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The dual-scrambling scheme that combines position transformation and bit-plane transformation is a popular image encryption scheme. However, such schemes need more key information, and the encryption and decryption processes are complicated. In addition, the existing quantum image dual-scrambling schemes mainly deal with square images. In this paper, we propose a hybrid scrambling encryption scheme for multi-mode quantum image representation (MQIR) images based on random permutation, in which the H × W quantum image is represented in MQIR. A random number generator factor s uniquely associates one of the random permutations of integers from 1 to a positive integer, so as to hybrid scramble both the pixel position and the binarized position of each pixel value. Meanwhile, the quantum circuits and some examples of scrambling are given. Furthermore, various analyses of the performance of this scheme were conducted, including effectiveness, key space, and computational complexity. By modifying the random generation factor to construct multiple binary grayscale images, the simulated results on the IBM Quantum Cloud platform demonstrate that the proposed quantum image encryption scheme is effective. In comparison to existing quantum image dual scrambling schemes, it is both simple and effective, offering a large key space, lower computational complexity, and applicability to non-square quantum images. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: This paper introduces a second‐order voltage‐mode (VM) multiple‐input single‐output (MISO) universal filter and a second‐order current‐mode (CM) single‐input multiple‐output (SIMO) multifunction filter. The introduced VM MISO universal filter includes a single current feedback operational amplifier (CFOA) and a single voltage follower as active elements, while the introduced CM SIMO multifunction filter contains two CFOAs. Both introduced circuits are orthogonally controllable. In other words, the quality factors can be controlled through a single resistor without affecting the resonance frequencies. Both circuits have low sensitivities and no passive element‐matching conditions. The introduced VM MISO universal filter has a low output impedance. Moreover, to extract the output currents of the proposed CM SIMO from high impedance terminals, second‐generation current conveyor‐based version of the circuit is introduced. Simulations are made through the PSPICE program, where 0.13‐μm IBM CMOS technology parameters are utilized. DC supply voltages are selected as ±0.9 V. In the experiments, AD844s are used, and DC supply voltages are chosen as ±7.5 V. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Postoperative wound infections after cochlear implantation are rare but sometimes serious and can lead to explantation. Therefore, perioperative antibiotic administration is often recommended. However, in clinical practice, the type and duration of antibiotic prophylaxis varies between different centers. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of perioperative antibiotic prophylaxis in preventing postoperative complications. Methods: 700 patients who underwent cochlear implantation between 2007 and 2019 were retrospectively evaluated with regard to wound infections within the first 28 postoperative days. These were classified into major and minor complications. Data were analyzed using the IBM statistical program SPSS. Results: In 670 out of 700 patients the type and duration of perioperative antibiotic administration could be reconstructed from the records. Of these 67 patients (10%) received antibiotics as a single shot, 158 patients (23.6%) were treated with antibiotics for a period of 48 h, and 445 patients (66.4%) received prolonged antibiotic therapy for more than 72 h. In total 64 patients (9.5%) showed abnormalities in wound assessment within the first 28 postoperative days after implantation. Major infections (1.6%) were detected in 11 patients. Overall, there was no statistically significant difference in wound infection rates between the group receiving single-shot antibiosis and the group receiving 48 h prophylaxis or antibiotic treatment > 72 h (p = 0.46). Conclusion: Patients receiving an antibiotic single shot do not appear to be at significantly increased risk for postoperative wound infections compared with patients with prolonged antibiotic treatment. Continuation of data collection across centers seems reasonable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a new voltage-mode (VM) multifunction filter including only two grounded capacitors, three resistors, and two current feedback operational amplifiers is introduced. This filter with one high input impedance and two low output impedances can simultaneously provide band-pass filter (BPF) and low-pass filter (LPF) responses with an adjustable gain. A universal VM filter topology with three inputs and one output generating high-pass filter (HPF), BPF, LPF, notch filter, and all-pass filter (APF) responses is obtained from the multifunction one. It has the same number of active and passive elements as the multifunction and a low output impedance. Sensitivities of both introduced filters are low enough. However, the APF of the introduced universal filter has a passive element-matching problem. As an example, parasitic impedance effects are considered for the LPF of the universal filter, while non-ideal gain analyses are given for the HPF. To see how the introduced universal filter works, countless simulations are performed through the SPICE (Simulation Program with Integrated Circuit Emphasis) program in which 0.13 μ m IBM CMOS technology parameters are utilized. DC supply voltages are selected as ± 0.9 V. Also, several experiments using commercially available AD844s with ± 10 V supply voltages are carried out to see the performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: There is a need to develop harmonized procedures and a Minimum Data Set (MDS) for cross-border Multi Casualty Incidents (MCI) in medical emergency scenarios to ensure appropriate management of such incidents, regardless of place, language and internal processes of the institutions involved. That information should be capable of real-time communication to the command-and-control chain. It is crucial that the models adopted are interoperable between countries so that the rights of patients to cross-border healthcare are fully respected. Objective: To optimize management of cross-border Multi Casualty Incidents through a Minimum Data Set collected and communicated in real time to the chain of command and control for each incident. To determine the degree of agreement among experts. Method: We used the modified Delphi method supplemented with the Utstein technique to reach consensus among experts. In the first phase, the minimum requirements of the project, the profile of the experts who were to participate, the basic requirements of each variable chosen and the way of collecting the data were defined by providing bibliography on the subject. In the second phase, the preliminary variables were grouped into 6 clusters, the objectives, the characteristics of the variables and the logistics of the work were approved. Several meetings were held to reach a consensus to choose the MDS variables using a Modified Delphi technique. Each expert had to score each variable from 1 to 10. Non-voting variables were eliminated, and the round of voting ended. In the third phase, the Utstein Style was applied to discuss each group of variables and choose the ones with the highest consensus. After several rounds of discussion, it was agreed to eliminate the variables with a score of less than 5 points. In phase four, the researchers submitted the variables to the external experts for final assessment and validation before their use in the simulations. Data were analysed with SPSS Statistics (IBM, version 2) software. Results: Six data entities with 31 sub-entities were defined, generating 127 items representing the final MDS regarded as essential for incident management. The level of consensus for the choice of items was very high and was highest for the category 'Incident' with an overall kappa of 0.7401 (95% CI 0.1265–0.5812, p 0.000), a good level of consensus in the Landis and Koch model. The items with the greatest degree of consensus at ten were those relating to location, type of incident, date, time and identification of the incident. All items met the criteria set, such as digital collection and real-time transmission to the chain of command and control. Conclusions: This study documents the development of a MDS through consensus with a high degree of agreement among a group of experts of different nationalities working in different fields. All items in the MDS were digitally collected and forwarded in real time to the chain of command and control. This tool has demonstrated its validity in four large cross-border simulations involving more than eight countries and their emergency services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the aim was to investigate the effect of an evidence‐based practice course on the lifelong learning skills and problem‐solving skills of health science students. A prospective one‐group pre‐test–post‐test design. The universe of the study consisted of 189 students from Cankiri Karatekin University. Student information form, Jefferson lifelong learning skill scale, Problem‐solving inventory (PSI) were used as data collection instruments. The sample of the study consisted of 156 students who completed the 14‐week course and fully completed the pre‐test and post‐test. For data analysis, IBM Corp. Released 2013. IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 22.0. Armonk, NY: IBM Corp. package program was used. While 84% of the students said that