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Objective We aimed to investigate the feasibility and method of constructing a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) curative effect prediction model based on the data of Kechuanting acupoint plastering therapy in the treatment of bronchial asthma (asthma). Methods Data from the Chronic Disease Management Research Platform of 303 patients with asthma who were treated with Kechuanting acupoint plastering therapy for 6 weeks in the Department of Acupuncture and Rehabilitation of Jiangsu Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine from June to August 2018 to 2021 were selected. We used Phyton 3.10 for statistical analysis. After data preprocessing, the influencing factors were used to build models by Logistic regression, support vector machine, K-means clustering algorithm, Bayes algorithm, random forest method and Light gradient boosting machine (LightGBM) respectively, with the improvement of asthma control test score (ACT), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) and exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) as the outcome indicators. Then, the models were compared and analyzed. Subsequently, the superior model was used to establish the efficacy prediction model and verify its stability to obtain the accuracy rate and eliminate the relatively important factors. Results The accuracy rate of the Kechuanting acupoint plastering therapy curative effect prediction model established by the LightGBM model was more than 70%. Five important factors were selected, including allergic history, tabacco and alcohol abuse, plastering duration, ACT before treatment, and FeNO before treatment. According to the classification analysis and the relationship between the important factors and the outcome indicators, Kechuanting acupoint plastering therapy significantly improved the ACT of patients with no history of allergy, no tabacco and alcohol abuse, and poor ACT:5-15 points (P < 0.05). Furthermore, Kechuanting acupoint plastering therapy improved FeNO more significantly in patients with more than 3 years of treatment than those with no more than 3 years (P < 0.05). However, Kechuanting acupoint plastering therapy only improved FeNO in a few patients with poor asthma control levels (P < 0.05) and severe airway inflammation (FeNO>50x10-9) (P>0.05). Conclusion Acupoint plastering application has a significant effect on improving the control level of asthma, but its effect on improving airway inflammation is limited. It is feasible to use data from the chronic disease management research platform to construct the prediction model. After optimization and testing, the predictive model established based on the data of this study may provide an effective evaluation tool for targeted clinical treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Tuberculosis is the second most deadly infectious disease after COVID-19 and the 13th leading cause of death worldwide. Among the 30 countries with a high burden of TB, China ranks third in the estimated number of TB cases. China is in the top four of 75 countries with a deficit in funding for TB strategic plans. To reduce costs and improve the effectiveness of TB treatment in China, the NHSA developed an innovative BP method. This study aimed to simulate the effects of this payment approach on different stakeholders, reduce the economic burden on TB patients, improve the quality of medical services, facilitate policy optimization, and offer a model for health care payment reforms that can be referenced by other regions throughout the world. Methods: We developed a simulation model based on a decision tree analysis to project the expected effects of the payment method on the potential financial impacts on different stakeholders. Our analysis mainly focused on comparing changes in health care costs before and after receiving BPs for TB patients with Medicare in the pilot areas. The data that were used for the analysis included the TB service claim records for 2019–2021 from the health insurance agency, TB prevalence data from the local Centre for Disease Control, and health care facilities' revenue and expenditure data from the Statistic Yearbook. A Monte Carlo randomized simulation model was used to estimate the results. Results: After adopting the innovative BP method, for each TB patient per year, the total annual expenditure was estimated to decrease from $2,523.28 to $2,088.89, which is a reduction of $434.39 (17.22%). The TB patient out-of-pocket expenditure was expected to decrease from $1,249.02 to $1,034.00, which is a reduction of $215.02 (17.22%). The health care provider's revenue decreased from $2,523.28 to $2,308.26, but the health care provider/institution's revenue-expenditure ratio increased from -6.09% to 9.50%. Conclusions: This study highlights the potential of BPs to improve medical outcomes and control the costs associated with TB treatment. It demonstrates its feasibility and advantages in enhancing the coordination and sustainability of medical services, thus offering valuable insights for global health care payment reform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Packaging has become an important concern of fresh food supply chains and will exert a growing influence under environmental policies. In this paper, we have discussed three specific issues to investigate fresh food supply chains' packaging strategy, that is, whether to use disposable packaging containers (DPCs) or reusable packaging containers (RPCs), whether to purchase or rent RPCs, and the influences of environmental policies. Our research has generated some key findings. First, we find that penalty (such as taxes) and reward (such as subsidies) are simultaneously needed to motivate supply chains to choose RPCs. In terms of the "purchasing or renting" choice, it highly depends on the relative magnitude