Tag: nevin manimala

PLoS Comput Biol. 2023 Aug 25;19(8):e1011316. doi: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011316. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The ability to acquire abstract knowledge is a hallmark of human intelligence and is believed by many to be one of the core differences between humans and neural network models. Agents can be endowed with an inductive bias towards abstraction through meta-learning, where they are trained on a distribution of tasks that share some abstract structure that can be learned and applied. However, because neural networks are hard to interpret, it can be difficult to tell whether agents have learned the underlying abstraction, or alternatively statistical patterns that are characteristic of that abstraction. In this work, we compare the performance of humans and agents in a meta-reinforcement learning paradigm in which tasks are generated from abstract rules. We define a novel methodology for building “task metamers” that closely match the statistics of the abstract tasks but use a different underlying generative process, and evaluate performance on both abstract and metamer tasks. We find that humans perform better at abstract tasks than metamer tasks whereas common neural network architectures typically perform worse on the abstract tasks than the matched metamers. This work provides a foundation for characterizing differences between humans and machine learning that can be used in future work towards developing machines with more human-like behavior.

PMID:37624841 | DOI:10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011316

J Med Internet Res. 2023 Aug 25;25:e47284. doi: 10.2196/47284.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Chronic pain conditions involve numerous physical and psychological challenges, and while psychosocial self-management interventions can be of benefit for people living with chronic pain, such in-person treatment is not always accessible. Digital self-management approaches could improve this disparity, potentially bolstering outreach and providing easy, relatively low-cost access to pain self-management interventions.

OBJECTIVE: This randomized controlled trial aimed to evaluate the short-term efficacy of EPIO (ie, inspired by the Greek goddess for the soothing of pain, Epione), a digital self-management intervention, for people living with chronic pain.

METHODS: Patients (N=266) were randomly assigned to either the EPIO intervention (n=132) or a care-as-usual control group (n=134). Outcome measures included pain interference (Brief Pain Inventory; primary outcome measure), anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), self-regulatory fatigue (Self-Regulatory Fatigue 18 scale), health-related quality of life (SF-36 Short Form Health Survey), pain catastrophizing (Pain Catastrophizing Scale), and pain acceptance (Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire). Linear regression models used change scores as the dependent variables.

RESULTS: The participants were primarily female (210/259, 81.1%), with a median age of 49 (range 22-78) years and a variety of pain conditions. Analyses (n=229) after 3 months revealed no statistically significant changes for the primary outcome of pain interference (P=.84), but significant reductions in the secondary outcomes of depression (mean difference -0.90; P=.03) and self-regulatory fatigue (mean difference -2.76; P=.008) in favor of the intervention group. No other statistically significant changes were observed at 3 months (all P>.05). Participants described EPIO as useful (ie, totally agree or agree; 95/109, 87.2%) and easy to use (101/109, 92.7%), with easily understandable exercises (106/109, 97.2%).

CONCLUSIONS: Evidence-informed, user-centered digital pain self-management interventions such as EPIO may have the potential to effectively support self-management and improve psychological functioning in the form of reduced symptoms of depression and improved capacity to regulate thoughts, feelings, and behavior for people living with chronic pain.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03705104; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03705104.

PMID:37624622 | DOI:10.2196/47284

Transl Vis Sci Technol. 2023 Aug 1;12(8):21. doi: 10.1167/tvst.12.8.21.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To investigate and compare novel volumetric microperimetry (MP)-derived metrics in intermediate age-related macular degeneration (iAMD), as current MP metrics show high variability and low sensitivity.

METHODS: This is a cross-sectional analysis of microperimetry baseline data from the multicenter, prospective PINNACLE study (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04269304). The Visual Field Modeling and Analysis (VFMA) software and an open-source implementation (OSI) were applied to calculate MP-derived hill-of-vison (HOV) surface plots and the total volume (VTOT) beneath the plots. Bland-Altman plots were used for methodologic comparison, and the association of retinal sensitivity metrics with explanatory variables was tested with mixed-effects models.

RESULTS: In total, 247 eyes of 189 participants (75 ± 7.3 years) were included in the analysis. The VTOT output of VFMA and OSI exhibited a significant difference (P < 0.0001). VFMA yielded slightly higher coefficients of determination than OSI and mean sensitivity (MS) in univariable and multivariable modeling, for example, in association with low-luminance visual acuity (LLVA) (marginal R2/conditional R2: VFMA 0.171/0.771, OSI 0.162/0.765, MS 0.133/0.755). In the multivariable analysis, LLVA was the only demonstrable predictor of VFMA VTOT (t-value, P-value: -7.5, <0.001) and MS (-6.5, <0.001).

