Count Metrics Research Articles

Data Analytics On Web-Based Document Notification System

This study aimed to address the inefficiencies associated with manual document submission by providing and implementing data analytics within a web-based document notification system. The project also aimed to deliver a user- friendly data analytics dashboard, presenting submitted document data through various visualizations such as count metrics, bar graphs, and tables. This approach holds promise in enhancing decision-making processes, operational efficiency, communication, and collaboration within organizations. Descriptive data analytics methodology was employed to effectively summarize and present data points. Moreover, the project adopted the Rapid Application Development methodology for its development. The project received favorable evaluations from its assessors, attaining high ratings with an overall mean score of 4.17 for functionality, 3.95 for reliability, and 3.98 for usability. Consequently, it successfully achieved its objective of integrating descriptive data analytics into the document notification system. This implementation notably benefited the Human Resource Management Office of Davao del Sur State College by furnishing an analytical dashboard equipped with visualizations such as count metrics, bar graphs, and tables. Furthermore, the system facilitated seamless information updates, empowering administrators to make evidence-based decisions and discern trends within their data.

Smart Office Document Management System With Descriptive Analytics and SMS Alerts

This study aimed to address the inefficiencies of manual document submission and deliver a user-friendly dashboard that presents submitted document data through various visualizations and data analytics. The approach enhances decision-making processes, operational efficiency, communication, and collaboration within organizations. Descriptive data analytics methodology was employed to effectively summarize and present key data points. The project also adopted the Rapid Application Development methodology during its development. As a result, the project received favorable evaluations from its assessors, achieving high overall mean scores of 4.17 for functionality, 3.95 for reliability, and 3.98 for usability. Consequently, by integrating descriptive data analytics and SMS notification system, the implementation notably benefited the Human Resource Management Office of Davao del Sur State College by providing a Web System with dashboard equipped with visualizations such as count metrics, bar graphs, and tables. Additionally, the system facilitated seamless information updates, empowering administrators to make evidence-based decisions and identify trends within their data.

CDK4/6 Inhibitor-Associated Mean Corpuscular Volume Change: A Potential Parameter for Predicting Survival in Metastatic Breast Cancer?

To evaluate the impact of CDK4/6 inhibitors on erythrocyte mean corpuscular volume (MCV) change and its possible correlation with progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Observational study. Place and Duration of the Study: Department of Medical Oncology, Kahramanmaras Necip Fazil City Hospital, Kahramanmaras, Turkiye, between January 2020 and 2023. The data of 74 patients with HR (+) HER2 (-) metastatic breast cancer were analysed retrospectively. MCV and other complete blood count metrics were noted before and after the treatment. The first post-treatment evaluation was performed at three months. The median ΔMCV values at the third month after treatment-baseline were calculated. The patients were all females, with a median age of 55 years (between 35 and 80). Prior to the therapy, the baseline median MCV level was 90.4 (min-max: 77.3-113.2). After three months, the median MCV level was 95 (min-max: 84.3-115.3). Moreover, 7.15 was the median ΔMCV level. Regarding PFS (16.53 vs. 15.26 months) (p = 0.13) and OS (21.46 vs. 17.83 months) (p = 0.08), there was no statistically significant difference seen between the group with ΔMCV ≥7.15 and the group with ΔMCV <7.15. CDK4/6 inhibitors led to an increase in MCV but there was no significant difference between PFS or OS and the increase in MCV. To figure out whether the rise in MCV represents a prognostic or predictive marker, further research is required. Breast cancer, CDK4/6 inhibitors, Mean corpuscular volume, Prognosis.

Building footprint data for countries in Africa: To what extent are existing data products comparable?

Growth and developments in computing power, machine-learning algorithms and satellite imagery spatiotemporal resolution have led to rapid developments in automated feature-extraction. These methods have been applied to create geospatial datasets of features such as roads, trees and building footprints, at a range of spatial scales, with national and multi-country datasets now available as open data from multiple sources. Building footprint data is particularly useful in a range of applications including mapping population distributions, planning resource distribution campaigns and in humanitarian response. In settings with well-developed geospatial data systems, such datasets may complement existing authoritative sources, but in data-scarce settings, they may be the only source of data. However, knowledge on the degree to which building footprint data products are comparable and can be used interchangeably, and the impact of selecting a particular dataset on subsequent analyses remains limited. For all countries in Africa, we review the available multi-country building footprint data products and analyse their similarities and differences in terms of building area and count metrics. We explore the variation between building footprint data products across a range of spatial scales, including sub-national administrative units and different settlement types. Our results show that the available building footprint data products are not interchangeable. There are clear differences in counts and total area of building footprints between the assessed data products, as well as considerable spatial heterogeneity in building footprint coverage and completeness.