they had never heard of the term EBP before, 91.7% of those who knew the term said they had heard it in their field courses. The lifelong learning skill scale total score change of the students, the PSI total score change of the students after the 26‐h EBP course were statistically significant. EBP is very important for health science students to increase their problem‐solving success and lifelong learning skills, and it should be integrated into the curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Programmable quantum simulators may one day outperform classical computers at certain tasks. But at present, the range of viable applications with noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) devices remains limited by gate errors and the number of high-quality qubits. Here, we develop an approach that places digital NISQ hardware as a versatile platform for simulating multi-dimensional condensed matter systems. Our method encodes a high-dimensional lattice in terms of many-body interactions on a reduced-dimension model, thereby taking full advantage of the exponentially large Hilbert space of the host quantum system. With circuit optimization and error mitigation techniques, we measured on IBM superconducting quantum processors the topological state dynamics and protected mid-gap spectra of higher-order topological lattices, in up to four dimensions, with high accuracy. Our projected resource requirements scale favorably with system size and lattice dimensionality compared to classical computation, suggesting a possible route to useful quantum advantage in the longer term. Previous quantum simulations of higher-order topological phases have utilized synthetic dimensions. Here the authors simulate high-order topological phases on lattices with spatial dimension up to four on a superconducting quantum computer using a mapping to a many-body Hamiltonian in a reduced dimension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: In this study, we compared the differences between high-resolution computed tomography (CT) features of two types of viral pneumonia associated with H1N1 virus and coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Methods: A total of 25 patients with H1N1 pneumonia were compared with 150 patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. The findings were analyzed by IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, version 22 (IBM Corp., Armonk, N.Y., USA). CT findings were compared between groups by chi-square test, and scale variables were compared using the t-test. Finally, significant findings for the H1N1 or COVID-19 groups were evaluated by logistic regression analysis. Results: The median age of COVID-19 pneumonia patients was 54.6±15.9 years, and the median age of H1N1 pneumonia patients was 46.2±12.4 years (p<0.01). H1N1 pneumonia patients were younger than COVID-19 pneumonia patients. Based on the distribution pattern, diffuse pattern, peripheral pattern, and bronchopulmonary infiltration were observed more frequently in COVID-19 pneumonia (46.0%, 80.7%, 49.3%, respectively, p<0.05). Mediastinal lymphadenopathy and pleural effusion were observed more frequently in patients with H1N1 pneumonia (24% and 36%, respectively, p<0.05). Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that advanced age and a diffuse-peripheral pattern indicated COVID-19 (p=0.031, p=0.029). Conclusion: Most of the lesions caused by COVID-19 pneumonia are located in the peripheral region and near the pleura, whereas those caused by influenza virus pneumonia are far from the peripheral region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study analyzed the overall incidence of delirium, comorbid conditions, injury patterns, and pharmacological risk factors for the development of delirium in an alert, geriatric trauma population. Methods: IRB-approved, prospective, consecutive cohort series at two Southeastern Level 1 trauma centers from June 11 to August 15, 2023. Delirium was assessed using the Confusion Assessment Method (CAM) score. Comorbidities and medications were detailed from electronic medical records. Inclusion criteria: age ≥55, GCS ≥14, and ICU admission for trauma. Patients on a ventilator were excluded. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 28 (Armonk, NY: IBM Corp). Results: In total, 196 patients met inclusion criteria. Incidences of delirium for Hospital 1 (n = 103) and Hospital 2 (n = 93) were 15.5% and 12.9%, respectively, with an overall incidence of 14.3% and with no statistical differences between hospitals (P =.599). CAD, CKD, dementia, stroke history, and depression were statistically significant risk factors for developing delirium during ICU admission. Inpatient SSRI/SNRIs, epinephrine/norepinephrine, and lorazepam were significant risk factors. Injury patterns, operative intervention, and use of lidocaine infusions and gabapentin were not statistically significant in delirium development. Using binary linear regression (BLR) analysis, independent risk factors for delirium were dementia, any stage CKD, home SSRI/SRNI prescription, any spine injury and cerebrovascular disease, or injury. Discussion: Comorbidities of CAD, CHF, CKD, and depression, and these medications: home lorazepam and ICU epinephrine/norepinephrine statistically are more common in patients developing delirium. Dementia, CKD, home SSRI/SRNI and stroke/cerebrovascular disease/injury, and spine injuries are independent predictors by BLR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As the incidence of urological malignancies after renal transplantation (RT) is observed to be greater than in the general population, a better understanding of them is important. We present our experience with urological tumors in RT recipients at our transplant center, and analyze their incidence, management and outcomes. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis of 2177 RT recipients on follow‐up at our center between 1990 and 2022 was conducted for de novo genitourinary malignancy. Patients diagnosed with malignancy before transplantation were excluded. Clinicopathological data at diagnosis and follow‐up were collected and analyzed. Kaplan‐Meier estimates were used to evaluate overall survival (OS) and cancer‐specific survival (CSS). Statistical analysis was performed using IBM SPSS v.24 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Results: The overall incidence of Urological malignancies was 3.9%, with 89 cancers diagnosed in 85 patients. Renal cell carcinoma was most common (n = 61, 68.5%), followed by prostate cancer (n = 10, 11.2%), urothelial carcinoma (n = 10, 11.2%), squamous cell carcinoma of the penis/scrotum (n = 7, 7.9%), and testicular cancer (n = 1, 1.1%). Mean duration between transplantation and diagnosis of malignancy was 9.9 (0.4–20.7) years. At a median follow‐up of 4.6 (018.2) years, 27 deaths were seen; 7(25.9%) were due to urological malignancy. CSS rates were 86% and 78% at five and ten years, respectively, after diagnosis. Conclusion: We present one of the largest series of de novo urological malignancies observed over an extended 30‐year follow‐up of RT recipients, demonstrating an elevated risk in line with other studies. Regular surveillance for malignancies is advised, in order to ensure early diagnosis and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to evaluate the long-term clinical performance of Giomer and a self-etch adhesive system compared with a nanofilled resin composite and etch-and-rinse adhesive system in Class I and Class II restorations. The study was designed to be double-blinded with intra-individual control. 48 patients with 54 pairs of cavities (class I or class II) were recruited. Each pair of restorations was placed with either BEAUTIFIL II (BF) and FL-BOND II (FL) or Filtek Z350 (Z350) and Scotchbond Multi-Purpose (SMP). Clinical evaluation was performed at baseline, 6-month, 18-month, 4-year and 8-year after placement according to modified USPHS criteria. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and log rank tests were performed (SPSS 20.0, IBM Corporation, US) to compare the survival probability of different restorations.A generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) was adopted to assess the performance of the materials. The McNemar test was used to show significant changes for all the evaluation criteria and difference between them. At the eight-year recall, 32 patients with 67 restorations were present. There were twelve restorations in total recorded as failure due to loss of retention, restoration fracture, secondary caries, tooth fracture or endodontic treatment due to pulp necrosis. The survival probabilities and calculated annual failure rate(AFR) of BF and Z350 restorations at 8-year were 87.2 % vs 87.8 % and 1.6 % vs 1.5 % respectively with no significant difference (p > 0.05)between the two materials. Over the recall time range of eight years, decreased possibility of alpha rating was observed for retention, marginal adaptation, marginal staining and surface roughness for both materials (p < 0.05). Decreased possibility of alpha rating was observed for surface staining and secondary caries for Z350 (p < 0.05) and restoration fracture for BF (p < 0.05), respectively. Comparing the two restorative systems over eight years, no significant difference was seen for linear decline of the possibility of alpha rating for any of the criteria evaluated (p > 0.05). Giomer material and the self-etch adhesive system had comparable clinical performance with nanofilled resin composite and etch-and-rinse adhesive system over the observation period of eight years. • The retention rate for the Giomer and nano-filled composite restoration systems are comparable. • There is no difference between the two restoration systems for any of the evaluation parameters evaluated over 8 years. • Class II