CONCLUSIONS: The HOV-derived metric of VTOT exhibits favorable characteristics compared to MS in evaluating retinal sensitivity. The output of VFMA and OSI is not exactly interchangeable in this cross-sectional analysis. Longitudinal analysis is necessary to assess their performance in ability-to-detect change.

TRANSLATIONAL RELEVANCE: This study explores new volumetric MP endpoints for future application in therapeutic trials in iAMD and reports specific characteristics of the available HOV software applications.

PMID:37624605 | DOI:10.1167/tvst.12.8.21

JAMA Netw Open. 2023 Aug 1;6(8):e2330885. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.30885.

ABSTRACT

IMPORTANCE: Recurrent flares are the hallmark of clinical manifestation of gout. Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) have been associated with a lower risk of incident gout; however, their association with recurrent flares is unknown.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association of SGLT2i vs active comparators (ie, glucagonlike peptide-1 receptor agonists [GLP-1 RA] or dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors [DPP-4i]) with the risk of recurrent gout flares and all-cause mortality among patients with gout and type 2 diabetes.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This population-based retrospective cohort study was performed from January 1, 2013, to March 31, 2022, using a UK primary care database. Participants included patients with gout and type 2 diabetes with visits to their general practitioners.

EXPOSURES: Initiation of treatment with SGLT2i or active comparators.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was the number of recurrent gout flares ascertained using recorded codes and prescription records. Secondary outcomes were the first recurrent gout flare and all-cause mortality. The association of SGLT2i compared with active comparators for the risk of recurrent flares, the first recurrent flare, and all-cause mortality was assessed using Poisson regression or the Cox proportional hazards model with propensity score overlap weighting.

RESULTS: Of a total of 5931 patients included in the analysis (mean [SD] age, 66.0 [11.6] years; 4604 [77.6%] men), 1548 initiated SGLT2i treatment and 4383 initiated treatment with active comparators during the study period. The relative rate of the recurrent flares with SGLT2i vs active comparators was 0.79 (95% CI, 0.65-0.97). Similar results were observed in the association of SGLT2i with the rate of recurrent flares when compared with DPP-4i or GLP-1 RA. For the first recurrent flare for SGLT2i vs active comparators, rate difference was -8.8 (95% CI, -17.2 to -0.4) per 1000 person-years and the hazard ratio was 0.81 (95% CI, 0.65-0.98). All-cause mortality per 1000 person-years was 18.8 for SGLT2i and 24.9 for active comparators, with rate difference of -6.1 (95% CI, -10.6 to -1.6) per 1000 person-years and hazard ratio of 0.71 (95% CI, 0.52-0.97).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: The findings of this cohort study suggest that SGLT2i were associated with a lower risk of recurrent gout flares and mortality than their active comparators in patients with gout and type 2 diabetes. These findings further suggest that SGLT2i could help reduce the burden of recurrent gout flares and could also narrow the mortality gap between patients with gout and the general population.

PMID:37624597 | DOI:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.30885

Discov Oncol. 2023 Aug 25;14(1):155. doi: 10.1007/s12672-023-00777-1.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Cellular senescence is growing in popularity in cancer. A dual function is played by the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) that senescent cells produce in the development of pro-inflammatory niches, tissue regeneration or destruction, senescence propagation, and malignant transformation. In this study, we conducted thorough bioinformatic analysis and meta-analysis to discover detrimental and beneficial subtypes and prognostic index for prostate cancer (PCa) patients using the experimentally confirmed SASP genes.

METHODS: We identified differentially expressed and prognosis-related SASP genes and used them to construct two molecular subtypes and risk score. Another two external cohorts were used to confirm the prognostic effect of the above subtypes and risk score and meta-analysis was further conducted. Additionally, functional analysis, tumor stemness and heterogeneity and tumor microenvironment were also evaluated. We completed analyses using software R 3.6.3 and its suitable packages. Meta-analysis was performed by software Stata 14.0.

RESULTS: Through multivariate Cox regression analysis and consensus clustering analysis, we used VGF, IGFBP3 and ANG to establish detrimental and beneficial subtypes in the TCGA cohort, which was validated through other two independent cohorts. Meta-analysis showed that detrimental SASP group had significantly higher risk of biochemical recurrence (BCR) than beneficial SASP group (HR: 2.48). Moreover, we also constructed and validated risk score based on these genes to better guide clinical practice. DNA repair, MYC target, oxidative phosphorylation, proteasome and ribosome were highly enriched in detrimental SASP group. Detrimental SASP group had significantly higher levels of B cells, CD8+ T cells, homologous recombination deficiency, loss of heterozygosity, microsatellite instability, purity, tumor mutation burden, mRNAsi, differentially methylated probes and epigenetically regulated RNA expression than beneficial SASP group. The top mutation genes between detrimental and beneficial SASP groups were SPOP, FOXA1, KMT2C, APC, BSN, DNAH17, MYH6, EPPK1, ZNF536 and ZC3H13 with statistical significance.