of the purchase and rental subsidies, along with the number of uses of RPCs and the perishability of fresh food. We also conclude that reusing RPCs for more times has two‐sided effects, that is, the effect of cost saving and the effect of accelerated deterioration. Thus, it is not recommended to excessively reuse RPCs. In addition, we make two extensions. First, we consider endogenous tax rate and subsidy rates and discuss from the perspective of social welfare. Second, we consider endogenous sales price and rental price of RPCs and study the optimal decisions of the RPC operator. Results show that the government should establish a classified tax and subsidy system for packaging containers, and meanwhile benchmarking prices for RPC services should be set to curb the RPC operator's free‐riding behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Information asymmetry and poor solvency caused by uncertainties in supply chains are the root causes of supply chain financing risks (SCFR). The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of supply chain integration on reducing SCFR by incorporating the mechanisms of information sharing and controlling supply chain risks (SCR). Design/methodology/approach: This paper proposes hypothesis to discuss the impact of integration on SCFR and the mediating roles of alleviating information asymmetry and mitigating SCR, aiming at discovering factors and mechanisms to reduce SCFR. The research model was validated by applying structural equation modeling on survey data from 321 Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Findings: Integration significantly reduces SCFR by dual approaches of information sharing and mitigating SCR, confirming that alleviating information asymmetry to reach information transparency and controlling SCR to reduce uncertainties facilitate less SCFR. Research limitations/implications: SMEs should enhance integration capability to reduce SCFR as it greatly influences the evaluation of financial service providers on SMEs and the sustainable financing capacity of SMEs. Additionally, any other methods that can improve information sharing and reduce SCR should be attached if possible. Originality/value: This study represents a pioneering attempt to analyze the impact of integration on reducing SCFR by exploring the specific mechanisms of alleviating information asymmetry and mitigating SCR. Meanwhile, few prior empirical studies have highlighted the importance of SCFR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Southeast University (English Edition) is the property of Journal of Southeast University Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Journal of Southeast University (English Edition) is the property of Journal of Southeast University Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Consumption compensation is the driving force for motivating each supply chain link to set up information nodes, which is of great significance for promoting informatization, modernization, transformation, and upgrading of the supply chain system. This study simulates the evolution process of strategic selection for each supply chain link to set information nodes independently or collectively under the unconstrained government rewards conditions and punishments. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) When each link in the supply chain provides source tracing information independently, the vendor chooses to set up information nodes for the links with large information cost compensation coefficients. (2) When the vendor provides source tracing information cooperatively if the collaborative benefit is less than the cooperation cost, the information node will be set to the link with the large compensation coefficient. If not, information nodes will be set in each link. (3) Under the government incentive mechanism, enterprises are willing to cooperate. The punishment mechanism helps avoid situations where neither side sets up information nodes. The compensation coefficient is a prerequisite for mechanisms to work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-resolution face recognition with one-shot is a prevalent problem encountered in law enforcement, where it generally requires to recognize the low-resolution face images captured by surveillance cameras with the only one high-resolution profile face image in the database. The problem is very tough because the available samples is quite few and the quality of unknown images is quite low. To effectively address this issue, this paper proposes Adapted Discriminative Coupled Mappings (AdaDCM) approach, which integrates domain adaptation and discriminative learning. To achieve good domain adaptation performance for small size dataset, a new domain adaptation technique called Bidirectional Locality Matching-based Domain Adaptation (BLM-DA) is first developed. Then the proposed AdaDCM is formulated by unifying BLM-DA and discriminative coupled mappings into a single framework. AdaDCM is extensively evaluated on FERET, LFW, and SCface databases, which includes LR face images obtained in constrained, unconstrained, and real-world environment. The promising results on these datasets demonstrate the effectiveness of AdaDCM in LR face recognition with one-shot. