Low-volume application by mist-blower compared with conventional compression sprayer treatment of houses with residual pyrethroid to control the malaria vector Anopheles albimanus in Mexico

Abstract. Village-scale trials were carried out in southern Mexico to compare the efficacy of indoor-spraying of the pyrethroid insecticide lambda-cyhalothrin applied either as low-volume (LV) aqueous emulsion or as wettable-powder (WP) aqueous suspension for residual control of the principal coastal malaria vector Anopheles albimanus. Three indoor spray rounds were conducted at 3-month intervals using back-pack mist-blowers to apply lambda-cyhalothrin 12.5 mg a.i./m² by LV, whereas the WP was applied by conventional compression sprayer at a mean rate of 26.5 mg a.i./m².
Both treatments caused mosquito mortality indoors and outdoors (collected inside house curtains) as a result of contact with treated surfaces before and after feeding, but had no significant impact on overall population density of An. albimanus resting indoors or assessed by human bait collections. Contact bioassays showed that WP and LV treatments with lambda-cyhalothrin were effective for 12–20 weeks (>75% mortality) without causing excito-repellency.
Compared to the WP treatment (8 houses/man/day), LV treatment (25 houses/man/day) was more than 3 times quicker per house, potentially saving 68% of labour costs. This is offset, however, by the much lower unit price of a compression sprayer (e.g. Hudson 'X-pert' at US120) than a mist-blower (e.g. 'Super Jolly' at US350), and higher running costs for LV applications. It was calculated, therefore, that LV becomes more economical than WP after 18.8 treatments/100 houses/10 men at equivalent rates of application, or after 7.6 spray rounds with half-rate LV applications.     

Application of muonic X-rays for elemental analysis

Because of the large μ mass compared to the electron mass, the muonic X-rays have energies very suitable for standard γ-ray spectroscopy (Ge detectors), so every element is easily recognized. By selecting the primary μ energies appropriately any part of the specimen, also well inside, can be nondestructively investigated. On the other hand, surface layers may be analyzed. Accuracies of quantitative analyses are 1% of the atomic abundance of the element in question in favorite cases. Results on applications in nuclear medicine and surface physics are presented, and ways of improving the muon flux density are discussed.     

Personal reflections on the nature of intelligence in humans and machines

Computers, the human mind, and social systems have common problems of inadequate memory and insufficient data manipulation speed. In each of these domains, information compression techniques have evolved to reduce storage and processing needs. Among the techniques for information compression, coding of information in procedures stands out as exceptionally powerful. Procedural information coding also gives rise to behavior that may be defined as intelligent. It is found in the human mind, in machines and in social systems. Its use in human thought is aided by language development which promotes regular review of abstract procedures. A practical consequence of better understanding of procedural information coding is the possibility of training people to exhibit greater mental capacity, a controversial possibility. This paper explores the impact of data processing resource limitations, data compression and procedural thinking in men and machines.     

成人胫骨平台骨折的流行病学特征及其变化趋势的回顾性研究

摘要 目的：回顾性研究成人胫骨平台骨折的流行病学特征及其变化趋势。方法：以我院2014年1月至2019年12月期间收治的1193例成人胫骨平台骨折患者为调查研究对象,根据患者收治的时间将患者分为A组(2014年1月~2015年12月收治,n=369)、B组(2016年1月~2017年12月收治,n=394)、C组(2018年1月~2019年12月收治,n=430)。对三组患者进行统一的问卷调查,并对三组患者的年龄、职业、致伤原因、骨折分型进行归纳统计,分析探讨成人胫骨平台骨折的流行病学特征及其变化趋势。结果：2014年~2019年成人胫骨平台骨折总体流行病学特征：男性患者数量多于女性患者,年龄主要在40~59岁,以从事体力劳动患者居多,骨折致伤原因中主要以交通事故和室内活动跌倒损伤为主,骨折Schatzker分型中以II型、IV型为主。三组年龄对比有差异性,年龄有逐年升高的趋势(P<0.05)。三组性别比例有显著性差异,男女性别比例差异在逐年缩小(P<0.05)。三组患者在职业类型方面也有显著性差异（P<0.05）,但均以体力劳动者居多。在致伤原因中,A组患者以交通事故致伤为主,C组患者以室内活动跌倒损伤为主,组间对比有显著差异(P<0.05)。在骨折分型中,A组以IV型为主,C组以II型为主(P<0.05)。结论：2014年至2019年成人胫骨平台骨折中男性较多,年龄以40~59岁为主,体力劳动者为高发职业,交通事故和室内活动跌倒损伤是最常见的致伤原因,好发骨折分型为Schatzker II型、IV型。变化趋势表现为骨折发病人数逐年上升,发病年龄有老龄化趋势,致伤原因和骨折分型也在逐渐变化。     