Deep Q-Learning-Based Molecular Graph Generation for Chemical Structure Prediction From Infrared Spectra

In this paper, we present a novel approach to predicting chemical structures from their infrared (IR) spectra using deep Q-learning. IR spectra measurements are widely used in chemical analysis because they provide information on the types and characteristics of chemical bonds present within compounds. However, there are currently no algorithms to predict the entire chemical structure of a broad range of compounds relying solely on IR spectra, unless there is an exact or closely matched spectrum in an existing reference spectra library. To address this, we apply double deep Q-learning for automated prediction of the entire chemical structures of organic compounds based on IR spectra. Our method builds predicted structures by starting from a single carbon atom and subsequently adding an atom and bond step-by-step by ranking the rewards of each possible addition based on Q-values. We devised new structural similarity metrics, atom bond count and substructure count metrics to achieve our goal. Compared to the commonly used structural similarity score, the Jaccard index of extended-connectivity fingerprints, the devised metrics exhibit more suitable properties for Q-learning. The deep Q-model, which uses the combination of our two proposed metrics, gives the overall best performance and can generate structures similar to the actual structures in terms of their structural features and molecular weight in most tested cases.

Abstract TP188: Diving MCA and First-Pass Reperfusion: A Subgroup Analysis of the Arise II Study

Introduction: Tortuosity of Internal carotid artery impact on achieving first pass in mechanical thrombectomy has been previously described. Here, we investigate the association of middle cerebral artery(MCA) tortuosity on radiographic and functional outcome. Methods: The Analysis of Revascularization in Ischemic Stroke with EmboTrap II was utilized to identify patients with anterior circulation stroke. MCA tortuosity was calculated using Inflection Count Metric(ICM) by two blinded readers to angiographical/clinical outcomes. The total cohort was trichotomized into 3 groups (A, B, C) based on M1 tortuosity tertiles. The primary efficacy end point was achievement of modified Thrombolysis in Cerebral Ischemia (mTICI) reperfusion scores of ≥2b on first pass. Good functional outcomes was defined as mRS0-2 on 90-day followup. Baseline and procedural data were compared between groups. Results: A total of 200 with known MCA tortuosity were identified. Patients within group A were significantly older (P&lt;0.05) . Group C patient were more likely to have renal disease and atrial fibrillation (P&lt;0.05). There was no differences in terms of NIHSS score at presentation nor ASPECT score between groups. Achieving first-pass success was more likely in group A (60.6%) vs 47% and 38.2%, P=0.033 for groups B and C, respectively. Likewise, the rate of mTICI≥2c was higher in group A (54.5%) vs 36.4% and 26.5%, p=0.003. Achieving mRS0-2 was more likely in group A (76.6%) vs 73.4% and 49.3%, p=0.001. There were no differences in distal emboli, or symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage. Findings of first-pass and angiographic outcomes were consistent with standard tortuosity scoring system. Conclusion: Patients with higher MCA tortuosity are less likely to have successful reperfusion and good functional outcome post mechanical thrombectomy for acute ischemic stroke.

Abstract TMP11: Cerebral Visual Impairment in Pediatric Stroke Patients Assessed by Virtual Reality Testing

