Research on Pedestrian Crossing Decision Models and Predictions Based on Machine Learning.

Systematically and comprehensively enhancing road traffic safety using artificial intelligence (AI) is of paramount importance, and it is gradually becoming a crucial framework in smart cities. Within this context of heightened attention, we propose to utilize machine learning (ML) to optimize and ameliorate pedestrian crossing predictions in intelligent transportation systems, where the crossing process is vital to pedestrian crossing behavior. Compared with traditional analytical models, the application of OpenCV image recognition and machine learning methods can analyze the mechanisms of pedestrian crossing behaviors with greater accuracy, thereby more precisely judging and simulating pedestrian violations in crossing. Authentic pedestrian crossing behavior data were extracted from signalized intersection scenarios in Chinese cities, and several machine learning models, including decision trees, multilayer perceptrons, Bayesian algorithms, and support vector machines, were trained and tested. In comparing the various models, the results indicate that the support vector machine (SVM) model exhibited optimal accuracy in predicting pedestrian crossing probabilities and speeds, and it can be applied in pedestrian crossing prediction and traffic simulation systems in intelligent transportation.

SPS: Accurate and Real-Time Semantic Positioning System Based on Low-Cost DEM Maps.

This paper presents a Semantic Positioning System (SPS) to enhance the accuracy of mobile device geo-localization in outdoor urban environments. Although the traditional Global Positioning System (GPS) can offer a rough localization, it lacks the necessary accuracy for applications such as Augmented Reality (AR). Our SPS integrates Geographic Information System (GIS) data, GPS signals, and visual image information to estimate the 6 Degree-of-Freedom (DoF) pose through cross-view semantic matching. This approach has excellent scalability to support GIS context with Levels of Detail (LOD). The map data representation is Digital Elevation Model (DEM), a cost-effective aerial map that allows for fast deployment for large-scale areas. However, the DEM lacks geometric and texture details, making it challenging for traditional visual feature extraction to establish pixel/voxel level cross-view correspondences. To address this, we sample observation pixels from the query ground-view image using predicted semantic labels. We then propose an iterative homography estimation method with semantic correspondences. To improve the efficiency of the overall system, we further employ a heuristic search to speedup the matching process. The proposed method is robust, real-time, and automatic. Quantitative experiments on the challenging Bund dataset show that we achieve a positioning accuracy of 73.24%, surpassing the baseline skyline-based method by 20%. Compared with the state-of-the-art semantic-based approach on the Kitti dataset, we improve the positioning accuracy by an average of 5%.

Global, regional, and national burden of hypertensive heart disease among older adults in 204 countries and territories between 1990 and 2019: a trend analysis.

BACKGROUND: Hypertensive heart disease (HHD) poses a public health challenge, but data on its burden and trends among older adults are scarce. This study aimed to identify trends in the burden of HHD among older adults between 1990 and 2019 at the global, regional, and national levels. METHODS: Using the Global Burden of Diseases study 2019 data, we assessed HHD prevalence, death, and disability-adjusted life-year (DALY) rates for individuals aged 60-89 years at the global, regional, and national levels and estimated their average annual percentage changes (AAPCs) between 1990 and 2019 using joinpoint regression analysis. RESULTS: In 2019, there were 14.35 million HHD prevalent cases, 0.85 million deaths, and 14.56 million DALYs in older adults. Between 1990 and 2019, the prevalence of HHD increased globally {AAPC, 0.38 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.36, 0.41)} with decreases observed in mortality (AAPC, -0.83 [95% CI, -0.99, -0.66]) and the DALY rate (AAPC, -1.03 [95% CI, -1.19, -0.87]). This overall global trend pattern was essentially maintained for sex, age group, and sociodemographic index (SDI) quintile except for non-significant changes in the prevalence of HHD in those aged 70-74 years and in the middle SDI quintile. Notably, males had a higher HHD prevalence rate. However, HHD-related mortality and the DALY rate were higher in females. The middle SDI quintile experienced the largest decreases in mortality and the DALY rate, with a non-significant decline in prevalence between 1990 and 2019. There were significant discrepancies in the HHD burden and its trends across regions and countries. CONCLUSIONS: In the past three decades, there has been an overall increasing trend in the prevalence of HHD among older adults worldwide despite decreasing trends in mortality and the DALY rate. Better management of hypertension, and prevention and control of HHD are needed in older adults.

Equity assessment of the distribution of mental health beds in China: based on longitudinal data from 2011 to 2020.

