Grouping of unused agricultural by-product biomass for fuel conversion in South Korea through multivariate analysis

While biomass holds significance as a resource, its abundance in South Korea is limited. Therefore, in this study analyzed the chemical characteristics of agricultural by-products produced and evaluated their fuel potentiality. To achieve this objective, multivariate analysis was utilized to create biomass clusters with diverse feature. All investigated biomass types showed heating values of at least 12.6 MJ/kg, adhering to South Korea's Bio-solid recovered fuel (SRF) standard, once the moisture content was reduced to 20 % or less. However, the biomasses only met the heating value of Level 3 of the European standard for SRF, which is at least 15 MJ/kg. Groups were formed based on a multivariate analysis using four variables: the high heating value, and carbon, nitrogen, and ash contents. The groups were centered around wood chips and hog fuel, with a cluster of lignocellulosic biomass materials surrounding them. The clusters formed around four groups. When the biomasses in each group were mixed, the combustion characteristics were compared to the ignition, maximum, and burn-out temperatures. Utilizing biomass grouping, by-products from agriculture and livestock in South Korea can be effectively employed as energy sources.

Ameliorating effect of 2'-Fucosyllactose and 6'-Sialyllactose on lipopolysaccharide-induced intestinal inflammation

Human milk oligosaccharides (HMO) affect gut microbiota during neonatal development, particularly with respect to the immune system. Bovine milk-based infant formulas have low oligosaccharide contents. Thus, efforts to fortify infant formulas with HMO are being undertaken. Two major HMO, 2'-fucosyllactose (2'-FL) and 6'-sialyllactose (6'-SL), exert anti-inflammatory effects; however, the associations between anti-inflammatory effects induced by 2'-FL and 6'-SL co-treatment and gut microbiota composition and metabolite modulation remain unclear. Therefore, in this study, we evaluated the effects of a mixture of these HMO. To determine the optimal HMO ratio for anti-inflammatory effects and elucidate its mode of action, LPS-induced inflammatory HT-29 epithelial cells and intestinal inflamed suckling mice were treated with various mixtures of 2'-FL and 6'-SL. 2'-FL:6'-SL ratio of 5:1 was identified as the most effective pre-treatment HMO mixture in vitro; thus, this ratio was selected and used for low, middle, and high-dose treatments for subsequent in vivo studies. In vivo, high-dose HMO treatment restored LPS-induced inflammation symptoms, such as body weight loss, colon length reduction, histological structural damage, and intestinal gene expression related to inflammatory responses. High-dose HMO was the only treatment that modulated the major phyla Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes and the genera Ihubacter, Mageeibacillus, and Saccharofermentans. These changes in microbial composition were correlated with intestinal inflammation-related gene expression and short-chain fatty acid production. To our knowledge, our study is the first to report the effects of Ihubacter, Mageeibacillus, and Saccharofermentans on short chain fatty acid levels, which can subsequently affect inflammatory cytokine and tight junction protein levels. Conclusively, the HMO mixture exerted anti-inflammatory effects through changes in microbiota and metabolite production. These findings suggested that supplementation of infant formula with HMO may benefit formula-fed infants by forming unique microbiota contributing to neonatal development.

DeepHealthNet: Adolescent Obesity Prediction System Based on a Deep Learning Framework

The global prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity is a major concern due to its association with chronic diseases and long-term health risks. Artificial intelligence technology has been identified as a potential solution to accurately predict obesity rates and provide personalized feedback to adolescents. This study highlights the importance of early identification and prevention of obesity-related health issues. To develop effective algorithms for the prediction of obesity rates and provide personalized feedback, factors such as height, weight, waist circumference, calorie intake, physical activity levels, and other relevant health information must be taken into account. Therefore, by collecting health datasets from 321 adolescents who participated in Would You Do It! application, we proposed an adolescent obesity prediction system that provides personalized predictions and assists individuals in making informed health decisions. Our proposed deep learning framework, DeepHealthNet, effectively trains the model using data augmentation techniques, even when daily health data are limited, resulting in improved prediction accuracy (acc: 0.8842). Additionally, the study revealed variations in the prediction of the obesity rate between boys (acc: 0.9320) and girls (acc: 0.9163), allowing the identification of disparities and the determination of the optimal time to provide feedback. Statistical analysis revealed that the performance of the proposed deep learning framework was more statistically significant (p 0.001) compared to the other general models. The proposed system has the potential to effectively address childhood and adolescent obesity.

