Assessment Project Research Articles

13.4 FORENSIC APPROACH TO ASSESSMENT OF CONTACT RESISTANCE/REFUSAL

This presentation aims to improve forensic assessment of multiple possible causes of children’s resistance or refusal to have contact with their parents. The assessment of multiple possible causes is necessary in both child custody/parenting time cases and in child welfare cases. Three possible causes provide reasonable justifications for parent rejection. They are all related to child maltreatment: child sexual abuse, psychological maltreatment, and adverse parenting. One provides an unreasonable justification for rejecting a parent: alienation. There will be: 1) a review of scientifically validated factors associated with each of the child maltreatment causes and proposed, but not scientifically validated, factors associated with alienation; 2) an analysis of the risk of misinterpreting children’s factors as evidence of alienation when the children’s behaviors could just as logically indicate defensiveness or a cry for help in response to undetected abuse; and 3) an analysis of misinterpreting parent behaviors as evidence of alienation when the behaviors could just as logically indicate protective parenting. A protocol will be presented, the Multidimensional Assessment of Contact Resistance/Refusal (Multimodal Assessment Project [MAP]), for assessing the 4 possible causes. The MAP provides specific behavioral factors for each cause, discusses the need to organize multidimensional causal assessment into a sequence that puts safety first, explains the need to rule out child maltreatment before assessing alienation or identifying it as a primary cause, discusses how to relate the behavioral factors to the totality of the evidence in the case, and explains how to formulate expert opinions that represent the complexity of the case. Forensic evaluators should resist oversimplified assessments of causes of contact resistance/refusal that lead to oversimplified identification of alienation cases and oversimplified remedies. Forensic evaluators should help decision-makers base their decisions on adequate evidence and reasoning rather than on their own version of Complexity Resistance and Refusal (CRR).

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT INITIATIVE TO REDUCE THE RATES OF CHEST TUBE FAILURE IN MANAGEMENT OF IATROGENIC PNEUMOTHORAX FOLLOWING CT-GUIDED LUNG BIOPSY

TOPIC: Procedures TYPE: Original Investigations PURPOSE: Iatrogenic pneumothorax following Interventional Radiology (IR) CT-guided transthoracic lung biopsy is a frequent complication with reported rates between 12-45% of which 2-15% will require thoracostomy tube placement. Recently, smaller tube sizes have been made commercially available, but it is unclear if these tubes are as efficacious and safe as larger chest tubes in the management of iatrogenic pneumothorax following lung biopsy. A previous quality assessment project at our institution demonstrated higher failure rates in chest tubes of less than 10 French (Fr). Our objective was to reduce the incidence of chest tube failure when managing iatrogenic pneumothorax after CT-guided lung biopsy via IR. METHODS: After demonstrating a failure rate in smaller bore chest tubes, we met with our interventional radiology colleagues and decided to place 10 Fr chest tubes or larger after iatrogenic pneumothorax following CT-guided lung nodule biopsies. As with our previous quality assessment project, we then retrospectively completed a chart review from January 2018 to March 2021 on all IR CT-guided lung nodules biopsied and identified cases of iatrogenic pneumothorax requiring chest tube placement and those with chest tube failure. We again defined chest tube failure as expanding pneumothorax requiring additional chest tube insertion or tension pneumothorax. RESULTS: In the pre-intervention group, there were a total of 7 chest tubes of less than 10 Fr and 5 chest tube failures in the 78 cases that required chest tube insertion (9% & 6% respectively). In the post-intervention group, no catheters smaller than 10 Fr were placed and there were no chest tube failures in the 54 cases that required chest tube insertion (0%); 6 (11%) individuals had a 10 Fr, 7 (13%) had a 12 Fr, and the remaining 41 (76%) had a 14 Fr chest tube inserted. The absence of chest tubes smaller than 10 Fr in the post-intervention group was statistically significant (p=0.02). There were no failures in the post-intervention group compared to 6% in the pre-intervention group (p=0.06). CONCLUSIONS: This analysis suggests a reduction in complication rates with the use of chest tubes 10 Fr or larger in management of iatrogenic pneumothorax from CT guided lung biopsy. This quality improvement project has demonstrated a significant change in practice habits with a trend toward reduced failure rates. A larger analysis will be needed to examine the statistical significance of reduced complications after intervention. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: This study demonstrated a change in practice habits toward larger sized chest tubes in the management of iatrogenic pneumothorax from CT-guided lung nodule biopsy. A larger analysis will be needed to demonstrate optimal chest tube size. DISCLOSURES: No relevant relationships by hassan Al-Balas, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Stephen Bujarski, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Sunjay Devarajan, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by James Ramey, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Sarah Tuthill, source=Web Response

