Spatiotemporal analysis of reported cases of acute Chagas disease in the State of Pernambuco, Brazil, from 2002 to 2013

INTRODUCTION: Control strategies to eliminate the transmission of Chagas disease by insect vectors have significantly decreased the number of reported acute cases in Brazil. However, data regarding the incidence and distribution of acute Chagas disease cases in the State of Pernambuco are unavailable in the literature. METHODS: A geographical information system was used to delineate the spatiotemporal distribution profile of the cases from 2002 to 2013 in 185 municipalities of Pernambuco based on the municipality where notification occurred. The results were presented in digital maps generated by the TerraView software (INPE). RESULTS: A total of 302 cases of acute disease were recorded in 37.8% of the municipalities, for a total of 0.13 cases per 1,000,000 inhabitants per year. Out of the 302 cases, 99.3% were reported between 2002 and 2006. The most affected municipalities were Carnaubeira da Penha, Mirandiba and Terra Nova. The risk maps showed a significant decrease in the number of notifications and a concentration of cases in the Midwest region. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights a significant decrease in new cases of acute Chagas disease in Pernambuco starting in 2006 when Brazil received an international certification for the interruption of vectorial transmission by Triatoma infestans. However, control strategies should still be encouraged because other triatomine species can also transmit the parasite; moreover, other transmission modes must not be neglected.

Spatial and spatiotemporal occurrence of human visceral leishmaniasis in Adamantina, State of São Paulo, Brazil

Abstract: INTRODUCTION : Several municipalities of the Western region of the State of São Paulo have been affected by human visceral leishmaniasis (HVL), including the City of Adamantina, where the first autochthonous cases occurred in 2004. Therefore, this study aimed to describe the spatial and spatiotemporal occurrence of HVL in Adamantina. METHODS : Secondary data regarding the occurrence of HVL in Adamantina between 2004 and 2011 were used. Incidence, mortality, and case fatality rates were calculated. We used local empirical Bayesian incidence rates to represent the occurrence of the disease in the census sector of the city. The existence of spatial and spatiotemporal clusters of cases was evaluated using scan statistics. In situ observation was performed to assess the socioeconomic and environmental characteristics of the areas with medium and high incidences. RESULTS : Adamantina reported cases in 70% of its census sectors. No differences were observed between sexes. The group aged 0-4 years presented the highest incidence and mortality rates, and the group aged 40-59 years presented the highest fatality rate. We detected a spatiotemporal cluster, which coincided with the commencement of the endemic in the city. CONCLUSIONS : The individuals most affected by the disease were children. The disease was present in areas with better and worse socioeconomic conditions. The use of spatial analysis techniques was important to achieve the study objectives.

Spatio-temporal modelling of environmental data

Programa Doutoral em Matemática e Aplicações.

A Real-Time intelligent system for tracking patient condition

Hospitals have multiple data sources, such as embedded systems, monitors and sensors. The number of data available is increasing and the information are used not only to care the patient but also to assist the decision processes. The introduction of intelligent environments in health care institutions has been adopted due their ability to provide useful information for health professionals, either in helping to identify prognosis or also to understand patient condition. Behind of this concept arises this Intelligent System to track patient condition (e.g. critic events) in health care. This system has the great advantage of being adaptable to the environment and user needs. The system is focused in identifying critic events from data streaming (e.g. vital signs and ventilation) which is particularly valuable for understanding the patient’s condition. This work aims to demonstrate the process of creating an intelligent system capable of operating in a real environment using streaming data provided by ventilators and vital signs monitors. Its development is important to the physician because becomes possible crossing multiple variables in real-time by analyzing if a value is critic or not and if their variation has or not clinical importance.

stochastic method for automated matching of horizons across a fault in 3D seismic data

Seismic analysis, horizon matching, fault tracking, marked point process,stochastic annealing

Methodological Gaps in Left Atrial Function Assessment by 2D Speckle Tracking Echocardiography