BACKGROUND: Mental health problems have become a public health problem that needs to be solved in China. However, medical resources for mental healthcare remain insufficient and unevenly distributed. The Chinese central government has taken many measures to address this issue over the last decade. This study aimed to evaluate the changes in equity in mental health bed allocation from 2011 to 2020. METHODS: The data of this study came from the China Health Statistical Yearbook (2012-2021) and the China National Administrative Division Information Platform. The annual growth rate was used to evaluate the time trends of mental health beds. The Lorenz curve, Gini coefficient and Theil index were used to assess equity in the demographic and geographical dimensions. The distribution of mental health beds was visualized on a map using geographic information system (GIS) software. RESULTS: The total number of mental health beds in China increased steadily from 2011 to 2020. At the national level, the Gini coefficient and Theil index all exhibited downward trends over time. The mental health bed allocation in terms of the demographic dimension was relatively equitable, with Gini values all less than 0.3; however, the Gini coefficients by geographical area were all more than 0.6, indicating inequity. Intraregional contribution rates were higher than interregional contribution rates, which were all above 60%. CONCLUSION: The overall distribution equity of mental health beds improved from 2011 to 2020. The equity of mental health beds in terms of population size is superior to that in terms of geographical area. Intraregional differences are the main source of inequity. In particular, differences within the western region need to be given attention. Thus, the findings from this study emphasize that the demographic and geographical distributions and all influencing factors should be considered when the government makes mental health resource allocation policies.

Urinary Creatinine Concentrations and Its Explanatory Variables in General Chinese Population: Implications for Creatinine Limits and Creatinine Adjustment.

Objective: The study aimed to analyze the applicability of the World Health Organization's exclusionary guidelines for Urinary creatinine (Ucr) in the general Chinese population, and to identify Ucr related factors. Methods: We conduct a cross-sectional study using baseline data from 21,167 participants in the China National Human Biomonitoring Program. Mixed linear models and restricted cubic splines (RCS) were used to analyze the associations between explanatory variables and Ucr concentration. Results: The geometric mean and median concentrations of Ucr in the general Chinese population were 0.90 g/L and 1.01 g/L, respectively. And 9.36% samples were outside 0.3-3.0 g/L, including 7.83% below the lower limit and 1.53% above the upper limit. Middle age, male, obesity, smoking, higher frequency of red meat consumption and chronic kidney disease were associated significantly with higher concentrations of Ucr. Results of the RCS showed Ucr was positively and linearly associated with body mass index, inversely and linearly associated with systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, triglycerides level, and glomerular filtration rate, and were non-linearly associated with triiodothyronine. Conclusion: The age- and gender-specific cut-off values of Ucr that determine the validity of urine samples in the general Chinese population were recommended. To avoid introducing bias into epidemiologic associations, the potential predictors of Ucr observed in the current study should be considered when using Ucr to adjust for variations in urine dilution.

Estimation of disease burden and clinical severity of COVID-19 caused by Omicron BA.2 in Shanghai, February-June 2022.

An outbreak of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 sublineage occurred in Shanghai, China from February 26 to June 30, 2022. We use official reported data retrieved from Shanghai municipal Health Commissions to estimate the incidence of infections, severe/critical infections, and deaths to assess the disease burden. By adjusting for right censoring and RT-PCR sensitivity, we provide estimates of clinical severity, including the infection fatality ratio, symptomatic case fatality ratio, and risk of developing severe/critical disease upon infection. The overall infection rate, severe/critical infection rate, and mortality rate were 2.74 (95% CI: 2.73-2.74) per 100 individuals, 6.34 (95% CI: 6.02-6.66) per 100,000 individuals and 2.42 (95% CI: 2.23-2.62) per 100,000 individuals, respectively. The severe/critical infection rate and mortality rate increased with age, noted in individuals aged 80 years or older. The overall fatality ratio and risk of developing severe/critical disease upon infection were 0.09% (95% CI: 0.09-0.10%) and 0.27% (95% CI: 0.24-0.29%), respectively. Having received at least one vaccine dose led to a 10-fold reduction in the risk of death for infected individuals aged 80 years or older. Under the repeated population-based screenings and strict intervention policies implemented in Shanghai, our results found a lower disease burden and mortality of the outbreak compared to other settings and countries, showing the impact of the successful outbreak containment in Shanghai. The estimated low clinical severity of this Omicron BA.2 epidemic in Shanghai highlight the key contribution of vaccination and availability of hospital beds to reduce the risk of death.

Cost-Effectiveness of Intensive Versus Standard Blood Pressure Treatment in Older Patients With Hypertension in China.