CONCLUSIONS: From perspective of SASP, we found detrimental and beneficial tumor subtypes which were closely associated with BCR-free survival for PCa patients, which might be important for the furture research in the field of PCa.

PMID:37624511 | DOI:10.1007/s12672-023-00777-1

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2023 Aug 25. doi: 10.1007/s11356-023-29419-3. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

In recent years, attention has been focused on the benefit of greenspace on mental health, and it is suggested this link may vary with the type of greenspace. More and more studies have emphasized the influence of the gut microbiome on schizophrenia (SCZ). However, the effects of greenspaces on the gut microbiota in SCZ and the effect of different types of greenspaces on the gut microbiota remain unclear. We aim to examine if there were variations in the effects of various greenspace types on the gut microbiome in SCZ. Besides, we sink to explore important taxonomic compositions associated with different greenspace types. We recruited 243 objects with schizophrenia from Anhui Mental Health Center and collected fecal samples for 16Sr RNA gene sequencing. Three types of greenery coverage were calculated with different circular buffers (800, 1500, and 3000 m) corresponding to individual addresses. The association between greenspace and microbiome composition was analyzed with permutational analysis of variance (PERMANOVA). We conducted the linear regression to capture specific gut microbiome taxa associated with greenery coverage. Tree coverage was consistently associated with microbial composition in both 1500 m (R² = 0.007, P = 0.030) and 3000 m (R² = 0.007, P = 0.039). In contrast, there was no association with grass cover in any of the buffer zones. In the regression analysis, higher tree coverage was significantly correlated with the relative abundance of several taxa. Among them, tree coverage was positively associated with increased Bifidobacterium longum (β = 1.069, P = 0.004), which was the dominant composition in the gut microbiota. The relationship between greenspace and gut microbiome in SCZ differed by the type of greenspace. Besides, “tree coverage” may present a dominant effect on the important taxonomic composition. Our findings might provide instructive evidence for the design of urban greenspace to optimize health and well-being in SCZ as well as the whole people.

PMID:37624502 | DOI:10.1007/s11356-023-29419-3

J Robot Surg. 2023 Aug 25. doi: 10.1007/s11701-023-01698-5. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Robotic-assisted breast surgery (RABS) is controversial. We systematically reviewed the evidence about RABS, comparing it to open conventional breast surgery (CBS). Following prospective registration (osf.io/97ewt), a search was performed in January 2023, without time or language restrictions, through bibliographic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE, Scopus, Trip database and CDSR) and grey literature. Quality was assessed in duplicate using Qualsyst criteria (score range 0.0-1.0); reviewer agreement was 98%. The 16 selected studies (total patients: 334,804) had overall high quality (mean score 0.82; range 0.68-0.91). Nine of 16 (56.3%) were cohort studies, 2/16 (12.5%) RCTs, and 5/16 (31.3%) case-control studies. Taking p < 0.05 as the significance threshold, RABS versus CBS was better in aesthetic results and patient satisfaction (10/11 studies; 90%), was surgically costly (4/4 studies; 100%), time-consuming (9/13 studies; 69%), and less painful in the first 6-24 h (2/2 studies; 100%) and without statistically significant differences in complication rates (10/12 studies; 83%) or short-term oncological outcomes (10/10 studies; 100%). Surgical time could be dramatically reduced by training surgical teams, reaching no significant differences between approaches (p = 0.120). RABS was shown to be feasible and safe. The advantages of RABS and long-term outcomes need further research.

PMID:37624486 | DOI:10.1007/s11701-023-01698-5

Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2023 Aug 25. doi: 10.1007/s00127-023-02553-6. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To examine within-individual time trends in mental well-being and factors influencing heterogeneity of these trends.

METHODS: Longitudinal telephone survey of adults over 3 waves from the New York City (NYC) Metropolitan area during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Participants reported depression using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)-8, anxiety using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)-7, and past 30-day increases in tobacco or alcohol use at each wave. Adjusted mixed effects logistic regression models assessed time trends in mental well-being.