restoration showed less favorable outcome over class I restoration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Understanding the intricate root canal system of mandibular incisors is crucial for successful root canal therapy. Variations in canal anatomy pose challenges in diagnosis and treatment planning, emphasising the need for comprehensive evaluation methods. Aim: To evaluate and assess the root canal configuration of permanent mandibular incisors based on Vertucci’s classification using periapical radiographs and correlating the same with the gold standard decalcification and dye-penetration technique. Materials and Methods: The current in-vitro study was carried out from December 2018 to March 2019 in the Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, Dr. R. Ahmed Dental College and Hospital, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It analysed the root canal morphology of mandibular central and lateral incisors using radiographic examination and decalcificationdye penetration evaluation. Data from 50 central and 50 lateral incisors (100 mandibular incisors) were procured and were assessed and subsequently analysed statistically using International Business Machines (IBM) Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) Statistics for Windows, Version 27.0 (Armonk, NY: IBM Corp). The study outcome included assessing the various canal types and configurations, types of canals (straight/curved), and the position of the apical foramen (labial/ lingual) by both techniques. The existence of agreement was also tested using statistical analysis by the kappa (κ) coefficient between the two techniques with an alpha level of 5%. Results: The radiological findings of mandibular central incisors revealed a predominant presence of Type-I canals, constituting 66 (66%) cases, according to Vertucci’s classification. Decalcificationdye penetration evaluation of central incisors showed a similar trend, with Type-I canals exhibiting a significantly higher percentage 35 (70%) compared to other canal types (p<0.001). Lateral incisors exhibited similar trends in both radiological findings and decalcification-dye penetration. Type-I canals were significantly more prevalent 29 (58%) compared to other types (p<0.001). Evaluation with the decalcification-dye penetration technique further supported this, with Type-I canals showing a higher percentage 27 (54%) compared to other types (p<0.001). A moderate amount of agreement was detected between the two modalities concerning canal configuration (κ=0.46, p=0.049) and position of the apical foramen (κ=0.43, p<0.001), while an almost perfect agreement was present on canal curvature (κ=0.85, p<0.001). Conclusion: These results collectively suggest a similarity in the radiological characteristics and decalcification-dye penetration patterns between central and lateral incisors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Goals of anesthesia in neurosurgery include stable cerebral hemodynamics and provide relaxed brain to surgeon. Dexmedetomidine and lignocaine as an adjuvant can fulfill these criteria but literature comparing the two are sparse. We compared the effects of intravenous infusion of dexmedetomidine or lignocaine on stress response, postoperative pain, and recovery in patients undergoing craniotomy for intracranial tumors. Methods: Approval was obtained from IEC, and the study was prospectively registered (CTRI/2022/11/047434). Written and informed consent was obtained from 105 patients fulfilling inclusion criteria, and they were divided into three groups. Group D Group L received intravenous infusion of lignocaine 2 mg/kg over 15 minutes followed by infusion at rate of 1.5 mg/kg/h, received intravenous infusion of dexmedetomidine 1 mcg/kg over 15 minutes followed by infusion at rate of 0.5 mcg/kg/h, and Group N received intravenous infusion of normal saline at the rate of 4-8 ml/h till skin suturing. SPSS v23 (IBM Corp.) was used for data analysis. Results: There was a significant difference between groups in terms of intraoperative hemodynamic variations, brain relaxation score, extubation criteria, postoperative pain, stress indicator response, and quality of recovery. Conclusions: Dexmedetomidine as an adjuvant to anesthetic drugs has a better profile than lignocaine in suppressing stress response and preventing hemodynamic variations at intubation, skull pin application, and surgical incision. Dexmedetomidine increases the duration of effective analgesia more than lignocaine, in postoperative period in patients undergoing craniotomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dynamical decoupling (DD) is a promising technique for mitigating errors in near-term quantum devices. However, its effectiveness depends on both hardware characteristics and algorithm implementation details. This paper explores the synergistic effects of dynamical decoupling and optimized circuit design in maximizing the performance and robustness of algorithms on near-term quantum devices. By utilizing eight IBM quantum devices, we analyze how hardware features and algorithm design impact the effectiveness of DD for error mitigation. Our analysis takes into account factors such as circuit fidelity, scheduling duration, and hardware-native gate set. We also examine the influence of algorithmic implementation details, including specific gate decompositions, DD sequences, and optimization levels. The results reveal an inverse relationship between the effectiveness of DD and the inherent performance of the algorithm. Furthermore, we emphasize the importance of gate directionality and circuit symmetry in improving performance. This study offers valuable insights for optimizing DD protocols and circuit designs, highlighting the significance of a holistic approach that leverages both hardware features and algorithm design for the high-quality and reliable execution of near-term quantum algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In this study, we aimed to identify the predicting pathological factors affecting sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) in patients with clinically node-negative breast cancer. Methods: Our single institution retrospective study was conducted at the Cancer Research Center of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences from 2018 to 2021. Data were imported into and analyzed using SPSS Version 28 for Windows (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Results: Of the 76 patients who underwent SLNB, 43 (56.6%) had negative SLNB and 33 (43.4%) had positive SLNB which led to axillary lymph node dissection (ALND). The relationship between hormone receptor status (ER/PR/Her2), pathology type (IDC, ILC, DCIS, LCIS), tumor size, and Ki67 expression was assessed. According to the results, axillary lymph node involvement can be predicted based on the scores and results of the three variables: IDC tumor type, lympho vascular invasion (LVI), and Ki67 expression. The positive relationship between IDC tumor type and LVI with SLNB indicates that with positive IDC tumor type and LVI, there is a higher probability of positive axillary lymph nodes (3.88 times higher probability for IDC tumor type and 6.75 times higher probability for the LVI factor). However, when the Ki67 expression is lower, the probability of positive axillary lymph nodes is higher (3.58 times higher probability). Conclusion: IDC tumor type, LVI, and lower Ki67 expression are independent predictive factors of positive SLNB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Introduction: Distress is very common in patients with cancer but it often goes unidentified. Sociodemographic, clinical, and psychosocial variables have been identified as major risk factors for distress and it extends along a continuum, ranging from common feelings of vulnerability, sadness, and alarming to problems that can become disabling. Objectives: To determine the level of distress among cancer patients and sociodemographic factors affecting distress among the cancer patients. Materials & Methods: The study was a cross sectional study using purposive sampling technique. All the patients above 18 years who were admitted from 1st March 2021 to 31st August 2021 were included in the study. The information was collected from patients using NCCN Distress Thermometer (DT) and problem checklist, a validated tool to assess the distress levels and their association of distress with problems. The data was compiled and statistically analysed using Statistical package for social sciences (SPSS Software 23.0 version) IBM Chicago. Results: out of 567 participants, 64.6% study subjects were above 50 years. This shows that the number of patients were increasing with increasing age. In all, 60.5 % were females and 39.5% were males. Majority of patients were having moderate to severe distress (50.6%) followed by 37.9% who had mild stress and 11.5% had no stress. It was observed that education, occupation and socio-economic status were significantly associated with the level of distress while age, sex and marital status had no association. Conclusion: Holistic approach in cancer treatment including psychological, spiritual and emotional evaluation and its solution for the same at appropriate time enhances the quality of life of the patients. It is recommended that all health care providers should address these as a part of their routine practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to investigate the mediating role of work-family life conflict in the effect of Covid-19 fear on life satisfaction. The research was designed as a quantitative and cross-sectional study. A total of 461 married adults living in different cities in Türkiye were reached online. The data collection tools were a demographic information form, a work-family life conflict scale, a Covid-19 fear scale, and