Introduction: Pediatric stroke is one of the leading causes of disability in children, many of whom incur brain injury affecting critical visual anatomical networks. Dedicated ophthalmologic examinations that detect cerebral visual impairment (CVI) - the leading cause of congenital visual impairment in developed countries - are not standard of care and can delay diagnosis and interventions. There is limited CVI data in pediatric stroke patients, and in this work we present data defining visual processing deficits in pediatric stroke patients. Hypothesis: We hypothesize that pediatric stroke patients will (1) demonstrate greater visual-spatial processing impairments than controls and (2) demonstrate increasing performance impairment as a function of increasing visual task demands. Methods: Using a virtual reality (VR) based visual search task system, we characterized significant deficits in higher-order visual processing of pediatric stroke patients (n = 17) as compared to healthy controls (n = 13). Stroke patients suffered from a perinatal (n = 8) or pediatric (n = 9) stroke - confirmed with brain MRI - affecting various vascular territories of the anterior and posterior circulations. The task required searching for on-screen targets with increasing visual complexity. Metrics such as reaction time, gaze error, shifted ellipse area, success rate, and pursuit saccade ratio were analyzed using unpaired group-level t-tests and considered significant if p &lt; 0.05. Results: Stroke patients took longer to identify the target (p = 0.001), were less accurate in finding it (p = 0.007), and exhibited greater impairment in performance with an increasing number of distractors compared to healthy children. Groups had comparable task compliance, as indexed by an off-screen count metric. Conclusion: This original work demonstrates that pediatric stroke patients, particularly those with strokes affecting the middle cerebral artery and posterior circulation vascular territories, exhibit impaired higher-order visual processing. This highlights the urgent need for standardized clinical testing to provide quantitative performance measures of cortical visual processing. This will allow timely detection and implementation of interventional therapies.

Abstract WP223: Cerebral Visual Impairment in ACTA2 Patients Assessed by Virtual Reality Testing

Introduction: Heterozygous missense mutations disrupting arginine 179 (Arg179) in the ACTA2 gene which codes for the smooth muscle-specific isoform of α-actin, cause Multisystemic Smooth Muscle Dysfunction Syndrome (MSMDS). The clinical manifestations of this genetic condition include congenital mydriasis, patent ductus arteriosus, stroke, and/or aortic aneurysms or dissections among many others. White matter injury, impaired autoregulation, and neurovascular coupling (due to the cerebral vasculopathy affecting cerebral perfusion) are known factors that alter neural network performance and processing speed. The lack of a standardized ophthalmologic examination that detects cerebral visual impairment (CVI), precludes an early diagnosis and creates missed opportunities for intervention. There is a paucity of data regarding CVI in MSMDS patients, and through this novel work, we present data defining their visual processing deficits. Hypothesis: We hypothesize that: 1) individuals with MSMDS will exhibit more pronounced deficits in visual-spatial processing compared to the control group, and 2) their performance will deteriorate as the complexity of visual tasks increases. Methods: Using a virtual reality (VR) based visual search task system, we characterized the impairment of higher-order visual processing in MSMDS patients (n = 4) as compared to healthy controls (n = 13). The VR-based task required searching for targets on a screen among varying levels of visual complexity. Reaction time, gaze error, shifted ellipse area, success rate, and pursuit saccade ratio were statistically analyzed with unpaired group t-tests, with significance being defined as p &lt; 0.05. Results: Compared to controls, MSMDS patients took longer to identify the correct target, were less accurate in finding the target, and exhibited greater impairment in performance with an increasing number of distractors. Both groups showed similar task compliance, measured using an off-screen count metric. Conclusion: This novel work demonstrates that MSMDS patients exhibit impaired higher-order visual processing. This highlights the need for clinical tools that can assess these difficulties with quantitative methods to guide therapies and improve functional outcomes.

Atenção visual e escolha de atributos em rótulos de cafés especiais

Abstract This study uses eye-tracking metrics to quantify the visual attention given to differentiation attributes in specialty coffees. Two Discrete Choice-type experiments were developed using the packaging as a stimulus to analyze visual attention and the probability of choice for each attribute. Experiment 1 (466 observations) included the evaluation of the attributes price, brand, coffee variety, organic label and origin. Experiment 2 (279 observations) tested price, score, altitude and roast. Experiments 1 and 2 revealed that the use of the Time Fixation Duration (TFD) and Visit Count (VC) metrics were efficient in evaluating the effect of visual attention on the choice of each attribute present in the packaging. In experiment 2, the Time to First Fixation (TFF) and the willingness-to-pay (WTP) metrics were also significant, the latter of which had a value higher than the highest price indicated by the retailer. The packaging label could be considered a first potential activation regarding the novelty that these attributes represent, and the findings of this study can direct the efforts of the coffee industry to educate its customers about the main quality attributes related to the consumption of specialty coffees that are still poorly understood, but which may generate future profitability.