Towards Room Temperature Thermochromic Coatings with controllable NIR-IR modulation for solar heat management & smart windows applications

Solar heat management & green air-conditioning are among the major technologies that could mitigate heat islands phenomenon while minimizing significantly the CO2 global foot-print within the building & automotive sectors. Chromogenic materials in general, and thermochromic smart coatings especially are promising candidates that consent a noteworthy dynamic solar radiation Infrared (NIR-IR) regulation and hence an efficient solar heat management especially with the expected increase of the global seasonal temperature. Within this contribution, two major challenging bottlenecks in vanadium oxide based smart coatings were addressed. It is validated for the first time that the NIR-IR modulation of the optical transmission (∆TTRANS = T(T〈TMIT) - T(T〉TMIT) of Vanadium oxide based smart coatings can be controlled & tuned. This upmost challenging bottle-neck controllability/tunability is confirmed via a genuine approach alongside to a simultaneous drastic reduction of the phase transition temperature TMIT from 68.8 °C to nearly room temperature. More precisely, a substantial thermochromism in multilayered V2O5/V/V2O5 stacks equivalent to that of standard pure VO2 thin films but with a far lower transition temperature, is reported. Such a multilayered V2O5/V/V2O5 thermochromic system exhibited a net control & tunability of the optical transmission modulation in the NIR-IR (∆TTRANS) via the nano-scaled thickness' control of the intermediate Vanadium layer. In addition, the control of ∆TTRANS is accompanied by a tremendous diminution of the thermochromic transition temperature from the elevated bulk value of 68.8 °C to the range of 27.5-37.5 ºC. The observed remarkable and reversible thermochromism in such multilayered nano-scaled system of V2O5/V/V2O5 is likely to be ascribed to a noteworthy interfacial diffusion, and an indirect doping by alkaline ions diffusing from the borosilicate substrate. It is hoped that the current findings would contribute in advancing thermochromic smart window technology and their applications for solar heat management in glass windows in general, skyscraper especially & in the automotive industry. If so, this would open a path to a sustainable green air-conditioning with zero-energy input.

Validating a Simple Urethra Surrogate Model to Facilitate Dosimetric Analysis to Predict Genitourinary Toxicity

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

The urethra may be a critical structure in prostate radiotherapy planning as some studies have shown that higher urethral dose correlates with worse genitourinary (GU) toxicity. Identifying the urethra requires an MRI planning scan or foley catheter insertion at CT planning. Most surrogates have been developed and validated against the urethra identified by a foley catheter. However, the urethral position can shift with catheter placement. We, therefore, aim to validate a simple urethra surrogate model against MRI-defined urethra. The surrogate model can be used to correlate urethra dose-volume parameters (DVP) with late GU toxicity and to apply urethral constraints in those with a CT-only based workflow.