RESULTS: There were 1227 respondents. Over 3 study waves, there were statistically significant decreasing time trends in the odds of each outcome (adjusted OR (95% CI) 0.47 (0.37, 0.60); p < 0.001 for depression; aOR (95% CI) 0.55 (0.45, 0.66); p < 0.001 for anxiety; aOR (95% CI) 0.50 (0.35, 0.71); p < 0.001 for past 30-day increased tobacco use; aOR (95% CI) 0.31 (0.24, 0.40); p < 0.001 for past 30-day increased alcohol use). Time trends for anxiety varied by race and ethnicity (p value for interaction = 0.05, 4 df); anxiety declined over time among white, Black, Hispanic, and Other race and ethnicity but not among Asian participants.

CONCLUSIONS: In a demographically varied population from the NYC Metropolitan area, depression, anxiety and increased substance use were common during the first months of the pandemic, but decreased over the following year. While this was consistently the case across most demographic groups, the odds of anxiety among Asian participants did not decrease over time.

PMID:37624465 | DOI:10.1007/s00127-023-02553-6

Eur Spine J. 2023 Aug 25. doi: 10.1007/s00586-023-07902-2. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate the recent 10-year trends in cervical laminoplasty and 30-day postoperative complications.

METHODS: This retrospective multi-institutional cohort study enrolled patients who underwent laminoplasty for cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) or ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament. The primary outcome was the occurrence of all-cause 30-day complications. Trends were investigated and compared in the early (2008-2012) and late (2013-2017) periods.

RESULTS: Among 1095 patients (mean age, 66 years; 762 [70%] male), 542 and 553 patients were treated in the early and late periods, respectively. In the late period, patients were older at surgery (65 years vs. 68 years), there were more males (66% vs. 73%), and open-door laminoplasty (50% vs. 69%) was the preferred procedure, while %CSM (77% vs. 78%) and the perioperative JOA scores were similar to the early period. During the study period, the rate of preservation of the posterior muscle-ligament complex attached to the C2/C7-spinous process (C2, 89% vs. 93%; C7, 62% vs. 85%) increased and the number of laminoplasty levels (3.7 vs. 3.1) decreased. While the 30-day complication rate remained stable (3.9% vs. 3.4%), C5 palsy tended to decrease (2.4% vs. 0.9%, P = 0.059); superficial SSI increased significantly (0% vs. 1.3%, P = 0.015), while the decreased incidence of deep SSI did not reach statistical significance (0.6% vs. 0.2%).

CONCLUSIONS: From 2008 to 2017, there were trends toward increasing age at surgery and surgeons’ preference for refined open-door laminoplasty. The 30-day complication rate remained stable, but the C5 palsy rate halved.

PMID:37624437 | DOI:10.1007/s00586-023-07902-2

Arch Orthop Trauma Surg. 2023 Aug 25. doi: 10.1007/s00402-023-05041-3. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Optimal surgical fixation for displaced intra-articular calcaneal fractures (DIACF) remains a subject of debate, particularly regarding the superiority between screw fixation and plate fixation via the sinus tarsi approach (STA). This review aims to determine the preferred treatment for DIACF and compare the outcomes of minimally invasive surgery options.

METHODS: Our study involved thorough searches across multiple electronic databases, including PubMed, Cochrane, Embase, and Web of Science, to identify all relevant publications on distal intra-articular fractures of the calcaneus (DIACFs) that were fixed using cannulated screws or plates via STA. Through a comprehensive meta-analysis, we evaluated several outcomes, including post-operative function, radiological measurements, and complications.

RESULT: A total of 728 patients from 7 studies met the inclusion criteria. Among them, 435 patients underwent screw fixation via STA, and 373 patients underwent plate fixation via STA. The study found no statistically significant differences between the screw fixation and the plate fixation via sinus tarsi approach (STA) in terms of AOFAS scores, Bohler’s angle, Gissane’s angle, sural nerve injury, secondary subtalar arthrodesis and reoperation. Compared with screw fixation, plate fixation via STA can reduce reduction loss of Bohler’s angle (WMD = – 1.64, 95% CI = [- 2.96, – 0.31], P = 0.06, I² = 59%), lower the incidence of fixation failure (OR = 0.32, 95% CI = [0.13, 0.81], P = 0.78, I² = 0%), and decrease intra-articular step-off (WMD = – 0.52, 95% CI = [- 0.87, – 0.17], P = 0.66, I² = 0%).

CONCLUSIONS: Plate fixation demonstrates superior capability in restoring calcaneal width, maintaining Bohler’s angle, and minimizing intra-articular step-off, thereby maintaining better reduction of the subtalar articular surface. In addition, plate fixation exhibits the modest complication rate and a low incidence of fixation failure. Therefore, we recommend the use of plate fixation through the STA, especially for complex and comminuted intra-articular calcaneal fractures.

PMID:37624429 | DOI:10.1007/s00402-023-05041-3