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate contract stability in the company and fanner mode and to explore control measures of market price risk and production risk, a multiperiod game model was established in this study. Considering multiple periods and losses caused by deaths simultaneously, a stable contract price interval depending on the breaching penalty, transaction cost, spot market price, and quantity of pigs was observed. Results indicate that the higher the penalty and transaction cost savings, the better the stability of the contract; the contract price should be negotiated around the weighted average of the spot market price. When the production risk is higher, hog insurance can significantly improve the contract stability; when the market price is lower, hog price index insurance improves the contract stability by guaranteeing the company income; when the market price is higher, the profit-returning mechanism improves the stability by protecting farmers' incomes. Applying three measures simultaneously results in the best stability. Examples based on data from 2014 to 2018 in Henan Province, China, were given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modular production brings new opportunities for service provisions. We examine a supply chain consisting of two competing module suppliers and a common manufacturer, in which the manufacturer sources two differentiated modules from two suppliers and then produces two competing products for consumers. A delegation relationship is applied to explore the possibility of the module services offered by the suppliers. When the service commission fees are fixed, there exist optimal commission fees to maximize the manufacturer's profit. Service commission fees, service efficiencies, service sensitivity, and market types greatly affect the service levels, prices, and profitability of each member in the supply chain. The manufacturer should strategically adopt differentiated pricing strategies and service provisions from two suppliers rather than the best service abilities of the suppliers. In the service‐level sensitivity market, the improved service levels are more attractive to consumers so that the manufacturer will charge high prices by investing more in services. Product services with "high quality, high price" are more suitable for high‐end consumers. We also consider the variable service commission fees and find that there are still some robust results except that the effects of the service incentives and the commission fees will be enlarged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Southeast University (English Edition) is the property of Journal of Southeast University Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Dietary behaviors significantly influence health outcomes across populations. Unhealthy diets are linked to serious diseases and substantial economic burdens, contributing to approximately 11 million deaths and significant disability-adjusted life years annually. Digital dietary interventions offer accessible solutions to improve dietary behaviors. However, attrition, defined as participant dropout before intervention completion, is a major challenge, with rates as high as 75%-99%. High attrition compromises intervention validity and reliability and exacerbates health disparities, highlighting the need to understand and address its causes., Objective: This study systematically reviews the literature on attrition in digital dietary interventions to identify the underlying causes, propose potential solutions, and integrate these findings with behavior theory concepts to develop a comprehensive theoretical framework. This framework aims to elucidate the behavioral mechanisms behind attrition and guide the design and implementation of more effective digital dietary interventions, ultimately reducing attrition rates and mitigating health inequalities., Methods: We conducted a systematic review, meta-analysis, and thematic synthesis. A comprehensive search across 7 electronic databases (PubMed, MEDLINE, Embase, CENTRAL, Web of Science, CINAHL Plus, and Academic Search Complete) was performed for studies published between 2013 and 2023. Eligibility criteria included original research exploring attrition in digital dietary interventions. Data extraction focused on study characteristics, sample demographics, attrition rates, reasons for attrition, and potential solutions. We followed ENTREQ (Enhancing the Transparency in Reporting the Synthesis of Qualitative Research) and PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines and used RStudio (Posit) for meta-analysis and NVivo for thematic synthesis., Results: Out of the 442 identified studies, 21 met the inclusion criteria. The meta-analysis showed mean attrition rates of 35% for control groups, 38% for intervention groups, and 40% for observational studies, with high heterogeneity (I²=94%-99%) indicating diverse influencing factors. Thematic synthesis identified 15 interconnected themes that align with behavior theory concepts. Based on these themes, the force-resource model was developed to explore the underlying causes of attrition and guide the design and implementation of future interventions from a behavior theory perspective., Conclusions: High attrition rates are a significant issue in digital dietary interventions. The developed framework conceptualizes attrition through the interaction between the driving force system and the supporting resource system, providing a nuanced understanding of participant attrition, summarized as insufficient motivation and inadequate or poorly matched resources. It underscores the critical necessity for digital dietary interventions to balance motivational components with available resources dynamically. Key recommendations include user-friendly design, behavior-factor activation, literacy training, force-resource matching, social support, personalized adaptation, and dynamic follow-up. Expanding these strategies to a population level can enhance digital health equity. Further empirical validation of the framework is necessary, alongside the development of behavior theory-guided guidelines for digital dietary interventions., Trial Registration: PROSPERO CRD42024512902; https://tinyurl.com/3rjt2df9., (©Jian Wang, Jinli Mahe, Yujia Huo, Weiyuan Huang, Xinru Liu, Yang Zhao, Junjie Huang, Feng Shi, Zhihui Li, Dou Jiang, Yilong Li, Garon Perceval, Lindu Zhao, Lin Zhang. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (https://www.jmir.org), 27.08.2024.)