Are the current IUCN category and CITES listing appropriate for the conservation and management of shortfin mako, Isurus oxyrinchus, in the North Pacific Ocean?

In 2018, the ISC conducted a benchmark stock assessment with a future projection and concluded that the latest stock status of North Pacific shortfin mako was healthy and that its stock abundance would gradually increase within 10 years. Then in 2019, this species was categorized in the North Pacific Ocean as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List and listed in Appendix II of CITES. The inconsistent outcomes are a controversial issue and raise a fundamental question on why different international organizations had different views on the stock’s current and future declines. To clarify the reasons, this paper reviews the risk assessment conducted by the IUCN and the process of CITES listing, and then, based on the assessment results in 2018, conducts a future projection that incorporates uncertainties in the population trajectory. This projection indicates that the population level does not meet the criteria for the IUCN category of Vulnerable and listing in Appendix II. The results suggest that the IUCN’s simplified methodology of assessment is inappropriate for long-lived, sexually dimorphic species, and that the mechanism of CITES listing is inappropriate from the scientific view of stock assessment because all global stocks, each with a different status, have been treated as one stock. This paper therefore concludes that the IUCN category and CITES listing are both inappropriate for the conservation and management of North Pacific shortfin mako and that such efforts should be implemented by tuna RFMOs based on stock assessment and future projection results derived from a suitable assessment model.

Evaluation of the ESFR End of Equilibrium Cycle State: Spatial Distributions of Reactivity Coefficients

Abstract The Horizon 2020 European Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor Safety Measures Assessment and Research Tools (ESFR-SMART) project investigates the behavior of the commercial-size ESFR throughout its lifetime. This paper reports work focused on the end of equilibrium cycle (EOEC) loading of the ESFR, including neutronic analysis, core- and zone-wise reactivity coefficients, and more detailed local mapping of important safety-relevant parameters. Sensitivity and uncertainty analysis on these parameters have also been performed, and a detailed investigation into decay heat mapping was carried out. Due to the scope of this work, the results have been split into three papers. The nominal operating conditions and both zone-wise and local mapping of reactivity coefficients are considered in this paper. The work was performed across four institutions using both continuous-energy Monte Carlo (MC) and deterministic reactor physics codes. A good agreement is observed between the methods, verifying the suitability of these codes for simulation of large, complicated reactor configurations and giving confidence in the results for the most limiting ESFR EOEC core state for safety analysis. The results from this work will serve as the basis for the transient calculations planned for the next stage of work on the ESFR, allowing for more in-depth studies to be performed on the multiphysics behavior of the reactor.

Bivariate small-area estimation for binary and gaussian variables based on a conditionally specified model.