MATERIALS/METHODS

Thirty-nine MRI-defined urethras from patients in the PACE-C trial were assessed to determine the average position of the urethra in the midline sagittal prostate plane along the ¼ gland, midgland, ¾ gland, apex and 3mm below apex. Using these average positions, a Python script was developed, which places a 10mm diameter circle in the 1/4 gland, midgland, ¾ gland, apex and 3mm below the apex. The observer manually contours a 10mm circle at the prostate base (prostate-bladder neck interface) to infer the urethra position and interpolates the contours. The urethra surrogate model was compared against 20 MRI-defined urethras (within the treatment PTV) in patients treated with 36.25Gy in 5 fractions as part of the PACE-B trial. To assess the surrogate's geometric performance, the Dice similarity coefficient (DSC), Hausdorff distance (HD), mean surface distance to agreement (MDTA) and the percentage of MRI-defined urethra outside the surrogate (UOS) were calculated. The surrogate model's dosimetric performance was assessed by comparing the mean D99, D98, average dose, D50, D2 and D1 using a paired t-test. The D(n) is the dose (Gy) to (n)% of the urethra.

RESULTS

The median results were: DSC 0.36 (IQR 0.28-0.42), HD 0.88cm (IQR, 0.70-1.04), MDTA 0.24cm (IQR, 0.21-0.28), UOS 29% (IQR, 17-52%). When comparing DVP between the MRI-defined urethra and surrogate urethra, the mean D99, D98 and D95 as 38.8Gy vs 39.1Gy (p = 0.17), 39.3Gy vs 39.5Gy (p = 0.23), 40.1Gy vs 40.4Gy (p = 0.21), respectively. The mean D50, average dose, D2 and D1 was 41.8Gy vs 41.9Gy (p = 0.03), 41.7 vs 41.8Gy (p = 0.04), 42.9Gy vs 43.0Gy (p = 0.05) and 43.0Gy vs 43.1Gy (p = 0.03), respectively.

CONCLUSION

While there were geometric differences between the surrogate urethra and MRI-defined urethra, there was no statistically significant difference between most urethral dose-volume parameters (D99, D98, D95, and D1). Similarly, the actual differences in urethra DVP were not clinically significant. This surrogate model could be validated in a larger cohort and then used to estimate the urethra position on CT planning scans for dosimetric analysis in those without an MRI planning scan or urinary catheter.

Response adaptive salvage with KTd and ASCT for functional high-risk multiple myeloma-The Australasian Leukemia and Lymphoma Group (ALLG) MM17 Trial

We evaluated re-induction incorporating carfilzomib-thalidomide-dexamethasone (KTd) and autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) for newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) refractory, or demonstrating a suboptimal response, to non-IMID bortezomib-based induction. KTd salvage consisted of thalidomide 100 mg daily and dexamethasone 20 mg orally combined with carfilzomib 56 mg/m² days 1, 2, 8, 9, 15 and 16, of each 28-day cycle. Following four cycles, patients achieving a stringent complete response proceeded to ASCT whereas those who did not received a further two cycles then ASCT. Consolidation consisted of two cycles of KTd then Td to a total of 12 months post-ASCT therapy. Primary end-point was the overall response rate (ORR) with KTd prior to ASCT. Fifty patients were recruited. The ORR was 78% with EuroFlow MRD negativity of 34% in the intention-to-treat population and 65% in the evaluable population at 12 months post-ASCT. With follow-up >38 months median PFS and OS have not been reached with PFS and OS at 36 months of 64% and 80%, respectively. KTd was well tolerated with grade 3 and grade ≥4 adverse events rates of 32% and 10%, respectively. Response adaptive utilisation of KTd with ASCT is associated with both high-quality responses and durable disease control in functional high-risk NDMM.

A deep learning-based framework for predicting pork preference

Meat consumption per capita in South Korea has steadily increased over the last several years and is predicted to continue increasing. Up to 69.5% of Koreans eat pork at least once a week. Considering pork-related products produced and imported in Korea, Korean consumers have a high preference for high-fat parts, such as pork belly. Managing the high-fat portions of domestically produced and imported meat according to consumer needs has become a competitive factor. Therefore, this study presents a deep learning-based framework for predicting the flavor and appearance preference scores of the customers based on the characteristic information of pork using ultrasound equipment. The characteristic information is collected using ultrasound equipment (AutoFom III). Subsequently, according to the measured information, consumers' preferences for flavor and appearance were directly investigated for a long period and predicted using a deep learning methodology. For the first time, we have applied a deep neural network-based ensemble technique to predict consumer preference scores according to the measured pork carcasses. To demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed framework, an empirical evaluation was conducted using a survey and data on pork belly preference. Experimental results indicate a strong relationship between the predicted preference scores and characteristics of pork belly.

