Shared Paths to Well-Being: The Impact of Group Therapy.

This study explored the impact of an art of living intervention within group psychotherapy for depression, focusing on constructs like life satisfaction, self-efficacy, and depression. Mental illness prevalence often exceeds available treatment options, particularly in Germany, where group psychotherapy is a viable alternative. While less researched, group therapy effectively improves well-being, especially through interpersonal exchange.

A Newborn with Cleft Palate Associated with PTEN Hamartoma Tumor Syndrome.

: PTEN hamartoma tumor syndrome (PHTS) has evolved into an umbrella term for a range of syndromes, characterized by loss-of-function variants in the phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) tumor suppressor gene on chromosome 10q23.31. This can result in a lifelong tumor predisposition in patients.

Artificial Intelligence in Cardiac Surgery: Transforming Outcomes and Shaping the Future.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a transformative technology in healthcare, with its integration into cardiac surgery offering significant advancements in precision, efficiency, and patient outcomes. However, a comprehensive understanding of AI's applications, benefits, challenges, and future directions in cardiac surgery is needed to inform its safe and effective implementation. A systematic review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines.

ChatGPT, Google, or PINK? Who Provides the Most Reliable Information on Side Effects of Systemic Therapy for Early Breast Cancer?

The survival in early breast cancer (BC) has been significantly improved thanks to numerous new drugs. Nevertheless, the information about the need for systemic therapy, especially chemotherapy, represents an additional stress factor for patients. A common coping strategy is searching for further information, traditionally via search engines or websites, but artificial intelligence (AI) is also increasingly being used.

Empirical Data-Driven Linear Model of a Swimming Robot Using the Complex Delay-Embedding DMD Technique.

Anguilliform locomotion, an efficient aquatic locomotion mode where the whole body is engaged in fluid-body interaction, contains sophisticated physics. We hypothesized that data-driven modeling techniques may extract models or patterns of the swimmers' dynamics without implicitly measuring the hydrodynamic variables. This work proposes empirical kinematic control and data-driven modeling of a soft swimming robot.

Advances in Biomimetics: The Power of Diversity.

Biomimetics research on living systems attempts to transfer their properties and functions to engineering applications [...

Terminological Resources for Biologically Inspired Design and Biomimetics: Evaluation of the Potential for Ontology Reuse.

Biomimetics aims to learn from living systems to develop innovative technical artefacts. As it transcends disciplinary boundaries and needs to integrate both biological and technological knowledge, a domain ontology for biomimetics would be highly desirable. So far, several terminological resources have been designed to support the biomimetic development process.

Sulfated and Phosphorylated Agarose as Biomaterials for a Biomimetic Paradigm for FGF-2 Release.

Cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction or limb ischemia are characterized by regression of blood vessels. Local delivery of growth factors (GFs) involved in angiogenesis such as fibroblast blast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) has been shown to trigger collateral neovasculature and might lead to a therapeutic strategy. In vivo, heparin, a sulfated polysaccharide present in abundance in the extracellular matrix (ECM), has been shown to function as a local reservoir for FGF-2 by binding FGF-2 and other morphogens and it plays a role in the evolution of GF gradients.

The Gibbs Fundamental Relation as a Tool for Relativity.

When relativistic physics is lectured on, interest is focused on the behavior of mechanical and electromagnetic quantities during a reference frame change. However, not only mechanical and electromagnetic quantities transform during a reference frame change; thermodynamic and chemical quantities do too. We will study the transformations of temperature and chemical potential, show how to obtain the corresponding transformation equations with little effort, and exploit the fact that the energy conjugate extensive quantities, namely entropy and amount of substance, are Lorentz-invariant.

Maximum-Power Stirling-like Heat Engine with a Harmonically Confined Brownian Particle.

Heat engines transform thermal energy into useful work, operating in a cyclic manner. For centuries, they have played a key role in industrial and technological development. Historically, only gases and liquids have been used as working substances, but the technical advances achieved in recent decades allow for expanding the experimental possibilities and designing engines operating with a single particle.

Introducing ActiveInference.jl: A Julia Library for Simulation and Parameter Estimation with Active Inference Models.

We introduce a new software package for the Julia programming language, the library ActiveInference.jl. To make active inference agents with Partially Observable Markov Decision Process (POMDP) generative models available to the growing research community using Julia, we re-implemented the pymdp library for Python.

Quantum Contextual Hypergraphs, Operators, Inequalities, and Applications in Higher Dimensions.

Quantum contextuality plays a significant role in supporting quantum computation and quantum information theory. The key tools for this are the Kochen-Specker and non-Kochen-Specker contextual sets. Traditionally, their representation has been predominantly operator-based, mainly focusing on specific constructs in dimensions ranging from three to eight.

Unique Information Through the Lens of Channel Ordering: An Introduction and Review.

The problem of constructing information measures with a well-defined interpretation is of fundamental significance in information theory. A good definition of an information measure entails certain desirable properties while also providing answers to operational problems. In this work, we investigate the properties of the unique information, an information measure that quantifies a deviation from the Blackwell order.

Comparing Statistical and Machine Learning Methods for Time Series Forecasting in Data-Driven Logistics-A Simulation Study.