Many large-scale surveys collect both discrete and continuous variables. Small-area estimates may be desired for means of continuous variables, proportions in each level of a categorical variable, or for domain means defined as the mean of the continuous variable for each level of the categorical variable. In this paper, we introduce a conditionally specified bivariate mixed-effects model for small-area estimation, and provide a necessary and sufficient condition under which the conditional distributions render a valid joint distribution. The conditional specification allows better model interpretation. We use the valid joint distribution to calculate empirical Bayes predictors and use the parametric bootstrap to estimate the mean squared error. Simulation studies demonstrate the superior performance of the bivariate mixed-effects model relative to univariate model estimators. We apply the bivariate mixed-effects model to construct estimates for small watersheds using data from the Conservation Effects Assessment Project, a survey developed to quantify the environmental impacts of conservation efforts. We construct predictors of mean sediment loss, the proportion of land where the soil loss tolerance is exceeded, and the average sediment loss on land where the soil loss tolerance is exceeded. In the data analysis, the bivariate mixed-effects model leads to more scientifically interpretable estimates of domain means than those based on two independent univariatemodels.

Analysis of ESFR Decay Heat Removal Systems in Protected Station Blackout

Abstract As part of the European sodium fast reactor (ESFR)-safety measures assessment and research tools (SMART) project, safety assessments are being conducted on the updated ESFR design. An important part of the study is the evaluation of the reactor's behavior within hypothetical accidental conditions to assess and ensure that the accident would not lead to unexpected and disastrous events. In this paper, the analyzed accidental scenario is the so-called protected station blackout (PSBO), where the offsite power is lost for the power plant, simulated by using the TRACE and simulator-sodium fast reactor (SIM-SFR) system codes. The assessment started from the simulation of the reactor behavior without the decay heat removal systems (DHRSs). Following this, calculations of multiple DHRS arrangements have been performed to evaluate the individual and combined efficiency of the systems. Where it was possible, the results from the two system codes have been compared to show the consistency of the separate calculations. Through this study, the design of the DHRSs proposed at the beginning of the project has been investigated, and certain recommendations have been made for further improvement of the DHRS systems performance.

Optimizing stock assessment workflows by applying software development methodology

Considering that stock assessment requires iterative work including exploratory calculations and discussion, efficiency in completing projects is the key to a successful contribution to stock management. However, if the production speed of each process of the project is inconsistent, a faster process may be worse than a slower process because a large amount of information produced by a faster process induces human error. To coordinate the production speed of each process, we applied software development methodology to the whole assessment project, including small important tasks such as scenario selection, debugging, and yearly updates. First, we established a continuously integrated (CI) document system that monitors project files and triggers report generation when they are updated. The system is composed of four cloud services: a code hosting service, a cloud computing service, cloud storage, and a website hosting service. Because of the CI document system, all the following iterative work was reflected in the report without creating any unused output. The workflow benefited not only from the collaboration but also from the maintainability of the project because work progress and the discussion remained visible for all collaborators. We discuss the effectiveness of a workflow by Lean manufacturing that allows us to focus on the essential problem of the assessment project.

The Clinical Characteristics of Patients With Borderline Personality Disorder in Different Treatment Settings.

The present report from the Rhode Island Methods to Improve Diagnostic Assessment and Services (MIDAS) Project compares patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) in an outpatient practice (n = 390) and a partial hospital setting (n = 358) on diagnostic comorbidities, symptoms experienced, suicidality, and occupational impairment. The patients in the partial program were diagnosed with significantly more psychiatric disorders and were more frequently diagnosed with dysthymia, generalized anxiety disorder, alcohol and substance use disorders, adjustment disorders, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Those at the partial hospital had significantly higher levels of suicidal ideation than those in the outpatient practice. The samples did not differ on utilization of disability or suicide attempts. Treatment setting may have implications in the recognition of the disorder in clinical practice, the development and support of etiological theories, identification of core deficits, and evaluation of psychosocial morbidity associated with BPD.