Factors affecting post-traumatic growth in South Korean police officers by age group

Introduction: Police officers are exposed to a variety of traumatic events, which can be physical or psychological. This study aimed to identify factors that influence Post-traumatic growth (PTG) in South Korean police officers, according to age group. Methods: Raw data were collected from September 26 to October 9, 2017, for 269 police officers who are employed at 10 police offices in Seoul. PTG was affected significantly by age, marital status, monthly income, and police rank in pain perception and social support variables among general characteristics. Results: Factors that affected PTG in the ‘20~29’ age group were resilience and pain perception, but in the ‘30~39’ age group, only Pain perception was significant, and in the ‘over 50’ age group, social support and pain perception were significant. Conclusions: The development of mental health programs for police should consider the age group of the patients. Mental health care should also be continuous.

Clinical characteristics with inflammation profiling of long COVID and association with 1-year recovery following hospitalisation in the UK: a prospective observational study

BACKGROUND

No effective pharmacological or non-pharmacological interventions exist for patients with long COVID. We aimed to describe recovery 1 year after hospital discharge for COVID-19, identify factors associated with patient-perceived recovery, and identify potential therapeutic targets by describing the underlying inflammatory profiles of the previously described recovery clusters at 5 months after hospital discharge.

METHODS

The Post-hospitalisation COVID-19 study (PHOSP-COVID) is a prospective, longitudinal cohort study recruiting adults (aged ≥18 years) discharged from hospital with COVID-19 across the UK. Recovery was assessed using patient-reported outcome measures, physical performance, and organ function at 5 months and 1 year after hospital discharge, and stratified by both patient-perceived recovery and recovery cluster. Hierarchical logistic regression modelling was performed for patient-perceived recovery at 1 year. Cluster analysis was done using the clustering large applications k-medoids approach using clinical outcomes at 5 months. Inflammatory protein profiling was analysed from plasma at the 5-month visit. This study is registered on the ISRCTN Registry, ISRCTN10980107, and recruitment is ongoing.

FINDINGS

2320 participants discharged from hospital between March 7, 2020, and April 18, 2021, were assessed at 5 months after discharge and 807 (32·7%) participants completed both the 5-month and 1-year visits. 279 (35·6%) of these 807 patients were women and 505 (64·4%) were men, with a mean age of 58·7 (SD 12·5) years, and 224 (27·8%) had received invasive mechanical ventilation (WHO class 7-9). The proportion of patients reporting full recovery was unchanged between 5 months (501 [25·5%] of 1965) and 1 year (232 [28·9%] of 804). Factors associated with being less likely to report full recovery at 1 year were female sex (odds ratio 0·68 [95% CI 0·46-0·99]), obesity (0·50 [0·34-0·74]) and invasive mechanical ventilation (0·42 [0·23-0·76]). Cluster analysis (n=1636) corroborated the previously reported four clusters: very severe, severe, moderate with cognitive impairment, and mild, relating to the severity of physical health, mental health, and cognitive impairment at 5 months. We found increased inflammatory mediators of tissue damage and repair in both the very severe and the moderate with cognitive impairment clusters compared with the mild cluster, including IL-6 concentration, which was increased in both comparisons (n=626 participants). We found a substantial deficit in median EQ-5D-5L utility index from before COVID-19 (retrospective assessment; 0·88 [IQR 0·74-1·00]), at 5 months (0·74 [0·64-0·88]) to 1 year (0·75 [0·62-0·88]), with minimal improvements across all outcome measures at 1 year after discharge in the whole cohort and within each of the four clusters.