A New Lightweight Routing Protocol for Internet of Mobile Things Based on Low Power and Lossy Network Using a Fuzzy-Logic Method

The IoT devices with embedded mobile devices create the Internet of Mobile Things (IoMT) paradigm. Mobility is not supported by the routing protocol for low-power and lossy networks (RPL) created for static networks. IoMT has raised routing challenges such as link failure, instability, energy depletion, packet loss, and handover delay in the network. In this context, IoMT Fuzzy-based RPL (IoMT-FRPL) is proposed in this paper to enhance routing performance. Receiving Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI), Euclidean distance, Hop Count, and Expected Transmission Count (ETX) metrics are built into the fuzzy interface system for the mobile nodes in the network to conserve energy. The IoMT-FRPL consists of the following three key steps: The first steps are data transmission and motion investigation, the second is fuzzy-based prediction of a new static parent for the mobile node, and the third is verifying the unique attachment point. When conventional RPL, mRPL, and EMA-RPL were compared to IoMT-performance FRPL's in Cooja/Contiki 2.7, the simulation results revealed improvements in energy consumption, handover delay, packet delivery rate (PDR), and signaling cost.

Visual Attention Patterns in Finding Source Code Defects

Existing research used visual effort metrics to determine the visual attention patterns of participants with varying skill levels while finding source code defects. While most of the findings of these studies agree on the results for fixation count metrics, there are differences in the results for fixation duration metrics. Therefore, there is a need for further investigations on the use of visual effort metrics to determine the difference in the visual effort of experts and novices between multiple programs. Thus, we aimed to identify the factors affecting the varying results on fixation duration metrics and validate the results on fixation count metrics. We used visual effort metrics to identify the visual attention patterns of high and low-performing students engaged in defect-finding tasks on multiple programs. We performed statistical tests on the total fixation count, fixation counts on the error lines, total fixation duration, and fixation duration on the error lines to determine the difference in the visual attention patterns between the groups. Among the fixation metrics used, only the total fixation duration metric revealed a significant difference between the high and low-performing students across all programs. High-performing students spent less time on simple programs with simple error types but spent more time on complex programs with logical and semantic error types. In contrast, low-performing students focused more attention on easy programs with one or more syntax errors compared to high-performing students. The results of this study could shed some light on the contrasting findings of previous studies regarding fixation duration. These findings suggest that visual attention patterns of high and low-performing students may vary on multiple programs. The amount of visual effort exerted by the group depends upon the program’s complexity, location of errors in the source code, type of errors injected, and the number of lines of code. This implies that the time spent finding the errors may be associated with the characteristics of the programs and the location and type of injected errors. Therefore, researchers must provide detailed information on these characteristics when describing differences in visual effort metrics between subjects engaged in bug-finding tasks.

Relationship of Daily Step Counts to All-Cause Mortality and Cardiovascular Events

BackgroundThe minimal and optimal daily step counts for health improvements remain unclear. ObjectivesA meta-analysis was performed to quantify dose-response associations of objectively measured step count metrics in the general population. MethodsElectronic databases were searched from inception to October 2022. Primary outcomes included all-cause mortality and incident cardiovascular disease (CVD). Study results were analyzed using generalized least squares and random-effects models. ResultsIn total, 111,309 individuals from 12 studies were included. Significant risk reductions were observed at 2,517 steps/d for all-cause mortality (adjusted HR [aHR]: 0.92; 95% CI: 0.84-0.999) and 2,735 steps/d for incident CVD (aHR: 0.89; 95% CI: 0.79-0.999) compared with 2,000 steps/d (reference). Additional steps resulted in nonlinear risk reductions of all-cause mortality and incident CVD with an optimal dose at 8,763 (aHR: 0.40; 95% CI: 0.38-0.43) and 7,126 steps/d (aHR: 0.49; 95% CI: 0.45-0.55), respectively. Increments from a low to an intermediate or a high cadence were independently associated with risk reductions of all-cause mortality. Sex did not influence the dose-response associations, but after stratification for assessment device and wear location, pronounced risk reductions were observed for hip-worn accelerometers compared with pedometers and wrist-worn accelerometers. ConclusionsAs few as about 2,600 and about 2,800 steps/d yield significant mortality and CVD benefits, with progressive risk reductions up to about 8,800 and about 7,200 steps/d, respectively. Additional mortality benefits were found at a moderate to high vs a low step cadence. These findings can extend contemporary physical activity prescriptions given the easy-to-understand concept of step count. (Dose-Response Relationship Between Daily Step Count and Health Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses; CRD42021244747)