COVID, Its Impact on the Mental Health of Caregivers in Childcare Institutions of South Asian Countries and Their Coping Techniques: Analysis of the Caregivers in Childcare Institutions Using Data from Seven South Asian Countries

Widely across the globe, COVID has placed massive strain on various parameters of life, including child protection, health, education and economic systems. Apart from these visible threats, this situation has an ongoing devastating impact on the mental health and psychological well-being of people. The word of the law enforces care and support for children with disadvantages, disabilities and vulnerabilities on caregivers, Managers and Staff, managing Alternative Care programmes, but the spirit of such child protection laws also underlines the importance of caring for caregivers, especially in childcare institutions (CCIs). The well-being of the caregivers is the cornerstone of every well-functioning childcare institution and other residential care spaces. This article is designed to document the mental health status of caregivers (residential staff staying with children), in residential care spaces in the COVID times and to determine how the new stresses impacted them and the coping patterns they acquired in current situation; across different countries of South Asia, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. This exploratory rapid assessment project aimed to reach out to the registered childcare homes/ institutions, across the South Asian region, with the help of different NGOs, as well as Government mechanisms. The data was collected through purposive sampling and analysed quantitatively where the sample included the selected caregivers of participating CCIs across these nations. This study aimed to synthesize the responses of caregivers across the region; develop an analysis, which may help authorities to rethink, reform and strengthen the current practices, in order to develop approach-centred strategies for improving the well-being of caregivers as this has a direct bearing on the well-being of children in their care. Since the start of the COVID pandemic, for the residential caregivers, the access to external resources, including physical support from professional staff, has become restricted to bare minimum, due to lockdown and quarantine measures. Any interventions to prevent, treat and mitigate the effects of COVID among caregivers needed to be taken at the ground level by the care team management.

Proactive pedestrian safety evaluation at urban road network level, an experience in Kolkata City, India

In developing nations, road traffic crashes involving pedestrians have become a foremost worry. Presently, most of the road safety assessment projects and selection of interventions are still restricted to traditional methods that depend on historical crash data. However, in low and middle-income countries such as India, the availability, reliability, and accuracy of crash data are uncertain. Alternatively, Post Encroachment Time (PET) has added attention as a proximal indicator to examine pedestrian-vehicular potential crashes and address pedestrian risk under mixed traffic conditions. Hence, it will be meaningful to examine if the PET is a good substitute for pedestrian-vehicular crashes and if so, what built environment and pedestrian-level factors influence PET. In this background, the present study establishes a mathematical association between the average PET value of the urban road network level and actual crashes. Afterward, multiple linear regression models are developed to study the impact of the built environment, traffic parameters, and pedestrian-level attributes on PET. The outcomes indicate that vehicle speed, lack of enforcement, absence of traffic signal (for traffic as well as pedestrians), land use type, slum population, inadequate sight distance, pedestrian’s state of crossing, and pedestrian’s risky crossing behaviour substantially affect the average PET at road network-level.

First level seismic risk assessment of old unreinforced masonry (URM) using fuzzy synthetic evaluation

The seismic risk of old unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings is inherently high due to their non-ductile behavior. Masonry buildings constructed without seismic resistance characteristics have performed poorly in previous earthquakes. There is a clear need for reliable vulnerability assessment techniques for identifying the most vulnerable buildings to support risk mitigation strategies in urban areas. Seismic risk evaluation and mitigation planning are often performed in a multi-level risk assessment approach, where the first level is meant to identify relatively vulnerable buildings that require further assessment. This paper proposes a fuzzy synthetic-based first level seismic risk evaluation technique for identifying relatively risky URM buildings in an urban area. Fourteen risk factors, categorized into five indexes, are used to estimate the overall seismic risk of individual URM buildings. The proposed approach is illustrated for 81 old URM buildings of an urban settlement at Shakhari Bazar, Dhaka city, Bangladesh, using data collected as part of a technical assessment project by Dhaka City Corporation. The results of the case study show that most of the buildings (more than 90%) have high to a very high level of risk and are expected to suffer severe damage in case of future large earthquakes in this region. The outcome of this study is compared with a previous study conducted for the same urban settlement. The proposed method provides a simple procedure for prioritizing riskiest URM buildings for seismic rehabilitation.