Abstract The assessment of left atrial (LA) function is used in various cardiovascular diseases. LA plays a complementary role in cardiac performance by modulating left ventricular (LV) function. Transthoracic two-dimensional (2D) phasic volumes and Doppler echocardiography can measure LA function non‑invasively. However, evaluation of LA deformation derived from 2D speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) is a new feasible and promising approach for assessment of LA mechanics. These parameters are able to detect subclinical LA dysfunction in different pathological condition. Normal ranges for LA deformation and cut-off values to diagnose LA dysfunction with different diseases have been reported, but data are still conflicting, probably because of some methodological and technical issues. This review highlights the importance of an unique standardized technique to assess the LA phasic functions by STE, and discusses recent studies on the most important clinical applications of this technique.

Tracking cost savings from competitive tendering in the short and long run

A major initiative of the Thatcher and Major Conservative administrations was that public sector ancillary and professional services provided by incumbent direct service organisations [DSOs] be put out to tender. Analyses of this initiative, in the UK and elsewhere, found costs were often reduced in the short run. However, few if any studies went beyond the first round of tendering. We analyze data collected over successive rounds of tendering for cleaning and catering services of Scottish hospitals in order to assess the long term consequences of this initiative. The experience of the two services was very different. Cost savings for cleaning services tended to increase with each additional round of tendering and became increasingly stable. In accordance with previous results in the literature, DSOs produced smaller cost reductions than private contractors: probably an inevitable consequence of the tendering process at the time. Cost savings from DSOs tended to disappear during the first round of tendering, but they appear to have been more permanent in successive rounds. Cost savings for catering, on the other hand, tended to be much smaller, and these were not sustained.

Quantifying network properties in multi-electrode recordings: spatiotemporal characterization and inter-trial variation of evoked gamma oscillations in mouse somatosensory cortex in vitro.

Linking the structural connectivity of brain circuits to their cooperative dynamics and emergent functions is a central aim of neuroscience research. Graph theory has recently been applied to study the structure-function relationship of networks, where dynamical similarity of different nodes has been turned into a "static" functional connection. However, the capability of the brain to adapt, learn and process external stimuli requires a constant dynamical functional rewiring between circuitries and cell assemblies. Hence, we must capture the changes of network functional connectivity over time. Multi-electrode array data present a unique challenge within this framework. We study the dynamics of gamma oscillations in acute slices of the somatosensory cortex from juvenile mice recorded by planar multi-electrode arrays. Bursts of gamma oscillatory activity lasting a few hundred milliseconds could be initiated only by brief trains of electrical stimulations applied at the deepest cortical layers and simultaneously delivered at multiple locations. Local field potentials were used to study the spatio-temporal properties and the instantaneous synchronization profile of the gamma oscillatory activity, combined with current source density (CSD) analysis. Pair-wise differences in the oscillation phase were used to determine the presence of instantaneous synchronization between the different sites of the circuitry during the oscillatory period. Despite variation in the duration of the oscillatory response over successive trials, they showed a constant average power, suggesting that the rate of expenditure of energy during the gamma bursts is consistent across repeated stimulations. Within each gamma burst, the functional connectivity map reflected the columnar organization of the neocortex. Over successive trials, an apparently random rearrangement of the functional connectivity was observed, with a more stable columnar than horizontal organization. This work reveals new features of evoked gamma oscillations in developing cortex.

Local WMR navigation with monocular data

This article presents recent WMR (wheeled mobile robot) navigation experiences using local perception knowledge provided by monocular and odometer systems. A local narrow perception horizon is used to plan safety trajectories towards the objective. Therefore, monocular data are proposed as a way to obtain real time local information by building two dimensional occupancy grids through a time integration of the frames. The path planning is accomplished by using attraction potential fields, while the trajectory tracking is performed by using model predictive control techniques. The results are faced to indoor situations by using the lab available platform consisting in a differential driven mobile robot

Magnetic pill tracking : a novel non-invasive tool for investigation of human digestive motility