BACKGROUND: In the STEP trial (Strategy of Blood Pressure Intervention in older Hypertensive Patients), the risk of cardiovascular events is significantly lower in patients who received intensive systolic blood psressure (BP) treatment than in those who received standard treatment. This study compared the lifetime health benefits and medical costs of intensive BP treatment with those of standard BP treatment. METHODS: A microsimulation model included 10 000 hypothetical samples of Chinese adults aged 60 to 80 years old with baseline systolic BP higher than 140 mm Hg. Primary outcome was the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio from a payer's perspective. Secondary outcome was cardiovascular events, including acute coronary syndrome, stroke, acute decompensated heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and death from cardiovascular causes. RESULTS: The model simulated that cardiovascular events occurred in 36.88% of the patients in the intensive treatment group, as compared to 41.28% of the patients in the standard treatment group over the lifetime horizon. The mean number of quality-adjusted life-years would be 0.16 higher in patients who received intensive treatment than in those who received standard treatment and would cost Chinese yuan 12 614 (International dollars 3018) more per quality-adjusted life-year gained. Most simulation results indicated that intensive treatment would be cost-effective (82%-95% below the willingness-to-pay threshold of Chinese yuan 72 000 [1× the gross domestic product per capita in China in 2020]). Sensitivity analyses showed that these conclusions were robust. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, intensive BP treatment prevented cardiovascular events among older patients with hypertension in China and was cost-effective in most scenarios. REGISTRATION: URL: https://www. CLINICALTRIALS: gov; Unique identifier: NCT03015311.

The global burden and associated factors of ovarian cancer in 1990-2019: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

BACKGROUND: Ovarian cancer (OC) is a major cause of cancer-related deaths among women. The aim of this study was to estimate and report data on the current burden of ovarian cancer worldwide over the past 30 years. METHOD: Based on the data provided by GBD 2019, we collected and interpreted the disease data of ovarian cancer by incidence, mortality, disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), and used corresponding age-standardized rates as indicators. Also, we categorized the data by attributed risk factors and captured deaths due to high fasting plasma glucose, occupational exposure to asbestos and high body-mass index, respectively. All outcomes in the study were reported using mean values and corresponding 95% uncertainty intervals (95% UI). RESULTS: Globally, there were 294422 (260649 to 329727) incident cases in 2019, and the number of deaths and DALYs were 198412 (175357 to 217665) and 5.36 million (4.69 to 5.95). The overall burden was on the rise, with a percentage change of 107.8% (76.1 to 135.7%) for new cases, 103.8% (75.7 to 126.4%) for deaths and 96.1% (65.0 to 120.5%) for DALYs. Whereas the age-standardized rates kept stable during 1990-2019. The burden of ovarian cancer increased with age. and showed a totally different trends among SDI regions. Although high SDI region had the declining rates, the burden of ovarian cancer remained stable in high-middle and low SDI regions, and the middle and low-middle SDI areas showed increasing trends. High fasting plasma glucose was estimated to be the most important attributable risk factor for ovarian cancer deaths globally, with a percentage change of deaths of 7.9% (1.6 to 18.3%), followed by occupational exposure to asbestos and high body mass index. CONCLUSIONS: Although the age-standardized rates of ovarian cancer didn't significantly change at the global level, the burden still increased, especially in areas on the lower end of the SDI range. Also, the disease burden due to different attributable risk factors showed heterogeneous, and it became more severe with age.

Time-varying optimization of COVID-19 vaccine prioritization in the context of limited vaccination capacity.

Dynamically adapting the allocation of COVID-19 vaccines to the evolving epidemiological situation could be key to reduce COVID-19 burden. Here we developed a data-driven mechanistic model of SARS-CoV-2 transmission to explore optimal vaccine prioritization strategies in China. We found that a time-varying vaccination program (i.e., allocating vaccines to different target groups as the epidemic evolves) can be highly beneficial as it is capable of simultaneously achieving different objectives (e.g., minimizing the number of deaths and of infections). Our findings suggest that boosting the vaccination capacity up to 2.5 million first doses per day (0.17% rollout speed) or higher could greatly reduce COVID-19 burden, should a new wave start to unfold in China with reproduction number ≤1.5. The highest priority categories are consistent under a broad range of assumptions. Finally, a high vaccination capacity in the early phase of the vaccination campaign is key to achieve large gains of strategic prioritizations.

Leveraging Telemedicine for Chronic Disease Management in Low- and Middle-Income Countries During Covid-19.