Many planning and decision activities in logistics and supply chain management are based on forecasts of multiple time dependent factors. Therefore, the quality of planning depends on the quality of the forecasts. We compare different state-of-the-art forecasting methods in terms of forecasting performance.

Joint Identification and Sensing for Discrete Memoryless Channels.

In the identification (ID) scheme proposed by Ahlswede and Dueck, the receiver's goal is simply to verify whether a specific message of interest was sent. Unlike Shannon's transmission codes, which aim for message decoding, ID codes for a discrete memoryless channel (DMC) are far more efficient; their size grows doubly exponentially with the blocklength when randomized encoding is used. This indicates that when the receiver's objective does not require decoding, the ID paradigm is significantly more efficient than traditional Shannon transmission in terms of both energy consumption and hardware complexity.

Practical Implications in Contemporary Dental Aesthetics-Shade Selection Assessment Using Intraoral Scanners.

Aesthetics is a challenging aspect to restore for both dentists and dental technicians. One of the characteristics of aesthetic restoration is the shade. The purpose of the study is to assess the accuracy of the shade selection feature of intraoral scanners (CEREC Omnican, 3Shape TRIOS) in comparison with an already established method-the VITA Easyshade V spectrophotometer (VE)-and test if there is any significant difference between the three devices.

The Effect of Oral Potentially Malignant Disorders (OPMD) on Dental Implants Survival-A Systematic Review.

This research is purposed to synthesize the existing evidence on implant survival rates in patients with oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD) and assess potential risk factors associated with peri-implant disease. A comprehensive search was performed across PubMed MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science. This review was conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines, including studies published between 2012 and 2023.

Exploring the Association Between Third Molar Agenesis and Carabelli Traits: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Dental agenesis is the congenital absence of at least one tooth and has been associated with several other developmental dental conditions, such as morphological dental alterations and Carabelli trait. This study sought to investigate whether third molar agenesis is associated with Carabelli traits in permanent molars. : This was a cross-sectional study that used a convenience sample obtained from the orthodontic records of German patients.

Comparative in Vitro Study on the Antimicrobial Efficacy of Endodontic Sealers Against Common Oral Pathogens.

: Microorganisms are the leading cause of infections in the root canal system, contributing to the failure of endodontic treatments. This in vitro study aimed to compare the antimicrobial effects of four different endodontic sealers: Endomethasone N (Septodont, Saint Maur-des-Fossés, France), Sealapex (Kerr Corporation, Orange, CA, USA), AH Plus Jet (Dentsply DeTrey GmbH, Konstanz, Germany), and MTA Fillapex (Angelus, Londrina, Brazil). : The sealers were tested against common oral pathogens, including Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Candida albicans, and Streptococcus mutans, using the agar diffusion method.

Dental Implant Failure Risk in Patients with Bruxism-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Literature.

Recent research has indicated that placing dental implants in patients diagnosed with bruxism has led to higher rates of implant failure. This study aimed to provide more accurate knowledge about the relationship between bruxism and implant loss in patients (number, age, gender) with different numbers of implants and prosthetic restorations, considering the follow-up time, compared to non-bruxers. A systematic search was conducted in PubMed and Cochrane Library using the keyword combination "dental implant", "bruxism", and "implant failure".

Self-Reported Oral Hygiene Performance of Patients in Albania: A Questionnaire-Based Survey.

Oral hygiene is a key factor for dental and periodontal diseases and the prognosis of any treatment to restore their consequences. The present survey aimed to evaluate how well informed patients in Albania are on oral hygiene, given the scarce evidence on this topic. This survey was performed using a Google Forms questionnaire on oral hygiene habits, type and technique of instruments used, and frequency of dental recall visits.

Peri-Implant Soft Tissue in Contact with Zirconium/Titanium Abutments from Histological and Biological Perspectives: A Concise Review.

Dental implants are crucial in contemporary oral rehabilitation, necessitating optimal integration with the surrounding soft tissues for durable success. The attachment between the implant surface and peri-implant mucosa should establish a secure seal to prevent bacterial infiltration and subsequent tissue inflammation. This concise review examines the histological and biological perspectives of peri-implant soft tissue reactions to zirconium and titanium abutments, shedding light on their respective advantages and limitations.

miR-223 and Chromogranin A Affect Inflammatory Immune Cell Activation in Liver Metastasis of Neuroendocrine Neoplasms.

Neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) are a diverse group originating from endocrine cells/their precursors in pancreas, small intestine, or lung. The key serum marker is chromogranin A (CgA). While commonly elevated in patients with NEN, its prognostic value is still under discussion.

A Novel, Cell-Compatible Hyaluronidase Activity Assay Identifies Dextran Sulfates and Other Sulfated Polymeric Hydrocarbons as Potent Inhibitors for CEMIP.

Hyaluronan (HA) levels are dynamically regulated homeostatically through biosynthesis and degradation. HA homeostasis is often perturbed under disease conditions. HA degradation products are thought to contribute to disease pathology.

Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging of NAD(P)H in Patients' Lymphocytes: Evaluation of Efficacy of Immunotherapy.

Background: The wide variability in clinical responses to anti-tumor immunotherapy drives the search for personalized strategies. One of the promising approaches is drug screening using patient-derived models composed of tumor and immune cells. In this regard, the selection of an appropriate in vitro model and the choice of cellular response assay are critical for reliable predictions.