RESUME Les améliorations méthodologiques des dernières décennies ont permis une meilleure compréhension de la motilité gastro-intestinale. Il manque toutefois une méthode qui permette de suivre la progression du chyme le long du tube gastro-intestinal. Pour permettre l'étude de la motilité de tout le tractus digestif humain, une nouvelle technique, peu invasive, a été élaborée au Département de Physiologie, en collaboration avec l'EPFL. Appelée "Magnet Tracking", la technique est basée sur la détection du champ magnétique généré par des matériaux ferromagnétiques avalés. A cet usage, une pilule magnétique, une matrice de capteurs et un logiciel ont été développés. L'objet de ce travail est de démontrer la faisabilité d'un examen de la motilité gastro-intestinale chez l'Homme par cette méthode. L'aimant est un cylindre (ø 6x7 mm, 0.2 cm3) protégé par une gaine de silicone. Le système de mesure est constitué d'une matrice de 4x4 capteurs et d'un ordinateur portable. Les capteurs fonctionnent sur l'effet Hall. Grâce à l'interface informatique, l'évolution de la position de l'aimant est suivie en temps réel à travers tout le tractus digestif. Sa position est exprimée en fonction du temps ou reproduite en 3-D sous forme d'une trajectoire. Différents programmes ont été crées pour analyser la dynamique des mouvements de l'aimant et caractériser la motilité digestive. Dix jeunes volontaires en bonne santé ont participé à l'étude. L'aimant a été avalé après une nuit de jeûne et son séjour intra digestif suivi pendant 2 jours consécutifs. Le temps moyen de mesure était de 34 heures. Chaque sujet a été examiné une fois sauf un qui a répété sept fois l'expérience. Les sujets restaient en décubitus dorsal, tranquilles et pouvaient interrompre la mesure s'ils le désiraient. Ils sont restés à jeûne le premier jour. L'évacuation de l'aimant a été contrôlée chez tous les sujets. Tous les sujets ont bien supporté l'examen. Le marqueur a pu être détecté de l'oesophage au rectum. La trajectoire ainsi constituée représente une conformation de l'anatomie digestive : une bonne superposition de celle-ci à l'anatomie est obtenue à partir des images de radiologie conventionnelle (CT-scan, lavement à la gastrografine). Les mouvements de l'aimant ont été caractérisés selon leur périodicité, leur amplitude ou leur vitesse pour chaque segment du tractus digestif. Ces informations physiologiques sont bien corrélées à celles obtenues par des méthodes établies d'étude de la motilité gastro-intestinale. Ce travail démontre la faisabilité d'un examen de la motilité gastro-intestinal chez l'Homme par la méthode de Magnet Tracking. La technique fournit les données anatomiques et permet d'analyser en temps réel la dynamique des mouvements du tube digestif. Cette méthode peu invasive ouvre d'intéressantes perspectives pour l'étude de motilité dans des conditions physiologiques et pathologiques. Des expériences visant à valider cette approche en tant que méthode clinique sont en voie de réalisation dans plusieurs centres en Suisse et à l'étranger. SUMMARY Methodological improvements realised over the last decades have permitted a better understanding of gastrointestinal motility. Nevertheless, a method allowing a continuous following of lumina' contents is still lacking. In order to study the human digestive tract motility, a new minimally invasive technique was developed at the Department of Physiology in collaboration with Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. The method is based on the detection of magnetic field generated by swallowed ferromagnetic materials. The aim of our work was to demonstrate the feasibility of this new approach to study the human gastrointestinal motility. The magnet used was a cylinder (ø6x7mm, 0.2 cm3) coated with silicon. The magnet tracking system consisted of a 4x4 matrix of sensors based on the Hall effect Signals from the sensors were digitised and sent to a laptop computer for processing and storage. Specific software was conceived to analyse in real time the progression of the magnet through the gastrointestinal tube. Ten young and healthy volunteers were enrolled in the study. After a fasting period of 12 hours, they swallowed the magnet. The pill was then tracked for two consecutive days for 34 hours on average. Each subject was studied once except one who was studied seven times. Every subject laid on his back for the entire experiment but could interrupt it at anytime. Evacuation of the magnet was controlled in all subjects. The examination was well tolerated. The pill could be followed from the esophagus to the rectum. The trajectory of the magnet represented a "mould" of the anatomy of the digestive tube: a good superimposition with radiological anatomy (gastrografin contrast and CT) was obtained. Movements of the magnet were characterized by periodicity, velocity, and amplitude of displacements for every segment of the digestive tract. The physiological information corresponded well to data from current methods of studying gastrointestinal motility. This work demonstrates the feasibility of the new approach in studies of human gastrointestinal motility. The technique allows to correlate in real time the dynamics of digestive movements with the anatomical data. This minimally invasive method is ready for studies of human gastrointestinal motility under physiological as well as pathological conditions. Studies aiming at validation of this new approach as a clinically relevant tool are being realised in several centres in Switzerland and abroad. Abstract: A new minimally invasive technique allowing for anatomical mapping and motility studies along the entire human digestive system is presented. The technique is based on continuous tracking of a small magnet progressing through the digestive tract. The coordinates of the magnet are calculated from signals recorded by 16 magnetic field sensors located over the abdomen. The magnet position, orientation and trajectory are displayed in real time. Ten young healthy volunteers were followed during 34 h. The technique was well tolerated and no complication was encountered, The information obtained was 3-D con-figuration of the digestive tract and dynamics of the magnet displacement (velocity, transit time, length estimation, rhythms). In the same individual, repea-ted examination gave very reproducible results. The anatomical and physiological information obtained corresponded well to data from current methods and imaging. This simple, minimally invasive technique permits examination of the entire digestive tract and is suitable for both research and clinical studies. In combination with other methods, it may represent a useful tool for studies of Cl motility with respect to normal and pathological conditions.