Congestion and Energy Aware Multipath Load Balancing Routing for LLNs

The Internet of Things (IoT) is presently in its golden era with its current technological evolution towards digital transformation. Low-power and Lossy Networks (LLNs) form the groundwork for IoT, where the IPv6 Routing Protocol for Low-Power and Lossy Networks (RPL) is designated by Internet Engineering Task Force as the benchmark protocol for routing. Although RPL, with its unique capabilities, has addressed many IoT routing requirements, Load balancing and Congestion control are the outliers. This paper builds on the RPL protocol and proposes a multipath Congestion and Energy Aware RPL (CEARPL) that alleviates the load balancing and congestion concerns associated with RPL and improves the network performance. For congestion avoidance, a Congestion and Energy Aware Objective Function (CEA-OF) is suggested during parent selection that considers multiple metrics like Child Count metric, Estimated Lifetime metric, and Queue Occupancy metric, to equally distribute the traffic in LLNs. The Queue Occupancy metric is used to detect congestion in the network, and a Multipath routing strategy is utilized to mitigate the congestion in the network. A comparison of the performance of CEA-RPL was made against the existing Objective Functions of RPL, OFO, and MRHOF, as well as COM-OF, utilizing Contiki OS 3.0's Cooja emulator. CEA-RPL projected superior results with power consumption lowering by 33%, end-to-end delay decreasing by 30%, queue loss ratio reducing by 49%, and packet receiving rate and network lifetime improving by 7% and 49%, on an average, respectively.

Automatic Multiple Articulator Segmentation in Dynamic Speech MRI Using a Protocol Adaptive Stacked Transfer Learning U-NET Model.

Dynamic magnetic resonance imaging has emerged as a powerful modality for investigating upper-airway function during speech production. Analyzing the changes in the vocal tract airspace, including the position of soft-tissue articulators (e.g., the tongue and velum), enhances our understanding of speech production. The advent of various fast speech MRI protocols based on sparse sampling and constrained reconstruction has led to the creation of dynamic speech MRI datasets on the order of 80-100 image frames/second. In this paper, we propose a stacked transfer learning U-NET model to segment the deforming vocal tract in 2D mid-sagittal slices of dynamic speech MRI. Our approach leverages (a) low- and mid-level features and (b) high-level features. The low- and mid-level features are derived from models pre-trained on labeled open-source brain tumor MR and lung CT datasets, and an in-house airway labeled dataset. The high-level features are derived from labeled protocol-specific MR images. The applicability of our approach to segmenting dynamic datasets is demonstrated in data acquired from three fast speech MRI protocols: Protocol 1: 3 T-based radial acquisition scheme coupled with a non-linear temporal regularizer, where speakers were producing French speech tokens; Protocol 2: 1.5 T-based uniform density spiral acquisition scheme coupled with a temporal finite difference (FD) sparsity regularization, where speakers were producing fluent speech tokens in English, and Protocol 3: 3 T-based variable density spiral acquisition scheme coupled with manifold regularization, where speakers were producing various speech tokens from the International Phonetic Alphabetic (IPA). Segments from our approach were compared to those from an expert human user (a vocologist), and the conventional U-NET model without transfer learning. Segmentations from a second expert human user (a radiologist) were used as ground truth. Evaluations were performed using the quantitative DICE similarity metric, the Hausdorff distance metric, and segmentation count metric. This approach was successfully adapted to different speech MRI protocols with only a handful of protocol-specific images (e.g., of the order of 20 images), and provided accurate segmentations similar to those of an expert human.

Determining Stroke and Movement Profiles in Competitive Tennis Match-Play From Wearable Sensor Accelerometry.

