TopoGeoFusion: Integrating object topology based feature computation methods into geometrical feature analysis to enhance classification performance.

This study used smartphone captured RGB images of gooseberries to automatically sort into standard, premium, or rejected categories based on topology. Main challenges addressed include, separation of touching or overlapping fruits into individual entities and new method called 'TopoGeoFusion' that combines basic geometrical features with topology aware features computed from the fruits to assess the grade or maturity. Quality assessment helps in grading the fruit to determine market suitability and intelligent camera applications.

Stimuli-Responsive and Multifunctional Nanogels in Drug Delivery.

Nanogels represent promising drug delivery systems in the biomedical field, designed to overcome challenges associated with standard treatment approaches. Stimuli-responsive nanogels, often referred to as intelligent materials, have garnered significant attention for their potential to enhance control over properties such as drug release and targeting. Furthermore, researchers have recently explored the application of nanogels in diverse sectors beyond biomedicine including sensing materials, catalysts, or adsorbents for environmental applications.

All India Difficult Airway Association guidelines in practice-A survey.

Background And Aims: The All India Difficult Airway Association (AIDAA) has come up with difficult airway (DA) guidelines to suit the Indian context. We conducted an online survey with the primary aim to find out the awareness about AIDAA guidelines and adherence to them in clinical practice. The secondary aims were to explore variations in practice with respect to experience or the type of the institute.

Impressive neurological recovery following C-spine dislocation in a patient on long term immunosuppression.

We report excellent neurological improvement in a patient with C6/C7 dislocation following a high speed road traffic accident. This case in particular is unusual because the patient was the recipient of an organ transplant during childhood and was therefore on long term immunosuppressant medication at the time of injury. In this report we reflect on the role of steroid use in traumatic spinal cord injury and put our case within the context of current evidence and this unusual clinical scenario.

Oral paracetamol versus oral ibuprofen for closure of haemodynamically significant patent ductus arteriosus in preterm neonates (<32 weeks): a blinded, randomised, active-controlled, non-inferiority trial.

Introduction: Haemodynamically significant patent ductus arteriosus (hsPDA) is a common cause of mortality and morbidity in preterm infants. Existing medical therapies with ibuprofen or indomethacin have multiple adverse effects. Hence, an alternative drug like paracetamol given through oral route with less side effects need to be tested in an appropriate study design with least risk of bias to arrive at a conclusion.

Naringenin Ameliorates Doxorubicin Toxicity and Hypoxic Condition in Dalton's Lymphoma Ascites Tumor Mouse Model: Evidence from Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Imaging.

Doxorubicin (DOX) is a well-known cytotoxic agent used extensively as a chemotherapeutic drug to eradicate a wide variety of human cancers. Reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated oxidative stress during DOX treatment can induce cardiac, renal, and hepatic toxicities, which can constrain its use as a potential cytotoxic agent. The present work investigates the antioxidant potential of naringenin (NAR) against DOXinduced toxicities of a Dalton's lymphoma ascites (DLA) tumor-bearing mouse model.

Panobinostat Plus Bortezomib Versus Lenalidomide in Patients with Relapsed and/or Refractory Multiple Myeloma: A Matching-Adjusted Indirect Treatment Comparison of Survival Outcomes using Patient-level Data.

Background: In the UK, the standard of care for patients with multiple myeloma who received ≥2 prior treatments is lenalidomide plus dexamethasone (LEN + DEX) and pomalidomide plus DEX (POM + DEX) (in Wales only). Recently, panobinostat plus bortezomib and DEX (PAN + BTZ + DEX) was licensed in this setting. The current study assessed the progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) outcomes with PAN + BTZ + DEX versus LEN + DEX (primary comparator) and POM + DEX (exploratory comparator).

Cost and consequences of noncompliance to oral bisphosphonate treatment.

Background: Despite the favorable efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness profile of bisphosphonate (BIS) treatment for osteoporosis (OP), patient compliance remains suboptimal. A longer follow-up period could help to better characterize patient behavior as well as the predictors of noncompliance because of the extended durations of osteoporosis and time to a fracture.

Objective: To determine health care outcomes associated with compliance and noncompliance to BIS therapy in women diagnosed with OP.

Safe removal of long-term venous catheters in the neck.

Aims: Tunnelled venous catheters are a well-established method of long-term venous access for total parental nutrition, chemotherapy and antimicrobial treatment. Removal of these catheters is a simple procedure; however, there are some significant risks.

Methods: We report a case in which a serious complication occurred.

Retrospective US database analysis of drug utilization patterns, health care resource use, and costs associated with adjuvant interferon alfa-2b therapy for treatment of malignant melanoma following surgery.

Background: The purpose of this study was to identify a real-world US population having undergone surgery for malignant melanoma and describe treatment patterns, health care resource utilization, and costs for patients who subsequently received interferon alfa-2b (IFN) therapy or other standard of care chemotherapies.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using administrative claims from MarketScan(®) databases among melanoma patients diagnosed between 2004 and 2008 who had surgery and were subsequently treated with IFN or other chemotherapies. Health care resource utilization and costs of services (converted to 2009 dollars) were evaluated.

Quality of Life and Utility in Patients with Metastatic Soft Tissue and Bone Sarcoma: The Sarcoma Treatment and Burden of Illness in North America and Europe (SABINE) Study.

The aim of the study was to assess health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among metastatic soft tissue (mSTS) or bone sarcoma (mBS) patients who had attained a favourable response to chemotherapy. We employed the EORTC QLQ-C30, the 3-item Cancer-Related Symptoms Questionnaire, and the EQ-5D instrument. HRQoL was evaluated overall and by health state in 120 mSTS/mBS patients enrolled in the SABINE study across nine countries in Europe and North America.

Effects of yogurt and applesauce on the oral bioavailability of nilotinib in healthy volunteers.

Nilotinib, a potent orally bioavailable BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is currently available as a hard gelatin capsule that must be swallowed whole. For patients who may have difficulty swallowing the intact capsule, an alternative mode of administration is desirable. The authors compared the bioavailability of nilotinib from the following administrations in 48 healthy subjects: (1) 400 mg nilotinib given as two 200-mg nilotinib intact capsules; (2) contents of two 200-mg nilotinib capsules, each capsule dispersed in 1 teaspoon of nonfat plain yogurt; and (3) contents of two 200-mg nilotinib capsules, each capsule dispersed in 1 teaspoon of applesauce.

Joint variable selection for fixed and random effects in linear mixed-effects models.

It is of great practical interest to simultaneously identify the important predictors that correspond to both the fixed and random effects components in a linear mixed-effects (LME) model. Typical approaches perform selection separately on each of the fixed and random effect components. However, changing the structure of one set of effects can lead to different choices of variables for the other set of effects.

Bayesian variable selection using an adaptive powered correlation prior.

The problem of selecting the correct subset of predictors within a linear model has received much attention in recent literature. Within the Bayesian framework, a popular choice of prior has been Zellner's g-prior which is based on the inverse of empirical covariance matrix of the predictors. An extension of the Zellner's prior is proposed in this article which allow for a power parameter on the empirical covariance of the predictors.