a life satisfaction scale. The collected data were analysed using IBM's SPSS v.26 and SPSS Amos v.24 programs and Process Macro v.4.2 plugin. The hypotheses in the study using Structural Equation Modelling were tested by correlation, moderation and path analyses. As a result, no significant relationship was found between Covid-19 fear and life satisfaction. Work-family life conflict was found to have a negative full mediation effect only in the dimension of work-family life conflict. This negative mediating effect was higher in women. Additionally, work-at-home status was found to be a predictor, reducing work-family life conflict while increasing life satisfaction. Based on these findings, recommendations have been made to policy makers and implementers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is a global health challenge, demanding proficient predictive models for early identification and intervention. This study adopts a comprehensive strategy for diabetes prediction with Machine learning algorithms, utilizing PIMA Indian diabetes dataset which encompasses clinical, demographic and lifestyle data. Employing techniques like Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE) and correlation analysis, the feature selection process identifies influential predictors, including glucose levels, Body Mass Index (BMI), Blood Pressure and diabetic history of family. A distinctive facet of this study involves integrating IBM Auto AI, automating the machine learning pipeline for tasks like feature engineering, hyperparameter tuning and model selection. Through comparative analysis, the research evaluates the efficiency and performance enhancements achieved through automation in contrast to manually-tailored models. Evaluation metrics encompass accuracy, precision, recall, and F1 score. Crossvalidation, particularly k-fold cross-validation, ensures model generalization to diverse subsets of the dataset. The research outcomes offer valuable insights into the optimal amalgamation of AI techniques for diabetes prediction, underscoring the significance of interpretability, performance, and automation in healthcare analytics. The proposed Methodology is evaluated with different classifiers with Auto AI and without Auto AI techniques. Using IBM Auto AI, Gradient boosting algorithm performed well with 84. 4 % accuracy and Logistic Regression showed good accuracy of 84. 4% among conventional machine learning techniques without Auto AI using Pima Indian Diabetes Dataset. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sparse connectivity of a superconducting quantum computer results in large experimental overheads of SWAP gates. In this study, we consider employing a virtual two-qubit gate (VTQG) as an error suppression technique. The VTQG enables a non-local operation between a pair of distant qubits using only single qubit gates and projective measurements. Here, we apply the VTQG to the digital quantum simulation of the transverse-field Ising model on an IBM quantum computer to suppress the errors due to the noisy two-qubit operations. We present an effective use of VTQG, where the reduction in multiple SWAP gates results in increasing the fidelity of output states. The obtained results indicate that the VTQG can be useful for suppressing the errors due to additional SWAP gates. In our experiments, we have observed one order of magnitude improvement in accuracy for the quantum simulation of the transverse-field Ising model with 8 qubits. Finally, we have demonstrated an efficient implementation of the VTQG by utilizing dynamic circuits. This scheme reduces experimental overheads for implementing m VTQGs from O (10 m) to O (6 m). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using an OpenMP Application Programming Interface, the resolution-of-the-identity second-order Møller–Plesset perturbation (RI-MP2) method has been off-loaded onto graphical processing units (GPUs), both as a standalone method in the GAMESS electronic structure program and as an electron correlation energy component in the effective fragment molecular orbital (EFMO) framework. First, a new scheme has been proposed to maximize data digestion on GPUs that subsequently linearizes data transfer from central processing units (CPUs) to GPUs. Second, the GAMESS Fortran code has been interfaced with GPU numerical libraries (e.g., NVIDIA cuBLAS and cuSOLVER) for efficient matrix operations (e.g., matrix multiplication, matrix decomposition, and matrix inversion). The standalone GPU RI-MP2 code shows an increasing speedup of up to 7.5× using one NVIDIA V100 GPU with one IBM 42-core P9 CPU for calculations on fullerenes of increasing size from 40 to 260 carbon atoms using the 6-31G(d)/cc-pVDZ-RI basis sets. A single Summit node with six V100s can compute the RI-MP2 correlation energy of a cluster of 175 water molecules using the correlation consistent basis sets cc-pVDZ/cc-pVDZ-RI containing 4375 atomic orbitals and 14 700 auxiliary basis functions in ∼0.85 h. In the EFMO framework, the GPU RI-MP2 component shows near linear scaling for a large number of V100s when computing the energy of an 1800-atom mesoporous silica nanoparticle in a bath of 4000 water molecules. The parallel efficiencies of the GPU RI-MP2 component with 2304 and 4608 V100s are 98.0% and 96.1%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Trauma care in Nunavik, Quebec, is highly challenging. Geographic distances and delays in transport can translate into precarious patient transfers to tertiary trauma care centres. The objective of this study was to identify predictors of clinical deterioration during transport and eventual intensive care unit (ICU) admission for trauma patients transferred from Nunavik to a tertiary trauma care centre. Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study using the Montreal General Hospital (MGH) trauma registry. All adult trauma patients transferred from Nunavik and admitted to the MGH from 2010 to 2019 were included. Main outcomes of interest were hemodynamic and neurologic deterioration during transport and ICU admission. Results: In total, 704 patients were transferred from Nunavik and admitted to the MGH during the study period. The median age was 33 (interquartile range [IQR] 23-47) years and the median Injury Severity Score was 10 (IQR 5-17). On multiple regression analysis, transport time from site of injury to the MGH (odds ratio [OR] 1.04, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.01-1.06), thoracic injuries (OR 1.75, 95% CI 1.03-2.99), and head and neck injuries (OR 3.76, 95% CI 2.10-6.76) predicted clinical deterioration during transfer. Injury Severity Score (OR 1.04, 95% CI 1.01-1.08), abnormal local Glasgow Coma Scale score (OR 2.57, 95% CI 1.34-4.95), clinical deterioration during transfer (OR 4.22, 95% CI 1.99-8.93), traumatic brain injury (OR 2.44, 95% CI 1.05-5.68), and transfusion requirement at the MGH (OR 4.63, 95% CI 2.35-9.09) were independent predictors of ICU admission. Conclusion: Our study identified several predictors of clinical deterioration during transfer and eventual ICU admission for trauma patients transferred from Nunavik. These factors could be used to refine triage criteria in Nunavik for more timely evacuation and higher level care during transport. Contexte : Au Nunavik, au Québec, la traumatologie est confrontée à un énorme défi. Les distances et les temps de transport peuvent donner lieu à des transferts de cas précaires vers les centres de traumatologie tertiaires. L'objectif de cette étude était de dégager les prédicteurs d'une détérioration de l'état clinique durant le transport et d'une éventuelle admission à l'unité des soins intensifs (USI) pour les cas de traumatologie transférés du Nunavik vers un centre de traumatologie tertiaire. Méthodes : Il s'agit d'une étude de cohorte rétrospective menée à partir du registre de traumatologie de l'Hôpital général de Montréal (HGM). Tous les cas de traumatologie touchant des adultes transférés du Nunavik et admis à l'HGM de 2010 à 2019 ont été inclus. Les principaux paramètres d'intérêt concernaient la détérioration des variables hémodynamiques et neurologiques durant le transport et l'admission à l'USI. Résultats : En tout, 704 cas ont été transférés du Nunavik et admis à l'HGM durant la période de l'étude. L'âge moyen était de 33 (écart interquartile [ÉI] 23-47) ans et l'indice de gravité des blessures (IGB) médian était de 10 (ÉI 5-17). À l'analyse de régression multiple, le temps de transport entre le lieu où la blessure est survenue et l'arrivée à l'HGM (rapport des cotes [RC] 1,04, intervalle de confiance [IC] de 95% 1,01-1,06), les blessures thoraciques (RC 1,75, 95% IC 1,03-2,99), et les blessures à la tête et au cou (RC 3,76, IC de 95% 2,10-6,76) ont été des prédicteurs de la détérioration de l'état clinique durant le transfert. L'IGB (RC 1,04, IC de 95% 1,01-1,08), le score de Glasgow selon l'échelle locale (RC 2,57, IC de 95% 1,34-4,95), la détérioration de l'état clinique durant le transfert (RC 4,22, IC de 95% 1,99-8,93), un traumatisme crânien (RC 2,44, IC de 95% 1,05-5,68), et le recours à des transfusions une fois à l'HGM (RC 4,63, IC de 95% 2,35-9,09) ont été des prédicteurs indépendants d'admission à l'USI. Conclusion : Notre étude a permis de dégager plusieurs prédicteurs de la détérioration de l'état clinique lors du transfert et de l'éventuelle admission à l'USI des cas de traumatologie transférés du Nunavik. Ces facteurs pourraient être utilisés pour affiner les critères de triage au Nunavik, et ainsi accélérer l'évacuation et prodiguer un niveau de soins plus avancés durant le transport., Trauma care in Nunavik involves unique challenges related to the vast and isolated geographic location, in addition to unpredictable meteorologic conditions that create substantial difficulty in transferring injured patients in [...]