INTERPRETATION

The sequelae of a hospital admission with COVID-19 were substantial 1 year after discharge across a range of health domains, with the minority in our cohort feeling fully recovered. Patient-perceived health-related quality of life was reduced at 1 year compared with before hospital admission. Systematic inflammation and obesity are potential treatable traits that warrant further investigation in clinical trials.

FUNDING

UK Research and Innovation and National Institute for Health Research.

Regional and annual patterns in respiratory virus co-infection etiologies and antibiotic prescriptions for pediatric mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia

OBJECTIVE

Mycoplasma pneumoniae (M. pneumoniae) pneumonia is the second-most common cause of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). This study aimed at investigating into the prevalence of macrolide-resistant M. pneumoniae (MRMP) with respiratory virus co-infection and the antibiotic prescriptions in children with CAP in four provinces in Korea, and to assess the variations in the findings across regions and throughout the year.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

This prospective study was conducted in 29 hospitals in Korea between July 2018 and June 2020. Among the enrolled 1,063 children with CAP, all 451 patients with M. pneumoniae underwent PCR assays of M. pneumoniae and respiratory viruses, and the presence of point mutations of residues 2063 and 2064 was evaluated.

RESULTS

Gwangju-Honam (88.6%) showed the highest prevalence of MRMP pneumonia, while Daejeon-Chungcheong (71.3%) showed the lowest, although the differences in prevalence were not significant (p=0.074). Co-infection of M. pneumoniae pneumonia and respiratory virus was observed in 206 patients (45.4%), and rhinovirus co-infection (101 children; 22.2%) was the most frequent. The prevalence of MRMP pneumonia with respiratory virus co-infection and the antibiotic prescriptions differed significantly among the four provinces (p < 0.05). The monthly rate of MRMP pneumonia cases among all cases of M. pneumoniae pneumonia and tetracycline or quinolone prescriptions did not differ significantly among the four regions (trend p > 0.05) during the study period.

CONCLUSIONS

The prevalence of M. pneumoniae pneumonia with virus co-infection and antibiotic prescriptions could differ according to region, although the MRMP pneumonia rate showed no difference within Korea.

Subjective age and positive psychiatry: Identifying the positive characteristics associated with successful aging

Introduction

For older adults, feeling subjectively younger is associated with improvements in cognition, subjective well-being and depressive symptoms. Positive psychiatry is the field that focuses on patient strengths and the promotion of positive outcomes, rather than just mitigation of illness. Younger subjective age may be a useful measure of successful aging, but little is known about how subjective age is associated with positive psychosocial characteristics.

Objectives

Our objective is to characterize how subjective age is related validated positive psychosocial measures, with the goal of better understanding the determinants of successful aging.

Methods

The Successful Aging Evaluation (SAGE) longitudinal study recruited over 1,300 community-dwelling residents of San Diego County, CA, from age 21 to over 100. A single-item question asked “How old/young do you feel?” We used spearman correlations to assess the relationship between subjective age and validated positive psychosocial scales such as the Self-Rated Successful Aging, Life Orientation Test, Personal Mastery Scale, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale, Adult Hope Scale, and Social Support Index.

Results

Mean chronological age was 65.5, and mean subjective age was 53.6. Mean age discrepancy was 11.5 years. Younger subjective age was positively associated with most of the positive psychosocial characteristics measured, including self-rated successful aging, optimism, personal mastery, resilience, curiosity, hope, and social support.

Conclusions

There is a growing movement within psychiatry to understand the positive characteristics that lead to successful aging. This is one of the first studies demonstrating younger age identities are associated with positive psychosocial characteristics and successful aging.

Disclosure

No significant relationships.

