A stream processing abstraction framework.

Real-time analysis of large multimedia streams is nowadays made efficient by the existence of several Big Data streaming platforms, like Apache Flink and Samza. However, the use of such platforms is difficult due to the fact that facilities they offer are often too raw to be effectively exploited by analysts. We describe the evolution of RAM3S, a software infrastructure for the integration of Big Data stream processing platforms, to SPAF, an abstraction framework able to provide programmers with a simple but powerful API to ease the development of stream processing applications.

Search and comparison of (epi)genomic feature patterns in multiple genome browser tracks.

Background: Genome browsers are widely used for locating interesting genomic regions, but their interactive use is obviously limited to inspecting short genomic portions. An ideal interaction is to provide patterns of regions on the browser, and then extract other genomic regions over the whole genome where such patterns occur, ranked by similarity.

Results: We developed SimSearch, an optimized pattern-search method and an open source plugin for the Integrated Genome Browser (IGB), to find genomic region sets that are similar to a given region pattern.

Echocardiographic correlates of acute heart failure, cardiogenic shock, and in-hospital mortality in tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine clinical and echocardiographic correlates of acute heart failure, cardiogenic shock and in-hospital mortality in a large cohort of tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy (TTC) patients.

Background: Despite good long-term prognosis, life-threatening complications due to hemodynamic instability can occur early in TTC patients.

Methods: The study population consisted of 227 patients (66.

Differences in clinical features and in-hospital outcomes of older adults with tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy.

Objectives: To describe the clinical characteristics and in-hospital outcomes of older adults with tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy (TTC).

Design: Partially retrospective, partially prospective observational study.

Setting: Eleven Italian referral cardiac centers included in the Tako-tsubo Italian Network.

Aortic valve re-implantation technique with Gelweave Valsalva prosthesis: safety, reproducibility and pitfalls of a geometric reconstruction.

Background: To evaluate the safety, reproducibility and pitfalls of an aortic valve re-implantation (AVRei) technique.

Methods: From June 2005 to December 2008, 30 patients underwent aortic valve-sparing re-implantation with Gelweave Valsalva prosthesis. Mean age was 66 +/- 7 years (range 47-81).

Clinical value of echocardiographic assessment of coronary flow reserve after left anterior descending coronary artery stenting in an unselected population.

Background: Transthoracic Doppler echocardiography is a valuable tool to measure coronary flow reserve (CFR) and detect in-stent restenosis (ISR) after percutaneous coronary angioplasty in selected series of patients.

Objectives: To assess the usefulness of coronary flow reserve measured by echocardiography in detecting significant (> or =70%) ISR of the left anterior descending coronary artery in a large unselected population.

Methods: Two hundred and twenty-three patients (age 61 +/- 10 years; 168 men) treated with left anterior descending stenting underwent CFR measurement by transthoracic Doppler echocardiography and venous adenosine infusion 24-72 h before control coronary angiography.

Isolated left cor triatriatum: a rare cause of effort dyspnoea in the adult.

Left cor triatriatum is a congenital heart disease characterized by an intra-atrial membrane determining obstruction and pressure gradient. We report an unusual case of cor triatriatum in a nonprofessional athlete presenting with effort dyspnoea. Although frequently diagnosed in the infant, it may also be a rare cause of effort dyspnoea in the adult.

Near-drowning syndrome: a possible trigger of tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy.

We report a case of transient tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy characterized by an unusual trigger in a woman victim of near-drowning syndrome. After 24 h, electrocardiogram changes and a typical echocardiographic pattern of apical ballooning with a mild increase of serum troponin level induced the suspicion of tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy despite the absence of chest pain. Left ventriculography confirmed the apical ballooning, and coronary angiography revealed normal coronary arteries.

Type A acute aortic dissection in nonagenarian: rare but possible.

Acute type A aortic dissection (TA-AAD) is a highly lethal clinical entity that can occur within a wide age range, associated with multiple aetiologies and various clinical presentations. In the very elderly type A aortic dissection frequently presents with non-specific symptoms and signs and is associated with high mortality and morbidity. Thus the clinician must have a high index of clinical suspicion in order to prompt the most appropriate diagnostic-therapeutic strategy.

Endovascular treatment of painless aortic ulcer detected by transesophageal echocardiography as an incidental finding.

Penetrating aortic ulcer (PAU) is defined as an ulcerating atherosclerotic lesion that disrupts the aortic wall layers, penetrating the internal elastic lamina. The natural history of the disease and the preferred treatment are still debated. We report a case of painless PAU in a 78-year-old man detected by transesophageal echocardiography at the level of proximal descending aorta as an incidental finding.

Prognostic value of tissue Doppler-derived ventricular asynchrony in patients with left bundle branch block but not advanced heart failure.

Objectives: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the prognostic significance of tissue Doppler echocardiography (TDE)-derived ventricular asynchrony in patients with left bundle branch block (LBBB) but not advanced heart failure.

Methods: Fifty-five patients (mean age 66 +/- 13 years; 33 male) with complete LBBB (QRS > 120 ms) hospitalized for an acute episode of decompensated heart failure and in New York Heart Association class II for at least 6 months before the study admission underwent standard Doppler echo and pulsed-wave TDE. Precontraction time (PCTm) from the beginning of Q wave of electrocardiogram to the onset of systolic myocardial velocity wave was evaluated in four different left ventricular (LV) basal myocardial segments (LV anterior, inferior, septal and lateral walls) and in one right ventricular (RV) lateral wall.

WARP: accurate retrieval of shapes using phase of fourier descriptors and time warping distance.

Effective and efficient retrieval of similar shapes from large image databases is still a challenging problem in spite of the high relevance that shape information can have in describing image contents. In this paper, we propose a novel Fourier-based approach, called WARP, for matching and retrieving similar shapes. The unique characteristics of WARP are the exploitation of the phase of Fourier coefficients and the use of the Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) distance to compare shape descriptors.