Objective - This study was undertaken to analyze the relationship between perceived negative impacts on land reclamation (LR) and support for coastal ecotourism within fishing communities (CE), with environmental awareness (EA) as the mediating variable. Methodology - This study utilized a convenience sampling technique to distribute questionnaires to 400 domestic tourists in coastal areas. Data analysis was conducted using Hayes's PROCESS in IBM Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS v25.0). Findings - Results showed that LR had a direct effect on CE [ß= 0.183; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.095-0.270; P= 0.000 <0.05]. Furthermore, a statistically significant indirect effect between LR and CE via EA was also observed (ß= 0.269; 95% CI =0.192-0.351; P= 0.000<0.05), indicating partial mediation. Novelty - These findings highlight that EA is important and essential to be promoted when considering sustainable development in both land reclamation and coastal ecotourism in fishing communities. Affected communities, usually with high environmental awareness, will comprehend the impacts of land developments and react to conserve the environment. In this case, as significant stakeholders with high environmental awareness, tourists are more inclined to support ecotourism, advocate for environmental conservation, and preserve local fishing cultures for appreciation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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We analyze whether industry competition influences analyst coverage decisions and whether analysts benefit from covering product market competitors. We find that analysts are more likely to cover a firm when this firm competes with more firms already covered by the analyst. We also find that the intensity of competition among these competitors is additionally important to the coverage decision. Moreover, we find that analysts who cover product market competitors are more likely to obtain analyst star status. These results are consistent with the importance to analysts of industry competition and product market knowledge accumulated through covering product market competitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The US leads the world in quantum computing research, but it will need more government investment to maintain its lead over China, an assessment by the Information Technology and Innovation [...]

Researchers warn of a new critical vulnerability in Apache OFBiz, an open-source https://www.cio.com/article/272362/what-is-erp-key-features-of-top-enterprise-resource-planning-systems.html system and framework. The flaw potentially allows for remote code execution (RCE) without authentication and was patched [...]

Background Long-term care facilities (LTCFs) are hotspots for pathogen transmission. Infection control interventions are essential, but the high density and heterogeneity of interindividual contacts within LTCF may hinder their efficacy. Here, we explore how the patient-staff contact structure may inform effective intervention implementation. Methods and findings Using an individual-based model (IBM), we reproduced methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation transmission dynamics over a detailed contact network recorded within a French LTCF of 327 patients and 263 staff over 3 months. Simulated baseline cumulative colonisation incidence was 21 patients (prediction interval: 11, 31) and 35 staff (prediction interval: 19, 54). We examined the potential impact of 3 types of interventions against transmission (reallocation reducing the number of unique contacts per staff, reinforced contact precautions, and hypothetical vaccination protecting against acquisition), targeted towards specific populations. All 3 interventions were effective when applied to all nurses or healthcare assistants (median reduction in MRSA colonisation incidence up to 35%), but the benefit did not exceed 8% when targeting any other single staff category. We identified 'supercontactor' individuals with most contacts ('frequency-based,' overrepresented among nurses, porters, and rehabilitation staff) or with the longest cumulative time spent in contact ('duration-based,' overrepresented among healthcare assistants and patients in elderly care or persistent vegetative state (PVS)). Targeting supercontactors enhanced interventions against pathogen spread in the LTCF. With contact precautions, targeting frequency-based staff supercontactors led to the highest incidence reduction (20%, 95% CI: 19, 21). Vaccinating a mix of frequency- and duration-based staff supercontactors led to a higher reduction (23%, 95% CI: 22, 24) than all other approaches. Although based on data from a single LTCF, when varying epidemiological parameters to extend to other pathogens, our results suggest that targeting supercontactors is always the most effective strategy, indicating this approach could be applied to prevent transmission of other nosocomial pathogens. Conclusions By characterising the contact structure in hospital settings and identifying the categories of staff and patients more likely to be supercontactors, with either more or longer contacts than others, interventions against nosocomial spread could be more effective. We find that the most efficient implementation strategy depends on the intervention (reallocation, contact precautions, vaccination) and target population (staff, patients, supercontactors). Importantly, both staff and patients may be supercontactors, highlighting the importance of including patients in measures to prevent pathogen transmission in LTCF., Author(s): Quentin J. Leclerc 1,2,3,*, Audrey Duval 1,2,3, Didier Guillemot 1,2,4, Lulla Opatowski 1,2, Laura Temime 3,5 Introduction Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are a major threat worldwide, with more than 4 [...]

Phishing campaigns that spoof well-known global brands such as Disney, IBM, Nike, Best Buy, and Coca-Cola to trick recipients into clicking on malicious emails should be a thing of the [...]