A111 A RECTUM-SPECIFIC SELECTIVE RESECTION ALGORITHM OPTIMIZES ONCOLOGIC OUTCOMES FOR LARGE NON-PEDUNCULATED RECTAL POLYPS

Background

Endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) and endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) are complementary techniques for large (≥ 20mm) non-pedunculated rectal polyps (LNPRPs). A mechanism for appropriate technique selection has not been described.

Aims

To evaluate whether a selective resection algorithm using EMR and ESD, based on real-time optical evaluation, optimizes oncologic outcomes for LNPRPs

Methods

We evaluated the performance of a selective resection algorithm (SRA; 08/2017-04/2021) compared to a universal EMR algorithm (UEA; 07/2008-07/2017) for LNPRPs within a prospective observational study. In the SRA, LNPRPs with features of superficial submucosal invasive cancer (SMIC < 1000μm; S-SMIC; Kudo pit pattern Vi), or with an increased risk of SMIC (Paris 0-Is or 0-IIa+Is non-granular, 0-IIa+Is granular with a dominant nodule ≥ 10mm) underwent ESD. The remaining LNPRPs underwent EMR. Algorithm performance was evaluated by SMIC identified after EMR, curative oncologic resection (R0 resection, S-SMIC, absence of negative histologic features), technical success, adverse events, and recurrence at first surveillance colonoscopy.

Results

480 LNPRPs were evaluated (290 UEA, 190 SRA). Median lesion size was 40mm (IQR 30-60mm). In the SRA, 103 (54.2%) and 87 (45.8%) LNPRPs underwent EMR and ESD, respectively. SMIC was identified in 56 (11.7%) LNPRPs. Significant differences in SMIC after EMR (SRA 1 (1.0%) vs. UEA 35 (12.1%); p = 0.001), curative oncologic resection (SRA 7 (33.3%) vs. UEA 2 (5.7%); p = 0.010), and recurrence (SRA 2 (1.6%) vs. UEA 40 (17.2%); p < 0.001) were identified. No significant differences in technical success or adverse events were identified (all p > 0.137). Among potentially curable malignant LNPRPs which underwent ESD, 100% (7/7) were cured.

Conclusions

A SRA optimizes oncologic outcomes for LNPRPs and mitigates the risk of piecemeal resection of cancers.

Funding Agencies

The Cancer Institute of New South Wales provided funding for a research nurse and data manager to assist with the administration of the study. Neal Shahidi was supported by the University of British Columbia Clinician Investigator Program. There was no influence from either institution regarding study design or conduct, data collection, management, analysis, interpretation, preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript.

Suicide associated with COVID-19 infection: an immunological point of view

OBJECTIVE

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a pandemic and leading cause of death. Beyond the deaths directly caused by the virus and the suicides related to the psychological response to the dramatic changes as socioeconomic related to the pandemic, there might also be suicides related to the inflammatory responses of the infection. Infection induces inflammation as a cytokine storm, and there is an increasing number of studies that report a relationship between infection and suicide.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We searched the World Health Organization status report and the PubMed database for keywords (COVID-19, suicide, infection, inflammation, cytokines), and reviewed five cytokine pathways between suicide and inflammation using two meta-analyses and two observational studies starting from November 31, 2020, focusing on the relationship between suicide and inflammation by infection. First, we discussed existing evidence explaining the relationship between suicidal behaviors and inflammation. Second, we summarized the inflammatory features found in COVID-19 patients. Finally, we highlight the potential for these factors to affect the risk of suicide in COVID-19 patients.

RESULTS

Patients infected with COVID-19 have high amounts of IL-1β, IFN-γ, IP10, and MCP1, which may lead to Th1 cell response activation. Also, Th2 cytokines (e.g., IL-4 and IL-10) were increased in COVID-19 infection. In COVID-19 patients, neurological conditions, like headache, dizziness, ataxia, seizures, and others have been observed.

CONCLUSIONS

COVID-19 pandemic can serve as a significant environmental factor contributing directly to increased suicide risk; the role of inflammation by an infection should not be overlooked.

