AIM: To compare the quality of CT brain images produced by a fixed CT scanner and a portable CT scanner (CereTom).
METHODS: This work was a single-centre retrospective study of CT brain images from 112 neurosurgical patients. Hounsfield units (HUs) of the images from CereTom were measured for air, water and bone. Three assessors independently evaluated the images from the fixed CT scanner and CereTom. Streak artefacts, visualisation of lesions and grey-white matter differentiation were evaluated at three different levels (centrum semiovale, basal ganglia and middle cerebellar peduncles). Each evaluation was scored 1 (poor), 2 (average) or 3 (good) and summed up to form an ordinal reading of 3 to 9.
RESULTS: HUs for air, water and bone from CereTom were within the recommended value by the American College of Radiology (ACR). Streak artefact evaluation scores for the fixed CT scanner was 8.54 versus 7.46 (Z = -5.67) for CereTom at the centrum semiovale, 8.38 (SD = 1.12) versus 7.32 (SD = 1.63) at the basal ganglia and 8.21 (SD = 1.30) versus 6.97 (SD = 2.77) at the middle cerebellar peduncles. Grey-white matter differentiation showed scores of 8.27 (SD = 1.04) versus 7.21 (SD = 1.41) at the centrum semiovale, 8.26 (SD = 1.07) versus 7.00 (SD = 1.47) at the basal ganglia and 8.38 (SD = 1.11) versus 6.74 (SD = 1.55) at the middle cerebellar peduncles. Visualisation of lesions showed scores of 8.86 versus 8.21 (Z = -4.24) at the centrum semiovale, 8.93 versus 8.18 (Z = -5.32) at the basal ganglia and 8.79 versus 8.06 (Z = -4.93) at the middle cerebellar peduncles. All results were significant with P-value < 0.01.
CONCLUSIONS: Results of the study showed a significant difference in image quality produced by the fixed CT scanner and CereTom, with the latter being more inferior than the former. However, HUs of the images produced by CereTom do fulfil the recommendation of the ACR.
Methods: The assay system utilized a known NS2B/NS3 peptide substrate, a recombinant of NS2B/NS3 protease with proprietary StrepTactin® donor and nickel chelate acceptor beads in 384-well format.
Results: The optimized assay to screen for NS2B/NS3 protease inhibitors was demonstrated to be potentially useful with reasonable z' factor, coefficient variance and signal to background ratio. However, screening of synthesized thioguanine derivatives using the optimized AlphaScreen® assay revealed weak NS2B/NS3 inhibition activities.
Conclusion: The AlphaScreen® assay to screen for NS2B/NS3 protease inhibitors is potentially applicable for high throughput screening.
METHODS AND RESULTS: Oral health assessment included dental caries and dental plaque maturity scores (DPMS) while the nutritional assessment included children's height-for-age Z-score (HAZ), body mass index-for-age Z-score (BAZ), mid-upper-arm circumference (MUAC), nutrient intake, cariogenic food frequency (CFF) and daily sugar exposure (DSE). Ninety-three CP children were recruited. The prevalence of caries was 81.7% (95% CI: 72.7%-88.3%). The median (IQR) of the DMFT and dft scores were 0.5(4.0) and 3.0(8.0), respectively. Most of the participants had acid-producing plaque (90.3%), severely stunted (81.4%), and 45% were severely thin with acute malnutrition. Intakes of calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin A, vitamin D and total fat were below 77% of the Recommended Nutrient Intakes for Malaysian children (RNI 2017). Nine types of cariogenic foods/drinks were consumed moderately, and DSE indicated that 45% of the children were at moderate risk of dental caries.
CONCLUSION: Untreated dental caries, severe stunting and thinness were prevalent, and cariogenic foods/drinks were consumed moderately suggesting a moderate risk of caries. Therefore, controlling cariogenic food intake is crucial, but monitoring daily nutrient intake is needed for the optimum growth of children with CP.
Objective: To determine the additional relationship between factors discovered by searching for sociodemographic and metastasis factors, as well as treatment outcomes, which could help improve the prediction of the survival rate in cancer patients. Material and Methods. A total of 56 patients were recruited from the ambulatory clinic at the Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM). In this retrospective study, advanced computational statistical modeling techniques were used to evaluate data descriptions of several variables such as treatment, age, and distant metastasis. The R-Studio software and syntax were used to implement and test the hazard ratio. The statistics for each sample were calculated using a combination model that included methods such as bootstrap and multiple linear regression (MLR).
Results: The statistical strategy showed R demonstrates that regression modeling outperforms an R-squared. It demonstrated that when data is partitioned into a training and testing dataset, the hybrid model technique performs better at predicting the outcome. The variable validation was determined using the well-established bootstrap-integrated MLR technique. In this case, three variables are considered: age, treatment, and distant metastases. It is important to note that three things affect the hazard ratio: age (β 1: -0.006423; p < 2e - 16), treatment (β 2: -0.355389; p < 2e - 16), and distant metastasis (β 3: -0.355389; p < 2e - 16). There is a 0.003469102 MSE for the linear model in this scenario.
Conclusion: In this study, a hybrid approach combining bootstrapping and multiple linear regression will be developed and extensively tested. The R syntax for this methodology was designed to ensure that the researcher completely understood the illustration. In this case, a hybrid model demonstrates how this critical conclusion enables us to better understand the utility and relative contribution of the hybrid method to the outcome. The statistical technique used in this study, R, demonstrates that regression modeling outperforms R-squared values of 0.9014 and 0.00882 for the predicted mean squared error, respectively. The conclusion of the study establishes the superiority of the hybrid model technique used in the study.
RESULTS: Mean orthodontic bracket debonding force measured by the prototype device (9.36 ± 1.65 N) and the universal testing machine (10.43 ± 2.71 N) was not significantly different (p
Results: A significant difference (p < 0.001) of mean debonding force was found between different types of teeth in vivo. Clinically, ARI scores were not significantly different (p = 0.921) between different groups, but overall higher scores were predominant.
Conclusion: Bracket debonding force should be measured on the same tooth from the same arch as the significant difference of mean debonding force exists between similar teeth of the upper and lower arches. The insignificant bracket failure pattern with higher ARI scores confirms less enamel damage irrespective of tooth types.