Lattice gauge theory should be able to address significant new scientific questions when implemented on quantum computers. In practice, error-mitigation techniques have already allowed encouraging progress on small lattices. In this work we focus on a truncated version of SU(2) gauge theory, which is a familiar non-Abelian step toward quantum chromodynamics. First, we demonstrate effective error mitigation for imaginary time evolution on a lattice having two square plaquettes, obtaining the ground state using an IBM quantum computer and observing that this would have been impossible without error mitigation. Then we propose the triamond lattice as an expedient approach to lattice gauge theories in three spatial dimensions and we derive the Hamiltonian. Finally, error-mitigated imaginary time evolution is applied to the three-dimensional triamond unit cell, and its ground state is obtained from an IBM quantum computer. Future work will want to relax the truncation on the gauge fields, and the triamond lattice is increasingly valuable for such studies. When implemented on quantum computers, lattice gauge theory should be able to address significant new scientific questions about quarks and gluons. The authors of this paper replace the traditional Cartesian lattice by one that has unique symmetry properties, and they use this new lattice to perform an error-mitigated quantum computer calculation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work introduces a quantum K-Nearest Neighbor (K-NN) classifier algorithm. The algorithm utilizes angle encoding through a Quantum Random Access Memory (QRAM) using n number of qubit addresses with O (log (n)) space complexity. It incorporates Grover's algorithm and the quantum SWAP-Test to identify similar states and determine the nearest neighbors with high probability, achieving O m search complexity, where m is the qubit address. We implement a simulation of the algorithm using IBM's Qiskit with GPU support, applying it to the Iris and MNIST datasets with two different angle encodings. The experiments employ multiple QRAM cell sizes (8, 16, 32, 64, 128) and perform ten trials per size. According to the performance, accuracy values in the Iris dataset range from 89.3 ± 5.78% to 94.0 ± 1.56%. The MNIST dataset's mean binary accuracy values range from 79.45 ± 18.84% to 94.00 ± 2.11% for classes 0 and 1. Additionally, a comparison of the results of this proposed approach with different state-of-the-art versions of QK-NN and the classical K-NN using Scikit-learn. This method achieves a 96.4 ± 2.22% accuracy in the Iris dataset. Finally, this proposal contributes an experimental result to the state of the art for the MNIST dataset, achieving an accuracy of 96.55 ± 2.00%. This work presents a new implementation proposal for QK-NN and conducts multiple experiments that yield more robust results than previous implementations. Although our average performance approaches still need to surpass the classic results, an experimental increase in the size of QRAM or the amount of data to encode is not achieved due to limitations. However, our results show promising improvement when considering working with more feature numbers and accommodating more data in the QRAM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background & objective: chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a long-term condition in which the kidney function is gradually lost over time, which includes filtration of waste products and excess fluids from the bloodstream, maintaining electrolytes balance and produce hormones that regulate blood pressure and stimulate red blood cell production. The target of management for CRF (CRF) is to restrict the injury to the kidneys, usually by detection of its underlying cause. The current study aimed to detect and relate biomarker levels, such as Neutrophil Gelatinase Associated Lipocalin (NGAL) and Kidney Injury Molecule type 1 (KIM-1) in patients with CKD. Methodology: Ninety participants took part in the study between Sep 2023 and Jan 2024 through random sampling. They were divided into two groups; Group-1 included 45 healthy volunteers, and Group-2 included 45 individuals with CKD, stage 1 to end stage renal failure and were on dialysis. The ELISA method was used to measure the serum levels of NGAL and KIM-1 in each person. Colorimetric techniques were used to measure creatinine, potassium, calcium, serum urea, and random blood sugar (RBS). Version 25 of IBM's statistical software for the social sciences (SPSS) on a Windows platform was used to conduct the statistical study. Using the analysis of variance student t test, patients with CKD were compared to a healthy group; a P ≤ 0. 05 indicated statistical significance. Results: Between individuals with chronic kidney disease and the healthy group, there was a statistically significant variance in NGAL and KIM_1, serum creatinine, urea, potassium, calcium, and RBS. Conclusion: Patients with CRF had considerably higher levels of Neutrophil Gelatinase Associated Lipocalin (NGAL) and Kidney Injury Molecule type 1 (KIM-1), which are diagnostic markers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the outcomes of in vitro fertilization (IVF) in patients with a poor ovarian response who used methyltestosterone, versus those using a placebo, in an infertility clinic setting. Methods: This clinical trial included 120 women who had undergone IVF with intracytoplasmic sperm injection due to poor ovarian reserve and infertility. The study took place at the Yas Infertility Center in Tehran, Iran, between January 1, 2018 and January 1, 2019. In the intervention group, 25 mg of methyltestosterone was administered daily for 2 months prior to the initiation of assisted reproductive treatment. The control group was given placebo tablets for the same duration before starting their cycle. Each group was randomly assigned 60 patients. All analyses were performed using SPSS ver. 23 (IBM Corp.). Results: The endometrial thickness in the intervention group was 7.57±1.22 mm, whereas in the control group, it was 7.11±1.02 (p=0.028). The gonadotropin number was significantly higher in the control group (64.7±13.48 vs. 57.9±9.25, p=0.001). However, there was no significant difference between the two groups in the antral follicular count. The chemical and clinical pregnancy rates in the intervention group were 18.33% and 15% respectively, compared to 8.33% and 6.67% in the control group. The rate of definitive pregnancy was marginally higher in the intervention group (13.3% vs. 3.3%, p=0.05). Conclusion: The findings of this study suggest that pretreatment with methyltestosterone significantly increases endometrium thickness and is associated with an increase in the definitive pregnancy rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oral carcinoma cuniculatum (CC) is a rare distinct variant of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) displaying unique clinical and histopathological features. CC is a locally aggressive malignancy with lower metastatic potential and has a tendency to invade the underlying bone yielding nonspecific clinical presentation resembling fungal/bacterial infections or osteomyelitis. Seven rare cases of gingival CC are reported with special emphasis on immunohistochemistry and special stains. Clinical and demographic profile were analysed and all cases were subjected to Ki-67 and p53 immunostaining and Ayoub-Shklar histochemical staining. For comparison, age and gender matched seven cases of conventional OSCC with bony involvement were recruited. IBM SPSS statistics software version 26 (IBM Analytics, Armonk, New York, U.S.) was used to analyse the data. All cases of CC lacked p53 expression in contrast to OSCC and demonstrated intermediate to high proliferation index in stroma also. The keratin staining and cytokeratin profile in OSCC and CC were also found to be statistically different. CC is a rare well differentiated variant of OSCC with different pathways involved in the pathogenesis. Local aggressive and invasive nature could be the result of unique interaction between epithelium and stromal elements. Oral health care provider must be familiar with this uncommon variant of OSCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Poisson equation has many applications across the broad areas of science and engineering. Most quantum algorithms for the Poisson solver presented so far either suffer from lack of accuracy and/or are limited to very small sizes of the problem and thus have no practical usage. In this regard, our previous work (Robson in 2022 IEEE International Conference on Quantum Computing and Engineering (QCE), 2022) showed a proof-of-concept demonstration in advancing quantum Poisson solver algorithm and validated preliminary results for a simple case of 3 × 3 problem. In this work, we delve into comprehensive research details, presenting the results on up to 15 × 15 problems that include step-by-step improvements in Poisson equation solutions, scaling performance, and experimental exploration. In particular, we demonstrate the implementation of eigenvalue amplification by a factor of up to 2 8 , achieving a significant improvement in the accuracy of our quantum Poisson solver and comparing that to the exact solution. Additionally, we present success probability results, highlighting the reliability of our quantum Poisson solver. Moreover, we explore the scaling performance of our algorithm against the circuit depth and width, demonstrating how our approach scales with larger problem sizes and thus further solidifies the practicality of easy adaptation of this algorithm in real-world applications. We also discuss a multilevel strategy for how this algorithm might be further improved to explore much larger problems with greater performance. Finally, through our experiments on the IBM quantum hardware, we conclude that though overall results on the existing NISQ hardware are dominated by the error in the CNOT gates, this work opens a path to realizing a multidimensional Poisson solver on near-term quantum hardware. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged as a global pandemic in late 2019, quickly affecting millions worldwide. It presents with a range of symptoms, from mild respiratory issues to severe cases requiring hospitalisation. The disease's long-term effects, especially cognitive impairments post-recovery, remain an area of active research and concern. Aim: To assess the prevalence and severity of cognitive impairments, including memory loss, attention deficits, and executive function disorders, in individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted from May to August 2023 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, involving 539 participants confirmed to have recovered from COVID-19 via Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) tests. Cognitive impairments, including memory loss, attention deficits, and executive function disorders were assessed. Data were analysed using IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22.0 Chi-square tests and T-tests were utilised to examine the statistical significance of differences between recovered individuals and controls. Results: The study identified significant memory changes in 211 (39.15%) of post-COVID-19 patients, with specific challenges including difficulty recalling names/faces in 146 (27.09%), reduced attention span in 45 (8.35%), and verbal communication issues in 145 (26.9%) study subjects. Demographically, females (n=134, 24.86%) and individuals aged 21-30 reported higher rates of memory impairments compared to males (n=77, 14.29%) or other age groups, challenging prior assumptions about cognitive recovery and age. Further, patients with brain injuries and mental health conditions experienced exacerbated memory issues, underscoring the need for thorough patient assessments. Despite the considerable impact on daily activities reported by 111 (20.59%) of participants, only 17 (3.15%) sought medical help for these memory concerns. The findings highlight the prevalence of memory impairments among Saudi post-COVID-19 patients and call for increased healthcare interventions to manage these long-term cognitive effects. Conclusion: The study conclusively demonstrated that post-COVID-19 memory impairment was prevalent among recovered patients in Saudi Arabia, with significant variations by age, gender, and medical history. This underscored the critical need for healthcare providers to have enhanced awareness and to have developed targeted support services to effectively address and manage the long-term cognitive consequences of COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma (POAG) is considered a leading cause of blindness among all others. Different technologies such as Scanning Laser Polarimetry (SLP) and Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) closely correlate in measuring structural parameters of the Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer (RNFL) and Optic Nerve Head (ONH). Visual impairment related to glaucomatous damage is attributed to the RNFL. Earlier studies have shown that retro-bulbar optic nerve thickness is reduced in glaucoma and have suggested that this is also the result of RNFL destruction. Aim: To investigate the correlation between the orbital and intraocular portions of the optic nerve among POAG patients. Materials and Methods: This was a hospital-based crosssectional study done in a tertiary care ophthalmic institute from October 2019 to February 2021. One eye of 32 volunteers with newly diagnosed POAG underwent optic disc analysis using OCT and echographic measurements of the retrobulbar optic nerve. For statistical calculations, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Statistics version 20.0 software (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA) was used. Spearman's rho (rs) was used as the index of correlation between retrobulbar optic nerve dimensions and ONH topographical data. A correlation between OCT-based RNFL and optic disc parameters was compared with retrobulbar optic nerve dimensions measured with the help of Ultrasonography-Brightness (USG B) Scan. Results: Orbital Optic Nerve Diameter (OND) and Optic Nerve Cross-sectional Area (ONCSA) significantly and positively correlated with Neuro-retinal Rim (NR) area (OND: p-value=0.00001; ONCSA: p-value=0.00001) and average nerve fiber layer thickness (OND: p-value=0.0001; ONCSA: p-value=0.00002). The Retrobulbar ONCSA-to-disc area ratio (ONCSA/D) was found to have a statistically demonstrable positive correlation with Neuro-retinal Rim Area/Disc area ratio (NR/D) (p=0.00003). Conclusion: This study showed that retrobulbar optic nerve dimensions correlate well with SD-OCT-based ONH parameters. Echographic measurements of the retrobulbar optic nerve add a new biomarker in the diagnosis of glaucoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physical therapy (PT) is an important component of low back pain (LBP) management. Despite established guidelines, heterogeneity in medical management remains common. We sought to understand how copayments impact timing and utilization of PT in newly diagnosed LBP. The IBM Watson Health MarketScan claims database was used in a longitudinal setting. Adult patients with LBP. The primary outcomes-of-interest were timing and overall utilization of PT services. Additional outcomes-of-interest included timing of opioid prescribing. Actual and inferred copayments based on nonnonprimary care provider visit claims were used to evaluate the relationship between PT copayment and incidence of PT initiation. Multivariable regression models were used to evaluate factors influencing PT usage. Overall, 2,467,389 patients were included. PT initiation, among those with at ≥1 PT service during the year after LBP diagnosis (30.6%), occurred at a median of 8 days postdiagnosis (IQR 1–55). Among those with at least one PT encounter, incidence of subsequent PT visits was significantly lower for those with high initial PT copayments. High initial PT copayments, while inversely correlated with PT utilization, were directly correlated with subsequent opioid use (0.77 prescriptions/patient [$0 PT copayment] versus 1.07 prescriptions/patient [$50–74 PT copayment]; 1.15 prescriptions/patient [$75+ PT copayment]). Among patients with known opioid and PT copayments, higher PT copayments were correlated with faster opioid use while higher opioid copayments were correlated with faster PT use (Spearman p<.05). For multivariable whole-cohort analyses, incidence of PT initiation among patients with inferred copayments in the 50–75th and 75–100th percentiles was significantly lower than those below the 50th percentile (HR=0.893 [95%CI 0.887–0.899] and HR=0.905 [95%CI 0.899–0.912], respectively). Higher PT copayments correlated with reduced PT utilization; higher PT copayments and lower opioid copayments were independent contributors to delayed PT initiation and higher opioid use. In patients covered by plans charging high PT copayments, opioid use was significantly higher. Copays may impact long-term adherence to PT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimating the parturition date in dogs is challenging due to their reproductive peculiarities that. Ultrasonographic examination serves as a tool for studying embryo/foetal biometry and estimating the time of parturition by measuring foetal and extra‐foetal structures. However, due to reproductive differences among various dog breeds, such estimates may have a non‐significant pattern, representing inaccuracies in the estimated date of birth. This study aimed to monitor pregnant Toy Poodle bitches and establish relationships between ultrasonographically measured foetal and extra‐foetal dimensions and the remaining time until parturition. Eighteen pregnant Toy Poodle bitches were subjected to weekly ultrasonographic evaluations and measurements of the inner chorionic cavity diameter, craniocaudal length (CCL), biparietal diameter (BPD), diameter of the deep portion of diencephalo‐telencephalic vesicle (DPTV), abdominal diameter, thorax diameter (TXD), placental thickness and the renal diameter (REND). These parameters were retrospectively correlated with the date of parturition and linear regressions were established between gestational measurements and days before parturition (DBP). All analyses were conducted using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM® SPSS®) program at a 5% significance level. The foetal measurements that showed a high correlation (r) and reliability (R2) with DBP were BPD [(DBP = [15.538 × BPD] − 39.756), r =.97 and R2 =.93], TXD [(DBP = [8.933 × TXD] − 32.487), r =.94 and R2 =.89], DPTV [(DBP = [34.580 × DPTV] − 39.403), r =.93 and R2 =.86] and REND [(DBP = [13.735 × REND] − 28.937), r =.91 and R2 =.82]. This statistically validates the application of these specific formulas to estimate the parturition date in Toy Poodle bitches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harmful alcohol consumption is one of the leading risk factors for global disease burden and injury condition, causing death and disability early in life, with over 3 million deaths worldwide every year. Alcoholic hepatitis (AH) is a clinical syndrome characterized by hepatic failure with recent onset of jaundice, consequence of a heavy chronic alcohol drinking. The disease severity ranges from mild to severe cases, with high short-term mortality. Individual variety regarding disease outcome and therapeutic response complicates the prognosis stratification. Thus, novel parameters and continuously sought for a better disease outcome assessment. To highlight new parameters that accurately assess 30-day mortality (short-term) in patients with AH and to develop a new severity score that uses readily available parameters accessible to any clinician. This is a prospective study on patients diagnosed with AH between 2022-2023. We identified 70 patients with AH who met the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) criteria