网袋强化椎体成形术在骨质疏松椎体骨折治疗中的经验教训

摘要 目的：探讨和总结使用网袋强化椎体成形术在骨质疏松椎体骨折围手术期的注意事项及相关对策。方法：回顾性分析2017年6月到2020年6月3年时间内,使用网袋强化椎体成形术治疗骨质疏松性椎体骨折患者共计112例。统计和比较患者在围手术期的各项指标,分析穿刺失败的原因及相关危险因素。结果：112例患者共涉及138个椎体。其中一期穿刺失败率（骨水泥分布不佳）为47个,占34.0%。骨水泥注入3 mL以下者为19个,占13.8%。骨水泥渗漏为36个,占26.1%。所有患者在术后3天及3月复查, VAS评分和ODI评分较前均有显著改善(P<0.05)。所有患者均未出现严重并发症(P>0.05)。结论：网袋强化椎体成形术在骨质疏松性椎体骨折的治疗中是一种理想的治疗方式,但在具体过程中仍有相关的经验和教训需要整理和总结。     

Superimposing hip extension on knee flexion evokes higher activation in biceps femoris than knee flexion alone

Hamstring muscle function during knee flexion has been linked to hamstring injury and performance. However, it is unclear whether knee flexion alone (KF) requires similar hamstring electromyography (EMG) activity pattern to simultaneous hip extension and knee flexion (HE-KF), a combination that occurs in the late swing phase of sprinting. This study examined whether HE-KF maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) evokes higher (EMG) activity in biceps femoris long head (BFlh) and semitendinosus (ST) than KF alone. Effects of shank rotation angles were also tested. Twenty-one males performed the above-mentioned MVICs while EMG activity was measured along ST and BFlh. Conditions were compared using a one-way mixed functional ANOVA model under a fully Bayesian framework. Higher EMG activity was found in HE-KF in all shank rotation positions than in KF in the middle region of BFlh (highest in the 9th channel, by 0.022 mV [95%CrI 0.014 to 0.030] in neutral shank position). For ST, this was only observed in the neutral shank position and in the most proximal channel (by 0.013 mV [95%CrI 0.001 to 0.025]). We observed muscle- and region-specific responses to HE-KF. Future studies should examine whether hamstring activation in this task is related to injury risk and sprint performance.     

ROI-Based Compression Strategy of 3D MRI Brain Datasets for Wireless Communications

