Varying pixel resolution significantly improves deep learning-based carotid plaque histology segmentation.

Carotid plaques-the buildup of cholesterol, calcium, cellular debris, and fibrous tissues in carotid arteries-can rupture, release microemboli into the cerebral vasculature and cause strokes. The likelihood of a plaque rupturing is thought to be associated with its composition (i.e.

Lumen segmentation using a Mask R-CNN in carotid arteries with stenotic atherosclerotic plaque.

In patients at high risk for ischemic stroke, clinical carotid ultrasound is often used to grade stenosis, determine plaque burden and assess stroke risk. Analysis currently requires a trained sonographer to manually identify vessel and plaque regions, which is time and labor intensive. We present a method for automatically determining bounding boxes and lumen segmentation using a Mask R-CNN network trained on sonographer assisted ground-truth carotid lumen segmentations.

The Influence of Femoral Fixation on Mortality and Revision After Hip Arthroplasty in Femoral Neck Fractures in Patients Older Than 65 Years. A Matched Cohort Analysis From the American Joint Replacement Registry.

Introduction: In the United States, most hip arthroplasties for femoral neck fractures are done with a noncemented stem despite worldwide registry data suggesting that cemented fixation has improved long-term survivorship in patients older than 65 years. We, therefore, evaluated the effect of femoral fixation on the risk of revision, revision for periprosthetic fracture (PPFx), and mortality in patients undergoing hip arthroplasty for femoral neck fractures.

Methods: Seventeen thousand one hundred thirty-eight cases of cemented femoral stems were exactly matched to noncemented fixation cases in a 1:1 fashion based on age, sex, and Charlson Comorbidity Index as reported in the American Joint Replacement Registry.

Updated Prevalence of Urinary Incontinence in Women: 2015-2018 National Population-Based Survey Data.

Objectives: This study aimed to update estimates of urinary incontinence (UI) prevalence and associated risk factors for adult women in the United States, using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Methods: We used descriptive analysis of 2015-2018 NHANES weighted data for women to estimate prevalence and characterize UI types and severity. Logistic regression modeling determined adjusted associations with UI.

The effect of smoking on cumulative damage in systemic lupus erythematosus: An incident cohort study.

Objectives: To investigate the relationship between smoking history and pack-year exposure on the rate of end-organ damage in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods: The SLE incident cohort included patients who met American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 1997 or SLE International Collaborating Clinics (SLICC) 2012 SLE criteria and had rheumatology encounters at a US academic institution (2008-16). The primary outcome was median time to SLICC/ACR damage index (SLICC/ACR-DI) increase or death.