for diagnosis after exclusion of patients with severe comorbidities that could influence disease outcome. Clinical and paraclinical parameters were assessed at least on admission and day 7. Mortality at 30-day was considered the endpoint. The database was composed using Microsoft Excel (Microsoft Corporation) and the data was analyzed using SPSS Statistics version 26 (IBM Corporation). A total of 70 patients were included in the study with a mortality at 30-days of 22.9% (n=16). The independent variables associated with increased short-term mortality identified using the univariate analysis were: fever, infection, esophageal varices, prothrombin time PT, INR, total bilirubin, CRP, LDH and CHI (creatinine height index). Using multivariate regression we determined a novel prognostic score, with criterion for retaining variable being p<0.05. Total bilirubin day 7, CRP, PT, fever and CHI resulted after the analysis and were included into a new mortality score. Our Prognostic Model Score obtained an area under the ROC of 0.950 (95% CI: 0.890-0.980, p<0.001), with a cut-off value of 13.75 (Sn=87.5%, Sp=91%). Regarding the consecrated prognostic scores, MDF and Lille score obtained good AUROCs=0.839 and 0.881, respectively (p<0.000), with cut-off values comparable with literature (MDF=34.35 vs 32) and (Lille=0.475 vs 0.450). The discriminatory power for ABIC (p=0.58), GAHS (p=0.16), MELD-Na (p=0.61) was not significant. We obtained a new prognostic score for the assessment of 30-day mortality in AH that includes markers of inflammation (CRP, fever) and markers of sarcopenia (CHI) along parameters of hepatic disfunction (total bilirubin and PT). Amongst consecrated prognostic models, MDF and Lille scores were representative for our study, while ABIC, GAHS and MELD-Na did not attain statistical significance. Our score is unique by the addition of CRP and this could prove to be a useful tool in AH severity stratification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this research was to investigate the effects of different stretching techniques used during warm-up exercises prior to post-activation performance enhancement (PAPE) on the explosive lower extremity strength performance of soccer players. This cross-sectional study involved the participation of 13 male soccer players with an average age of 22.38 ± 1.75, body height of 174.38 ± 3.94, and body mass of 72.30 ± 4.13. To determine the participants' maximal strength performance, one repeated maximal strength (1-RM) squat exercise was applied. The PAPE protocol was then implemented with a squat exercise consisting of three repetitions at 80% of 1-RM. The warm-up protocols consisted of 5 min of cycling, followed by dynamic stretching, static stretching, or proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching exercises. These protocols were applied on four different days with a 72 h interval. A vertical jump test was conducted to measure the participants' explosive strength performance. The research data were analyzed using IBM Statistics (SPSS version 26.0, Armonk, NY, USA) software. The findings of this study revealed statistically significant differences in vertical jump performance values after PAPE among participants based on the different stretching techniques used during warm-up (p = 0.00). In this context, the research concluded that dynamic stretching is the optimal stretching technique during warm-up exercises before PAPE to maximize its effects. On the other hand, static stretching was found to negatively affect performance by absorbing the PAPE effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential of achieving computational hardware with quantum advantage depends heavily on the quality of quantum gate operations. However, the presence of imperfect two-qubit gates poses a significant challenge and acts as a major obstacle in developing scalable quantum information processors. Google's Quantum AI and collaborators claimed to have conducted a supremacy regime experiment. In this experiment, a new two-qubit universal gate called the Sycamore gate is constructed and employed to generate random quantum circuits (RQCs), using a programmable quantum processor with 53 qubits. These computations were carried out in a computational state space of size 9 × 10 15 . Nevertheless, even in strictly-controlled laboratory settings, quantum information on quantum processors is susceptible to various disturbances, including undesired interaction with the surroundings and imperfections in the quantum state. To address this issue, we conduct both quantum state tomography (QST) and quantum process tomography (QPT) experiments on Google's Sycamore gate using different artificial architectural superconducting quantum computer. Furthermore, to demonstrate how errors affect gate fidelity at the level of quantum circuits, we design and conduct full QST experiments for the five-qubit eight-cycle circuit, which was introduced as an example of the programability of Google's Sycamore quantum processor. These quantum tomography experiments are conducted in three distinct environments: noise-free, noisy simulation, and on IBM Quantum's genuine quantum computer. Our results offer valuable insights into the performance of IBM Quantum's hardware and the robustness of Sycamore gates within this experimental setup. These findings contribute to our understanding of quantum hardware performance and provide valuable information for optimizing quantum algorithms for practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this publication is to present the applications of usage of business analytics in global supply chain coordination. Design/methodology/approach: Critical literature analysis. Analysis of international literature from main databases and polish literature and legal acts connecting with researched topic. Findings: The integration of business analytics in global supply chain coordination within the framework of Industry 4.0 is a transformative strategy that propels organizations toward enhanced efficiency, adaptability, and competitiveness. This approach is particularly crucial as industries undergo significant technological transformations. Business analytics strategically deployed in the modern supply chain serves as a vital tool, addressing the complexities inherent in Industry 4.0. The diverse applications of business analytics, including demand forecasting, supply chain visibility, predictive maintenance, collaboration, and risk management, highlight its multifaceted benefits. These applications empower organizations to anticipate market demands, optimize inventory, ensure reliable production flows, foster collaboration, and proactively address risks, thereby bolstering overall supply chain resilience and responsiveness. The use of sophisticated software tools like SAP Integrated Business Planning, Oracle SCM Cloud, and IBM Watson Supply Chain underscores the pivotal role of technology in overcoming the intricate challenges of managing global supply chain processes. Despite the numerous advantages, challenges such as data quality, integration issues, implementation costs, and skill shortages necessitate careful consideration and strategic planning. Organizations must address these challenges, along with security and privacy concerns, resistance to change, and the complexity of analytics tools, through investments in training and change management strategies to fully unlock the potential of business analytics. The presented tables further illustrate the advantages and challenges, emphasizing the positive impact of business analytics on efficiency, risk management, and strategic alignment with organizational goals. In conclusion, the judicious use of business analytics offers substantial opportunities for optimizing global supply chain coordination in Industry 4.0, requiring organizations to navigate both advantages and challenges proactively to position themselves at the forefront of innovation and competitiveness in the dynamic landscape of modern industry. Originality/Value: Detailed analysis of all subjects related to the problems connected with the usage of business analytics in the case of global supply chain coordination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study introduces a conceptually novel polynomial encoding algorithm for simulating potential energy operators encoded in diagonal unitary forms in a quantum computing machine. The current trend in quantum computational chemistry is effective experimentation to achieve high-precision quantum computational advantage. However, high computational gate complexity and fidelity loss are some of the impediments to the realization of this advantage in a real quantum hardware. In this study, we address the challenges of building a diagonal Hamiltonian operator having exponential functional form, and its implementation in the context of the time evolution problem (Hamiltonian simulation and encoding). Potential energy operators when represented in the first quantization form is an example of such types of operators. Through systematic decomposition and construction, we demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed polynomial encoding method in reducing gate complexity from O (2 n) to O ∑ i = 1 r n C r (for some r ≪ n ). This offers a solution with lower complexity in comparison to the conventional Hadamard basis encoding approach. The effectiveness of the proposed algorithm was validated with its implementation in the IBM quantum simulator and IBM quantum hardware. This study demonstrates the proposed approach by taking the example of the potential energy operator of the sodium iodide molecule (NaI) in the first quantization form. The numerical results demonstrate the potential applicability of the proposed method in quantum chemistry problems, while the analytical bound for error analysis and computational gate complexity discussed, throw light on issues regarding its implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]