Utility of a Machine-Guided Tool for Assessing Risk Behavior Associated With Contracting HIV in Three Sites in South Africa: Protocol for an In-Field Evaluation.

Background: Mobile technology has helped to advance health programs, and studies have shown that an automated risk prediction model can successfully be used to identify patients who exhibit a high probable risk of contracting human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). A machine-guided tool is an algorithm that takes a set of subjective and objective answers from a simple questionnaire and computes an HIV risk assessment score.

Objective: The primary objective of this study is to establish that machine learning can be used to develop machine-guided tools and give us a deeper statistical understanding of the correlation between certain behavioral patterns and HIV.

Management of complex perineal injuries.

A retrospective study of 25 patients with severe soft tissue injuries to the perineum from the last 14 years was performed to determine the most appropriate management strategy for these problematic wounds. There were 20 (80%) men and 5 (20%) women with an average age of 29 years. Six (24%) patients died of exsanguination from their pelvic injuries within the first few hours of presentation.

Individual neuropeptides regulate gut-associated lymphoid tissue integrity, intestinal immunoglobulin A levels, and respiratory antibacterial immunity.

Background: Total parenteral nutrition (TPN) leads to atrophy of the gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) and a significant decrease in intestinal immunoglobulin A (IgA) levels, a major constituent of mucosal immunity. Bombesin (BBS) prevents TPN-induced GALT atrophy and maintains intestinal IgA levels. BBS, a neuropeptide analogous to gastrin-releasing peptide in humans, stimulates the release of other gut neuropeptides including cholecystokinin (CCK), gastrin, and neurotensin (NT).