Iowa TOPSpro Data Dictionary, 2007

The purpose of the Iowa TOPSpro Data Dictionary is to provide a statewide-standardized set of instructions and definitions for coding Tracking Of Programs And Students (TOPSpro) forms and effectively utilizing the TOPSpro software. This document is designed to serve as a companion document to the TOPS Technical Manual produced by the Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System (CASAS). The data dictionary integrates information from various data systems to provide uniform data sets and definitions that meet local, state and federal reporting mandates. The sources for the data dictionary are: (1) the National Reporting System (NRS) Guidelines, (2) standard practices utilized in Iowa’s adult literacy program, (3) selected definitions from the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, (4) input from the state level Management Information System (MIS) personnel, and (5) selected definitions from other Iowa state agencies.

Three-dimensional magnetic resonance myocardial motion tracking from a single image plane.

Three-dimensional imaging for the quantification of myocardial motion is a key step in the evaluation of cardiac disease. A tagged magnetic resonance imaging method that automatically tracks myocardial displacement in three dimensions is presented. Unlike other techniques, this method tracks both in-plane and through-plane motion from a single image plane without affecting the duration of image acquisition. A small z-encoding gradient is subsequently added to the refocusing lobe of the slice-selection gradient pulse in a slice following CSPAMM acquisition. An opposite polarity z-encoding gradient is added to the orthogonal tag direction. The additional z-gradients encode the instantaneous through plane position of the slice. The vertical and horizontal tags are used to resolve in-plane motion, while the added z-gradients is used to resolve through-plane motion. Postprocessing automatically decodes the acquired data and tracks the three-dimensional displacement of every material point within the image plane for each cine frame. Experiments include both a phantom and in vivo human validation. These studies demonstrate that the simultaneous extraction of both in-plane and through-plane displacements and pathlines from tagged images is achievable. This capability should open up new avenues for the automatic quantification of cardiac motion and strain for scientific and clinical purposes.