Service providers\u2019 perceptions of support needs for Indigenous cancer patients in Saskatchewan: a needs assessment

BackgroundIn Saskatchewan, Canada, Indigenous cancer care services at the municipal, provincial, and federal levels are intended to improve quality care but can result in a complex, fragmented, and multi-jurisdictional health care system. A multi-phase needs assessment project was initiated to document Indigenous cancer care needs. Guided by Indigenous patient partners, clinicians, academics, and policy makers, the present study reflects a needs assessment of Indigenous cancer supports from the perspectives of cancer care service providers.MethodsQualitative data were collected through three focus groups with 20 service providers for cancer patients and their families at three Saskatchewan cities. Participants included chemotherapy and radiation nurses, social workers, a patient navigator, dieticians, and practicum students. A semi-structured interview guide was used to conduct the sessions to allow for freedom of responses. Data were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using thematic analysis.ResultsService providers’ perspectives were categorized into five themes: 1) addressing travel-related issues, 2) logistical challenges, 3) improvements to Indigenous-specific health care supports, 4) cultural sensitivity in health care, and 5) consistency in care. Supports provided differed for the two Indigenous groups, First Nations and Métis. Service providers made recommendations regarding how needs could be met. They saw language translation providers and Elder supports as important. Recommendations for improving travel were for medical taxis to include breaks so that passengers may alleviate any uncomfortable side effects of their cancer treatment. Further, Indigenous-specific accommodations were recommended for those requiring medical travel. These recommendations aligned with supports that are available in four other Canadian provinces.ConclusionsThese results identified gaps in supports and outlined recommendations to address barriers to cancer care from the perspectives of service providers. These recommendations may inform evidence-based health system interventions for Indigenous cancer patients and ultimately aim to improve cancer care services, quality of life, and health outcomes of Indigenous patients throughout their cancer journey.

CORR Insights®: Institutional Experience and Orthoplastic Collaboration Associated with Improved Flap-based Limb Salvage Outcomes.

CORR Insights®: Institutional Experience and Orthoplastic Collaboration Associated with Improved Flap-based Limb Salvage Outcomes.

New Reactor Safety Measures for the European Sodium Fast Reactor-Part II: Preliminary Assessment.

The European Sodium Fast Reactor Safety Measures Assessment and Research Tools (ESFR-SMART) project offers innovative options for a sodium fast reactor (SFR) to improve its safety. This paper explains the preliminary calculations made on the main options to roughly verify their feasibility. Design propositions and calculations are here provided of the following innovative options: elimination of the safety vessel, innovative decay heat removal systems (DHRS), core catcher, thermal pumps, and secondary loops. In conclusion, all these options seem able to fulfill the key points of new safety rules for Generation-IV reactors. A status of the research and development (R&D) effort necessary to validate these new options is also proposed.

The Swedish RAND-36: psychometric characteristics and reference data from the Mid-Swed Health Survey