ObjectivesBecause of the large amount of medical imaging data, the transmission process becomes complicated in telemedicine applications. Thus, in order to adapt the data bit streams to the constraints related to the limitation of the bandwidths a reduction of the size of the data by compression of the images is essential. Despite the improvements in the field of compression, the transmission itself can also introduce errors. For this reason, it is important to develop an adequate strategy which will help reduce this volume of data without having to introduce some distortion and resist the errors introduced by the channel noise during transmission. Thus, in this paper, we propose a ROI-based coding strategy and unequal bit stream protection to meet this dual constraint.Material and methodsThe proposed ROI-based compression strategy with unequal bit stream protection is composed of three parts: the first one allows the extraction of the ROI region, the second one consists of a ROI-based coding and the third one allows an unequal protection of the ROI bit stream.First, the Regions Of Interest (ROI) are extracted by hierarchical segmentation of these regions according to a segmentation method based on the technique of Marker-based-watershed combined with the technique of active contours by level set. The resulting regions are selectively encoded by a 3D coder based on a shape adaptive discrete wavelet transform 3D-BISK, where the compression ratio of each region depends on its relevance in diagnosis. These obtained regions of interest are protected with an error-correcting code of Reed-Solomon type with a code rate that varies according to the relevance of the region by an unequal protection strategy (UEP).ResultsThe performance of the proposed compression scheme is evaluated in several ways. First, tests are performed to study the impact of errors on the different bit streams. In the first place, these tests are carried out in order to study the effect of the variation of the compression rates on the different bit streams. Secondly, different Reed Solomon error-correcting codes of different code rates are tested at different compression rates on a BSC channel. Finally, the performances of this coding strategy are compared with those of SPIHT 3D in the case of transmission on a BSC channel.ConclusionThe obtained results show that the proposed method is quite efficient in transmission time reduction. Therefore, our proposed scheme will reduce the volume of data without having to introduce some distortion and resist the errors introduced by the channel noise in the case of telemedicine.     

Comparative morphology of selected characters of the Pentatomidae foreleg (Hemiptera,Heteroptera)

Heteropteran legs are very diverse within and among taxa, and such variation is frequently correlated with life habits. Structural modifications are commonly present in the legs of the Pentatomoidea but are poorly studied. Using scanning electron microscopy, the tibia and pretarsal microstructure of 82 species of Pentatomidae (Heteroptera), three species of Scutelleridae, and ten species of Thyreocoridae were described, focusing on the pretarsal structure, the foretibial apparatus, and the foretibial comb. The Pentatomidae, the Scutelleridae, and the Thyreocoridae have uniform pretarsal structures. Variation can be found in the length of the parempodial setae and in the shape of the parempodial projections. The foretibial combs of the Pentatomidae, the Thyreocoridae, and the Scutelleridae are described for the first time, and we have demonstrated that there is low structural variation in the foretibial comb complex of the studied species. The setae organization and distribution on the foretibial apparatus is uniform in the families studied. However, the Asopinae (Pentatomidae) bear a foretibial apparatus that is uniquely organized. The taxonomic and phylogenetic relevance of the pretarsal traits, the foretibial apparatus, and the foretibial comb are discussed.     

Technical Aspects of the Mouse Aortocaval Fistula

Technical aspects of creating an arteriovenous fistula in the mouse are discussed. Under general anesthesia, an abdominal incision is made, and the aorta and inferior vena cava (IVC) are exposed. The proximal infrarenal aorta and the distal aorta are dissected for clamp placement and needle puncture, respectively. Special attention is paid to avoid dissection between the aorta and the IVC. After clamping the aorta, a 25 G needle is used to puncture both walls of the aorta into the IVC. The surrounding connective tissue is used for hemostatic compression. Successful creation of the AVF will show pulsatile arterial blood flow in the IVC. Further confirmation of successful AVF can be achieved by post-operative Doppler ultrasound.     

后侧手术入路、锁定钢板固定治疗胫骨平台后髁骨折的临床疗效

目的：探讨采用膝关节后内和后外侧切口、锁定钢板固定治疗胫骨平台后髁骨折的临床疗效。方法：选取2009年1月～2011年12月来我院治疗的13例胫骨平台后髁骨折患者作为研究对象,所有患者采用后内和后外侧切口、锁定钢板固定治疗,观察术后骨折愈合情况,采用Rasmussen放射学评分评定骨折复位情况,采用HSS评分系统评定膝关节功能疗效。结果：术后随访6～24个月,平均13．6个月,所有患者骨折均于16周内愈合。Rasmussen放射学评分15～18分,平均17．4分,其中优8例,良3例,可2例,优良率为84．7％。末次随访时膝关节功能HSS评分73~97分,平均91．4分,其中获优7例,良5例,可1例,优良率为92．3％。结论：采用膝关节后内和（或）后外侧切口、锁定钢板固定治疗胫骨平台后髁骨折具有操作简单、显露清晰、直视下复位骨折及关节面、固定牢靠、利于早期功能锻炼、临床疗效确切、并发症少等优点。