optimization method, the linear entanglement witnesses can be obtained from polygonal shape feasible regions, while for curved shape feasible regions, envelope of the family of linear entanglement witnesses can be considered as nonlinear entanglement witnesses. This method proposes a new methodological framework within which most of previous EWs can be studied. To conclude and in order to demonstrate the capability of the proposed approach, besides providing some nonlinear witnesses for entanglement detection of density matrices in unextendible product bases, W-states, and GHZ with W-states, some further examples of three qubits systems and their classification and entanglement detection are included. Also it is explained how one can manipulate most of the non-decomposable linear and nonlinear three qubits entanglement witnesses appearing in some of the papers published by us and other authors, by the method proposed in this paper. Keywords: non-linear and linear entanglement witnesses, convex optimization. PACS number(s): 03.67.Mn, 03.65.UdComment: 37 page

Development and psychometric evaluation of the sexual knowledge and attitudes scale for premarital couples (SKAS-PC): An exploratory mixed method study

Background: Designing a valid and reliable questionnaire that allows a fair evaluation of sexual knowledge and attitudes and develop a proper sexual educational program is necessary. Objective: The present study was designed to develop and psychometric evaluation of the sexual knowledge and attitudes scale for premarital couples. Materials and Methods: An exploratory mixed method study was conducted in two phases; in the first, in order to develop a questionnaire an item pool was generated on sexual knowledge and attitudes through focus group discussions and individual interviews. In the second phase, the psychometric properties of the questionnaire were examined. For this purpose, face validity, content validity as well as construct validity were conducted. Reliability was assessed by the Cronbach�s alpha coefficient to assess internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Results: In the first phase an item pool with 88 questions was generated (sexual knowledge 45 items and sexual attitudes 43 items). In the second phase, the number of final items reduced to 33 and 34 items of sexual knowledge and sexual attitudes respectively, through exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Five factors for sexual knowledge and six factors for sexual attitudes identified by EFA. The Cronbach�s alpha coefficient for two sections was 0.84 and 0.81 respectively. The test- retest correlations for sexual knowledge and sexual attitude was 0.74 and 0.82 respectively. Conclusion: The findings suggest that the Sexual Knowledge and Attitudes Scale for Premarital Couples is a valid and reliable instrument. Further studies are needed to establish stronger psychometric properties for the questionnaire. © 2018, Research and Clinical Center for Infertitlity. All rights reserved

Association between IGF-1 levels ranges and all-cause mortality: A meta-analysis

The association between IGF-1 levels and mortality in humans is complex with low levels being associated with both low and high mortality. The present meta-analysis investigates this complex relationship between IGF-1 and all-cause mortality in prospective cohort studies. A systematic literature search was conducted in PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, and Cochrane Library up to September 2019. Published studies were eligible for the meta-analysis if they had a prospective cohort design, a hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for two or more categories of IGF-1 and were conducted among adults. A random-effects model with a restricted maximum likelihood heterogeneity variance estimator was used to find combined HRs for all-cause mortality. Nineteen studies involving 30,876 participants were included. Meta-analysis of the 19 eligible studies showed that with respect to the low IGF-1 category, higher IGF-1 was not associated with increased risk of all-cause mortality (HR = 0.84, 95% CI = 0.68–1.05). Dose–response analysis revealed a U-shaped relation between IGF-1 and mortality HR. Pooled results comparing low vs. middle IGF-1 showed a significant increase of all-cause mortality (HR = 1.33, 95% CI = 1.14–1.57), as well as comparing high vs. middle IGF-1 categories (HR = 1.23, 95% CI = 1.06–1.44). Finally, we provide data on the association between IGF-1 levels and the intake of proteins, carbohydrates, certain vitamins/minerals, and specific foods. Both high and low levels of IGF-1 increase mortality risk, with a specific 120–160 ng/ml range being associated with the lowest mortality. These findings can explain the apparent controversy related to the association between IGF-1 levels and mortality

SSwWS: structural model of information architecture

The Web Technologies allow a representation of a domain of knowledge. This facilitates the conversion of an explicit and tacit knowledge to the possibility of adding knowledge to the Web for automatic processing by the computer. For this reason, it has been designed to be an architecture known as SSwWS (Search Semantic with Web Services) or Search Semantic Web Services, to show how to extend the functionality of the Web search and semantic raised by Berners-Lee, on the meta-references, defined in a Web ontology, so that a user on the Internet can find the answers to their questions through Web services in a simple and fast