Echocardiographic global longitudinal strain as a marker of myocardial fibrosis predicts outcomes in aortic stenosis

Background

Left ventricular global longitudinal strain (LV-GLS) by speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) reflects intrinsic myocardial function, influenced by interstitial abnormalities. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) detects myocardial fibrosis non-invasively, but it is limited for widespread use. We aim to establish LV-GLS as a marker of replacement myocardial fibrosis on CMR and validate the prognostic value of LV-GLS thresholds associated with fibrosis.

Methods

LV-GLS thresholds of replacement fibrosis were established in the derivation cohort: 151 patients (57±10 years; 58% males) with hypertension who underwent STE to measure LV-GLS and CMR for replacement myocardial fibrosis. Prognostic value of the thresholds was validated in a separate outcome cohort: 261 patients with moderate-severe aortic stenosis (AS; 71±12 years; 58% males; NYHA functional class I-II) and preserved LVEF ≥50%. Primary outcome was a composite of cardiovascular mortality, heart failure hospitalization, myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular events.

Results

In the derivation cohort, LV-GLS demonstrated good discrimination (c-statistics 0.74; 95% confidence interval: 0.66–0.83; P&lt;0.001) and calibration (Hosmer-Lemeshow X2=6.37; P=0.605) for replacement fibrosis. In the outcome cohort, 52 events occurred over 16 [3.1, 42.0] months of follow-up. Patients with LV-GLS &gt;−15.0% (corresponding to 95% specificity to rule-in myocardial fibrosis) had the worst outcomes compared to patients with LV-GLS &lt;−21.0% (corresponding to 95% sensitivity to rule-out myocardial fibrosis) and those between −21.0 and −15.0% (log-rank P&lt;0.001; Figure 1). Furthermore, LV-GLS offered independent prognostic value over clinical variables, AS severity, echocardiographic LVEF and E/e' (hazard ratio 1.18; 95% confidence interval: 1.07 to 1.30; P=0.001).

Conclusions

LV-GLS thresholds associated with replacement myocardial fibrosis is a novel approach to risk-stratify patients with AS and preserved LVEF (Figure 2).

Funding Acknowledgement

Type of funding sources: Public grant(s) – National budget only. Main funding source(s): National Medical Research Council Figure 1Figure 2

Evaluation of at-home methods for N95 filtering facepiece respirator decontamination

N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs) are essential for the protection of healthcare professionals and other high-risk groups against Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19). In response to shortages in FFRs during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Food and Drug Administration issued an Emergency Use Authorization permitting FFR decontamination and reuse. However, although industrial decontamination services are available at some large institutions, FFR decontamination is not widely accessible. To be effective, FFR decontamination must (1) inactivate the virus; (2) preserve FFR integrity, specifically fit and filtering capability; and (3) be non-toxic and safe. Here we identify and test at-home heat-based methods for FFR decontamination that meet these requirements using common household appliances. Our results identify potential protocols for simple and accessible FFR decontamination, while also highlighting unsuitable methods that may jeopardize FFR integrity.

A Comprehensive Survey on Security and Privacy for Electronic Health Data

Recently, the integration of state-of-the-art technologies, such as modern sensors, networks, and cloud computing, has revolutionized the conventional healthcare system. However, security concerns have increasingly been emerging due to the integration of technologies. Therefore, the security and privacy issues associated with e-health data must be properly explored. In this paper, to investigate the security and privacy of e-health systems, we identified major components of the modern e-health systems (i.e., e-health data, medical devices, medical networks and edge/fog/cloud). Then, we reviewed recent security and privacy studies that focus on each component of the e-health systems. Based on the review, we obtained research taxonomy, security concerns, requirements, solutions, research trends, and open challenges for the components with strengths and weaknesses of the analyzed studies. In particular, edge and fog computing studies for e-health security and privacy were reviewed since the studies had mostly not been analyzed in other survey papers.