Perri, T, Reid, M, Murphy, A, Howle, K, and Duffield, R. Determining stroke and movement profiles in competitive tennis match-play from wearable sensor accelerometry. J Strength Cond Res 37(6): 1271-1276, 2023-This study determined stroke and movement accelerometry metrics from a wearable sensor and compared between court surface (grass vs. hard) and match outcome (win vs. loss) during competitive tennis match-play. Eight junior high-performance tennis players wore a trunk-mounted global positioning system, with in-built accelerometer, magnetometer, and gyroscope during singles matches on hard and grass courts. The manufacturer software calculated accelerometer-derived total player load (tPL). A prototype algorithm classified forehands, backhands, serves, and "other" strokes, thereby calculating stroke PL (sPL) from individual strokes. Movement PL (mPL) was calculated as the difference between tPL and sPL, with all metrics reported as absolute and relative (min -1 , %, and ·stroke). Analysis of accelerometer load and stroke count metrics was performed through a two-way (surface [grass vs. hard] × match outcome [win vs. loss]) analysis of variance ( p < 0.05) and effect sizes (Cohen's d ). No interaction effects for surface and match outcome existed for absolute tPL, mPL, and sPL ( p > 0.05). Increased mPL% featured on grass courts, whereas sPL% was increased on hard courts ( p = 0.04, d = 1.18[0.31-2.02]). Elevated sPL·min -1 existed on hard courts ( p = 0.04, d = 1.19[0.32-2.04]), but no differences in tPL·min -1 and mPL·min -1 were evident for surface or outcome ( p > 0.05). Relative forehand sPL (FH-sPL·min -1 ) was higher on hard courts ( p = 0.03, d = 1.18[0.31-2.02]) alongside higher forehand counts ( p = 0.01, d = 1.29[0.40-2.14]). Hitting demands are heightened on hard courts from increased sPL and counts. Conversely, increased mPL% on grass courts likely reflects the specific movement demands from point-play. Physical preparation strategies during training blocks can be tailored toward movement or hitting loads to suit competitive surfaces.

Measuring network-driven citations: An adjusted citation count metric

Citation count is extensively used within research systems to measure research performance and relevance. However, high numbers of citations could result from many different factors. This paper proposes an adjusted citation count metric to help identify citations from researchers’ networks. Using data from the Web of Science core collection, this research suggests and illustrates an approach to compute the proportion of citation counts from within and out of author networks, defined as the set of their co-authors. The results reveal the trends and effects of author networks on citation counts. The paper explains how these findings could be used to assess research performance. Its utilisation will depend mainly on the objectives of the assessor and the stage of the researcher’s career. An algorithm is also proposed that could be used to automate the computation of the proposed metric. It could serve as a step towards refining and integrating this metric into existing bibliometric analysis packages built on the R software platform.

Measuring Network-Driven Citations: An Adjusted Citation Count Metric

Measuring Network-Driven Citations: An Adjusted Citation Count Metric

Quantification of green and walkable neighbourhoods across the distribution of social and material deprivation in Metro Vancouver, Canada

BACKGROUND &amp;#x26; AIM: Along with other environmental exposures, both neighbourhood walkability, and greenspace exposure and access have been linked to many diverse health benefits. Previous work has examined the spatial relationship of built and natural environments according to levels of neighbourhood deprivation; however, less is known about how these relationships may vary when different greenspace metrics are used. This work examines how normalized differences vegetation index (NDVI), tree canopy cover, green land cover, and park count metrics relate to walkability, and how these neighbourhood characteristics associate with both social and material deprivation. METHODS: Greenspace exposure was measured using NDVI, tree canopy cover, and green land cover, while park access was quantified by the number of designated public parks within 1000m and 400m network buffers for each six-digit postal-code centroid in Metro Vancouver, Canada. Local area deprivation was measured using the 2016 Material and Social Deprivation Index (MSDI). Pearson’s correlation coefficients were calculated to compare these neighbourhood characteristics. RESULTS: Walkability was positively associated with social deprivation (1000m r = 0.48; 400m r = 0.48, p &amp;#x3c; .01), while walkability has a weak inverse relationship with material deprivation (1000m r = -0.21, p &amp;#x3c; .01). Tree canopy was negatively related to both social (1000m r = -0.23, 400m r = -0.23, p &amp;#x3c; .01) and material deprivation (1000m r = -0.24, 400m r = -0.23, p &amp;#x3c; .01). In contrast, the relationship between park count and both deprivation measures was weak. CONCLUSION: In this study, areas with greater social and material deprivation tend to have less greenspace, but not necessarily less park access. The identification of neighbourhoods with higher material deprivation, low walkability, and low greenspace, may be prioritized by urban planners and decision makers as possible locations for additional greenspace allocation. KEYWORDS: greenspace, walkability, social deprivation, material deprivation

Longitudinal changes in personalized platelet count metrics are good indicators of initial 3-year outcome in colorectal cancer.

