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Background/AimsLiver stiffness (LS) as assessed by transient elastography (TE) can change longitudinally in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). The aim of this study was to identify the factors that improve LS.MethodsBetween April 2007 and December 2012, 151 patients with CHB who underwent two TE procedures with an interval of about 2 years were enrolled. Ninety-six of the 151 patients were treated with nucleos(t)ide analogues [the antiviral therapy (+) group], while the remaining 55 patients were not [the antiviral therapy (-) group]. The two groups of patients were stratified according to whether they exhibited an improvement or a deterioration in LS during the study period (defined as an LS change of ≤0 or >0 kPa, respectively, over a 1-year period), and their data were compared.ResultsNo differences were observed between the antiviral therapy (+) and (-) groups with respect to either their clinical characteristics or their initial LS. The observed LS improvement was significantly greater in the antiviral therapy (+) group than in the antiviral therapy (-) group (-3.0 vs. 0.98 kPa, P=0.011). In the antiviral therapy (+) group, the initial LS was higher in the LS improvement group (n=63) than in the LS deterioration group (n=33; 7.9 vs. 4.8 kPa, P

Representation of a complex three-dimensional (3D) shape requires extensive computer-aided design data consisting of millions (or tens of millions) of approximated discontinuous points. The quantity of data makes it difficult or impossible to efficiently optimize the entire shape. We present a vehicle-modeling function in the form of an exponential function to smoothly express the complex two-dimensional and 3D curved shapes of an automobile. This modeling function can modify and optimize the shape with fewer design variables compared with ordinary point-fitting methods. The subsectional parts of the vehicle-modeling function are defined as section functions by classifying each subsection of the automobile configuration as a section box model The proposed approach is suitable for remodeling existing automobiles and for newly designed automobiles. The entire 3D aerodynamic shape of an automobile can be created using a set of the proposed modeling functions, which define a combination of section boxes. A 3D aerodynamic shape was developed to verify that the optimization of the shape was practical. This capability may help to reduce the developmental time or cost of automobiles and similarly complex systems. In addition, the proposed approach can be expanded to other fields of engineering. Keywords: computer-aided design, computational geometry, vehicle-modeling function, section function, shape optimization [DOI: 10.1115/1.4000404]

The aim of this study was to determine the associations of the mean platelet volume (MPV) with the development of adverse outcomes after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and platelet reactivity. MPV and platelet function testing were analysed in 208 patients who underwent PCI. The primary endpoint was cardiac death. The secondary endpoint analysed was cardiovascular events (CVE): the composite of myocardial infarction (MI), target vessel revascularization (TVR), and stent thrombosis (ST). The median MPV level, aspirin reaction unit (ARU), P2Y12 reaction units (PRU) and P2Y12% inhibition (PI%) of clopidogrel were 8.55 (IQR 8.00-9.18) fl, 401.0 (IQR 389.3-442.0) ARU, 222.0 (IQR 169.0-272.3) PRU and 22 (IQR 9-38) %, respectively. We observed that high values of MPV were associated with elevated ARU ( r = 0.165, p = 0.017) and decreased PI% ( r = −0.167, p = 0.016). There were 10 events of cardiac death, 3 MI (including 1 event of ST), and 8 TVR during a mean of 7.6 months of follow-up. The Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that the higher MPV group (≥8.55 fl, median) had a significantly higher cardiac death rate compared to the lower MPV group (<8.55 fl) (7.7% vs. 1.9%, log-rank: p = 0.035). However, aspirin or clopidogrel resistance (>550 ARU, <40 PI%, respectively) did not predict cardiac death. When the MPV cut-off level was set to 8.55 fl using the receiver operating characteristic curve, the sensitivity was 80% and the specificity was 51.5% for differentiating between the group with cardiac death and the group without cardiac death. This value was more useful in patients with clinical diagnosis of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Furthermore, ACS patients with an MPV over 8.55 fl had high cardiac death and CVE risk without atorvastatin loading before PCI (Log-Rank = 0.0031, 0.0023, respectively). The results of this study show that MPV was a predictive marker for cardiac death after PCI; its predictive power for cardiac death was more useful in patients with ACS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unsteady flow field around a square cylinder is investigated by solving the two-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations with ε-SST turbulence model at Re = 20,000 with changes of gap height, from G/D = 0.1 to G/D = 2.0, and ground speed, from 0 to U∞, respectively. Through analysis on the vortex strength, lift and drag coefficients, and the Strouhal number of a square cylinder, it is found out that the separation bubble located on the ground behind a square cylinder is the core reason which makes significant differences of flow characteristics between the stationary and moving ground. Also the separation bubble seems to prevent the sharp transition from steady flow to periodic vortex shedding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]