BackgroundThis study aims to evaluate data quality, scaling properties, and reliability of the Swedish RAND-36 in a general population sample and to present reference data for the Swedish population.MethodsTesting of data quality, scaling assumptions and reliability followed methods recommended for the International Quality of Life Assessment Project, previously used for psychometric testing of SF-36 and RAND-36. Data were collected via regular mail for a random stratified sample of the general population in a Swedish county. Weighted means for RAND-36 scores were used and differences by sex, age, education, and occupational groups were tested.ResultsThe response rate was 42%, and the sample comprised 3432 persons (45% men, 55% women) with a median age of 56.9 years. The internal consistency reliability was satisfactory, with Cronbach’s alphas > 0.80 for all eight scales. The percentage of missing items was low, ranging between 1.3% and 3.2%. No floor effects (≥15%) were noted, while ceiling effects were observed for physical functioning, role-functioning/physical, pain, role-functioning/emotional, and social functioning. Item–scale correlations were satisfactory (r ≥ 0.40). Correlations among the physical health scales were strong (range 0.58–0.68) as were the correlations among the mental health scales (range 0.58–0.73). Men reported significantly better health-related quality of life (HRQoL) on all scales, although the gender differences were small. Comparisons among age groups showed approximately equal scores among those 20–29, 30–39, and 40–49 years, while significant decreases in physical health were observed in the older age groups. Substantially worse physical health scores were observed in the oldest age group (80+). Significant differences among age groups were noted also for the mental health scales; however, better energy/fatigue and emotional well-being scores were seen in the older age groups, except for the oldest (80+). Those with university education reported significantly better scores on all scales compared to those with mandatory education.ConclusionsThe study suggests that the Swedish version of RAND-36 is an acceptable and reliable instrument for measuring HRQoL in the general population. The study provides reference data that can be used for norm-based comparisons.

A Comprehensive Approach to Assuring Quality of Laboratory Testing in HIV Surveys: Lessons Learned From the Population-Based HIV Impact Assessment Project.

Conducting HIV surveys in resource-limited settings is challenging because of logistics, limited availability of trained personnel, and complexity of testing. We described the procedures and systems deemed critical to ensure high-quality laboratory data in the population-based HIV impact assessments and large-scale household surveys. Laboratory professionals were engaged in every stage of the surveys, including protocol development, site assessments, procurement, training, quality assurance, monitoring, analysis, and reporting writing. A tiered network of household, satellite laboratories, and central laboratories, accompanied with trainings, optimized process for blood specimen collection, storage, transport, and real-time monitoring of specimen quality, and test results at each level proved critical in maintaining specimen integrity and high-quality testing. A plausibility review of aggregate merged data was conducted to confirm associations between key variables as a final quality check for quality of laboratory results. Overall, we conducted a hands-on training for 3355 survey staff across 13 surveys, with 160-387 personnel trained per survey on biomarker processes. Extensive training and monitoring demonstrated that overall, 99% of specimens had adequate volume and 99.8% had no hemolysis, indicating high quality. We implemented quality control and proficiency testing for testing, resolved discrepancies, verified >300 Pima CD4 instruments, and monitored user errors. Aggregate data review for plausibility further confirmed the high quality of testing. Ongoing engagement of laboratory personnel to oversee processes at all levels of the surveys is critical for successful national surveys. High-quality population-based HIV impact assessments laboratory data ensured reliable results and demonstrated the impact of HIV programs in 13 countries.

Down to Earth With Nuclear Electromagnetic Pulse: Realistic Surface Impedance Affects Mapping of the E3 Geoelectric Hazard

AbstractAn analysis is made of Earth‐surface geoelectric fields and voltages on electricity transmission power‐grids induced by a late‐phase E3 nuclear electromagnetic pulse (EMP). A hypothetical scenario is considered of an explosion of several hundred kilotons set several hundred kilometers above the eastern‐midcontinental United States. Ground‐level E3 geoelectric fields are estimated by convolving a standard parameterization of E3 geomagnetic field variation with magnetotelluric Earth‐surface impedance tensors derived from wideband measurements acquired across the study region during a recent survey. These impedance tensors are a function of subsurface three‐dimensional electrical conductivity structure. Results, presented as a movie‐map, demonstrate that localized differences in surface impedance strongly distort the amplitude, polarization, and variational phase of induced E3 geoelectric fields. Locations with a high degree of E3 geoelectric polarization tend to have high geoelectric amplitude. Uniform half‐space models and one‐dimensional, depth‐dependent models of Earth‐surface impedance, such as those widely used in government and industry reports informing power‐grid vulnerability assessment projects, do not provide accurate estimates of the E3 geoelectric hazard in complex geological settings. In particular, for the Eastern‐Midcontinent, half‐space models can lead to (order‐one) overestimates/underestimates of EMP‐induced geovoltages on parts of the power grid by as much as1,000 volts (a range of 2,000 volts)—comparable to the amplitudes of the geovoltages themselves.