Genetic differentiation in Silene dioica metapopulations: estimation of spatiotemporal effects in a successional plant species

Silene dioica is a diploid, dioecious, perennial, insect-pollinated herb and part of the deciduous phase of primary succession in Skeppsvik Archipelago, Gulf of Bothnia, Sweden. These islands are composed of material deposited and left underwater by melting ice at the end of the last ice age. A rapid and relatively constant rate of land uplift of 0.9 cm per year continually creates new islands available for colonization by plants. Because the higher deposits appear first, islands differ in age. Because it is possible to estimate the ages of islands and populations of plant species belonging to early stages of succession, the genetic dynamics occurring within an age-structured metapopulation can be investigated in this archipelago. Fifty-two island populations of S. dioica of known ages, sizes, and distances from each other were studied through electrophoretic data. A number of factors increase the degree of genetic differentiation among these island populations relative to an island model at equilibrium. Newly founded populations were more differentiated than those of intermediate age, which suggests that colonization dynamics increase genetic variance among populations. The very old populations, which decrease in size as they approach extinction, were more differentiated than intermediate-aged populations. Isolation by distance occurs in this system. Colonizers are likely to come from more than one source, and the migrant pool model best explains colonization events in the archipelago. Degree of environmental exposure also affects population differentiation.

Thalamic connectivity in patients with essential tremor treated with MR imaging-guided focused ultrasound: in vivo fiber tracking by using diffusion-tensor MR imaging.

PURPOSE: To use diffusion-tensor (DT) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in patients with essential tremor who were treated with transcranial MR imaging-guided focused ultrasound lesion inducement to identify the structural connectivity of the ventralis intermedius nucleus of the thalamus and determine how DT imaging changes correlated with tremor changes after lesion inducement. MATERIALS AND METHODS: With institutional review board approval, and with prospective informed consent, 15 patients with medication-refractory essential tremor were enrolled in a HIPAA-compliant pilot study and were treated with transcranial MR imaging-guided focused ultrasound surgery targeting the ventralis intermedius nucleus of the thalamus contralateral to their dominant hand. Fourteen patients were ultimately included. DT MR imaging studies at 3.0 T were performed preoperatively and 24 hours, 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months after the procedure. Fractional anisotropy (FA) maps were calculated from the DT imaging data sets for all time points in all patients. Voxels where FA consistently decreased over time were identified, and FA change in these voxels was correlated with clinical changes in tremor over the same period by using Pearson correlation. RESULTS: Ipsilateral brain structures that showed prespecified negative correlation values of FA over time of -0.5 or less included the pre- and postcentral subcortical white matter in the hand knob area; the region of the corticospinal tract in the centrum semiovale, in the posterior limb of the internal capsule, and in the cerebral peduncle; the thalamus; the region of the red nucleus; the location of the central tegmental tract; and the region of the inferior olive. The contralateral middle cerebellar peduncle and bilateral portions of the superior vermis also showed persistent decrease in FA over time. There was strong correlation between decrease in FA and clinical improvement in hand tremor 3 months after lesion inducement (P < .001). CONCLUSION: DT MR imaging after MR imaging-guided focused ultrasound thalamotomy depicts changes in specific brain structures. The magnitude of the DT imaging changes after thalamic lesion inducement correlates with the degree of clinical improvement in essential tremor.

Interlaboratory comparison of size measurements on nanoparticles using nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA)

One of the key challenges in the field of nanoparticle (NP) analysis is in producing reliable and reproducible characterisation data for nanomaterials. This study looks at the reproducibility using a relatively new, but rapidly adopted, technique, Nanoparticle Tracking Analysis (NTA) on a range of particle sizes and materials in several different media. It describes the protocol development and presents both the data and analysis of results obtained from 12 laboratories, mostly based in Europe, who are primarily QualityNano members. QualityNano is an EU FP7 funded Research Infrastructure that integrates 28 European analytical and experimental facilities in nanotechnology, medicine and natural sciences with the goal of developing and implementing best practice and quality in all aspects of nanosafety assessment. This study looks at both the development of the protocol and how this leads to highly reproducible results amongst participants. In this study, the parameter being measured is the modal particle size.