A Bayesian approach to real-time spatiotemporal prediction systems for bronchiolitis.

Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) induced bronchiolitis is a common lung infection and a major cause of infant hospitalization and mortality. Unfortunately, there is no known cure for RSV but several vaccines are in various stages of clinical trials. Currently, immunoprophylaxis is a preventative measure consisting of a series of monthly shots that should be administered at the start, and throughout, peak RSV season.

Estimating seasonal onsets and peaks of bronchiolitis with spatially and temporally uncertain data.

RSV bronchiolitis (an acute lower respiratory tract viral infection in infants) is the most common cause of infant hospitalizations in the United States (US). The only preventive intervention currently available is monthly injections of immunoprophylaxis. However, this treatment is expensive and needs to be administered simultaneously with seasonal bronchiolitis cycles in order to be effective.

Nonparametric Tree-Based Predictive Modeling of Storm Outages on an Electric Distribution Network.

This article compares two nonparametric tree-based models, quantile regression forests (QRF) and Bayesian additive regression trees (BART), for predicting storm outages on an electric distribution network in Connecticut, USA. We evaluated point estimates and prediction intervals of outage predictions for both models using high-resolution weather, infrastructure, and land use data for 89 storm events (including hurricanes, blizzards, and thunderstorms). We found that spatially BART predicted more accurate point estimates than QRF.

Comparison of seclusion and restraint prevalence between hearing patients and deaf or hard of hearing patients in a state hospital setting.

The present study is an effort to obtain preliminary data to assess the validity of the long-standing claim that the rate of seclusion and restraint is higher among deaf and hard of hearing individuals than among hearing individuals. This difference has been claimed repeatedly despite there being no research to support it. The sample was comprised of 22 deaf or hard of hearing individuals who had been committed to a large state hospital, all but three of whom had been discharged prior to data collection.