BACKGROUNDPlatelet count or complete blood count (CBC)-based ratios including lymphocyte-to-monocyte (LMR), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte (NLR), hemoglobin-to-platelet (HPR), red blood cell count distribution width-to-platelet (RPR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte (PLR) ratio are good predictors of colorectal cancer (CRC) survival. Their change in time is not well documented, however.AIMTo investigate the effect of longitudinal CBC ratio changes on CRC survival and their possible associations with clinicopathological properties, comorbidities, and anamnestic data.METHODSA retrospective longitudinal observational study was conducted with the inclusion of 835 CRC patients, who attended at Semmelweis University, Budapest. CBC ratios and two additional newly defined personalized platelet count metrics (pPLTD and pPLTS, the platelet counts relative to the measurement at the time of CRC diagnosis and to the one 4-6 wk after tumor removal surgery, respectively) were recorded.RESULTSThe 835 CRC patients had a total of 4608 measurements (5.52 visits/patient, in average). Longitudinal survival models revealed that the increases/decreases in LMR [hazard ratio (HR): 0.4989, P < 0.0001], NLR (HR: 1.0819, P < 0.0001), HPR (HR: 0.0533, P = 0.0038), pPLTD (HR: 4.9229, P < 0.0001), and pPLTS (HR: 4.7568, P < 0.0001) values were poor prognostic signs of disease-specific survival. The same was obtained for all-cause mortality. Most abnormal changes occurred within the first 3 years after the diagnosis of CRC. RPR and PLR had an only marginal effect on disease-specific (P = 0.0675) and all-cause mortality (Bayesian 95% credible interval: 0.90–186.05), respectively.CONCLUSIONLMR, NLR, and HPR are good metrics to follow the prognosis of the disease. pPLTD and pPLTS perform just as well as the former, while the use of RPR and PLR with the course of the disease is not recommended. Early detection of the abnormal changes in pPLTD, pPLTS, LMR, NLR, or HPR may alert the practicing oncologist for further therapy decisions in a timely manner.

Subarachnoid Hemorrhage from Ruptured Internal Carotid Artery Aneurysm: Association with Arterial Tortuosity

Many researchers have found a correlation between tortuous arteries and development of aneurysms in cerebral arteries. We decided to determine whether tortuosity of the internal carotid artery can be related to its aneurysm rupture. We retrospectively analyzed the internal carotid artery anatomy of 149 patients with internal carotid artery aneurysms. For each patient, we calculated relative length (RL), sum of angle metrics (SOAM), triangular index (TI), product of angle distance (PAD), and inflection count metrics (ICM). A total of 33 patients (22.15%) had subarachnoid hemorrhage. These patients had significantly lower SOAM (0.31 ± 0.17 vs. 0.42 ± 0.21; P < 0.01), TI (0.27 ± 0.09 vs. 0.31 ± 0.11; P= 0.03) and ICM (0.25 ± 0.11 vs. 0.31 ± 0.17; P= 0.04). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, higher SOAM (odds ratio, 0.780; 95% confidence interval, 0.619-0.961; P= 0.025) remained independently associated with lower risk of internal carotid artery aneurysm rupture. In addition, we found significant positive correlation of aneurysm dome size with SOAM (R= 0.224; P=0.013) and PAD (0.269; P < 0.01). Our study also showed that age (R= 0.252; P= 0.036), Glasgow Coma Scale score (R= -0.706; P < 0.01), and TI (R= -0.249; P= 0.042) were independently correlated with modified Rankin Scale score on discharge. Lower tortuosity might be a protective factor against internal carotid artery aneurysm rupture and poor outcome after subarachnoid hemorrhage. Higher tortuosity is correlated with internal carotid artery aneurysm growth.