Supporting teacher candidates’ use of early childhood formative assessment to promote positive outcomes for young children

ABSTRACT A large body of research literature suggests that quality formative assessment has the potential to promote positive outcomes for young children. This paper posits that early childhood educators learn how to use developmentally appropriate assessment practices to effectively assess young children and use these data to make decisions that matter most by having intentional opportunities to engage in a clearly-defined, research-based assessment process. The paper explores an assessment project using the Early Childhood Formative Assessment Protocol (EC-FAP). The paper details each step in the EC-FAP protocol and identifies specific opportunities for collaboration with colleagues and families. The paper concludes by arguing that by engaging in the protocol, early childhood teacher candidates learn to effectively gauge and monitor the learning and development of young children.

Water Extraction Method Based on Multi-Texture Feature Fusion of Synthetic Aperture Radar Images

Lakes play an important role in the water ecosystem on earth, and are vulnerable to climate change and human activities. Thus, the detection of water quality changes is of great significance for ecosystem assessment, disaster warning and water conservancy projects. In this paper, the dynamic changes of the Poyang Lake are monitored by Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR). In order to extract water from SAR images to monitor water change, a water extraction algorithm composed of texture feature extraction, feature fusion and target segmentation was proposed. Firstly, the fractal dimension and lacunarity were calculated to construct the texture feature set of a water object. Then, an iterated function system (IFS) was constructed to fuse texture features into composite feature vectors. Finally, lake water was segmented by the multifractal spectrum method. Experimental results showed that the proposed algorithm accurately extracted water targets from SAR images of different regions and different imaging modes. Compared with common algorithms such as fuzzy C-means (FCM), the accuracy of the proposed algorithm is significantly improved, with an accuracy of over 98%. Moreover, the proposed algorithm can accurately segment complex coastlines with mountain shadow interference. In addition, the dynamic analysis of the changes of the water area of the Poyang Lake Basin was carried out with the local hydrological data. It showed that the extracted results of the algorithm in this paper are a good match with the hydrological data. This study provides an accurate monitoring method for lake water under complex backgrounds.

Accuracy of a new instrument for noninvasive evaluation of pulse wave velocity: the Arterial sTiffness faitHful tOol aSsessment project.

Large artery stiffness, assessed by carotid--femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV), is a major risk factor for cardiovascular events, commonly used for risk stratification. Currently, the reference device for noninvasive cfPWV is SphygmoCor but its cost and technically challenging use limit its diffusion in clinical practice. To validate a new device for noninvasive assessment of cfPWV, ATHOS (Arterial sTiffness faitHful tOol aSsessment), designed in collaboration with the Politecnico di Torino, against the reference noninvasive method represented by SphygmoCor. Ninety healthy volunteers were recruited. In each volunteer, we assessed cfPWV, using SphygmoCor (PWVSphygmoCor) and ATHOS (PWVATHOS) devices in an alternate fashion, following the ARTERY Society guidelines. The accuracy was assessed by Bland--Altman plot, and reproducibility was assessed by interoperator correlation coefficient (ICC). Mean PWVATHOS and mean PWVSphygmoCor were 7.88 ± 1.96 and 7.72 ± 1.95 m/s, respectively. Mean difference between devices was 0.15 ± 0.56 m/s, with a high correlation between measurements (r = 0.959, P < 0.001). Considering only PWV values at least 8 m/s (n = 30), mean difference was 0.1 ± 0.63 m/s. The ICC was 97.7% with ATHOS. ATHOS showed an excellent level of agreement with SphygmoCor, even at high PWV values, with a good reproducibility. Its simplicity of use could help increase clinical application of PWV assessment, improving patients' cardiovascular risk stratification.