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) expanded access to telemedicine to maintain essential health services. Although there has been attention to the accelerated growth of telemedicine in the United States and other high-income countries, the telemedicine revolution may have an even greater benefit in LMICs, where it could improve health care access for vulnerable and geographically remote patients. In this article, we survey the expansion of telemedicine for chronic disease management in LMICs and describe seven key steps needed to implement telemedicine in LMIC settings. Telemedicine can not only maintain essential medical care for chronic disease patients in LMICs throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, but also strengthen primary health care delivery and reduce socio-economic disparities in health care access over the long-term.

Deep reinforcement learning based valve scheduling for pollution isolation in water distribution network.

Public water supply facilities are vulnerable to intentional intrusion. In particular, Water Distribution Network (WDN) has become one of the most important public facilities that are prone to be attacked because of its wide coverage and constant open operation. In recent years, water contamination incidents happen frequently, causing serious losses and impacts to the society. Various measures have been taken to tackle this issue. Pollution or contamination isolation by localizing the contamination via sensors and scheduling certain valves have been regarded as one of the most promising solutions. The main challenge is how to schedule water valves to effectively isolate contamination and reduce the residual concentration of contaminants in WDN. In this paper, we are motivated to propose a reinforcement learning based method for valve real time scheduling by treating the sensing data from the sensors as state, and the valve scheduling as action, thus we can learn scheduling policy from uncertain contamination events without precise characterization of contamination source. Simulation results show that our proposed algorithm can effectively isolate the contamination and reduce the risk exclosure to the customers.

A novel device for hazardous substances degradation based on double-cavitating-jets impingement: Parameters optimization and efficiency assessment.

Hydrodynamic cavitation is an effective advanced oxidation process. But sometimes it cannot obtain satisfactory treatment efficiency by using hydrodynamic cavitation individually, so it is necessary to introduce intensive methods. Based on double-cavitating-jets impingement, this paper presents a novel device that has advantages of strong heat and mass transfer and efficient chemical reactions. Based on the device, a series of experimental investigations on degradation of a basic dye, i.e. Rhodamine B were carried out. Significant Rhodamine B removal from aqueous solution was observed during 2h treatment and the degradation reaction conformed to pseudo-first-order kinetics. The synergetic effects between double-cavitating-jets impingement and Fenton chemistry on simultaneous degradation of Rhodamine B were confirmed. Both single-variable experiments and orthogonal experiments were carried out to study the effects of initial hydrogen peroxide, ferrous sulfate and Rhodamine B concentrations and the optimum conditions were found out. Effects of jet inlet pressure in the range of 6-12MPa and solution pH value in the range of 2-8 were also investigated. The cavitation yield was evaluated to assess the energy efficiency. The present treatment scheme showed advantages in terms of reducing the demand of hydrogen peroxide concentration and enhancing the treatment efficiency in large scale operation.

Update on Biomarkers in Development of Anti-angiogenic Drugs in Gastric Cancer.

The treatment of advanced gastric cancer remains challenging as the outcomes achieved with surgery alone or adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy are poor. New treatment strategies are emerging and being tested in advanced gastric cancer. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors have been confirmed as important therapeutic agents in randomised clinical trials in multiple solid tumour settings. Until now, results of phase II and phase III clinical trials of anti-angiogenic agents on gastric cancer have been relatively modest, with moderate improvement in overall survival. The effects of these drugs are limited due to development of resistance to them and the increased risk of tumour invasion and metastasis. If we are to optimise or develop combination regimens for advanced gastric cancer with VEGF inhibitors that build on their efficacy, it is critical to identify and validate biomarkers in order to enable selection of those patients who are prone to benefit and monitor their response to the drugs. Validated biomarkers can help to further personalise VEGF inhibitors and dosage determination for advanced or metastatic gastric cancer, particularly as these drugs can be toxic and expensive. Although no biomarker is validated for routine use for this purpose, several candidates are currently under investigation. In this review, we aim to give an overview of the recent developments in biomarkers for anti-angiogenic therapy in gastric cancer tumour angiogenesis.

Burden of hypertension in China over the past decades: Systematic analysis of prevalence, treatment and control of hypertension.

AIMS: To review comprehensively the prevalence, treatment and control of hypertension; and to estimate the burden of hypertension in China, thereby aiding Chinese health policies for better prevention and control of this condition. METHODS AND RESULTS: PubMed, EMbase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang and Chongqing VIP databases were searched for population-based studies published in English and Chinese that described prevalence, treatment and control of hypertension in China, as well as deaths and disabilities attributed to hypertension. All research papers were published between January 1999 and May 2014. Data from 178 studies involving over 2,901,464 participants covering 30 provinces were pooled. Overall, rates of prevalence, treatment and control of hypertension were 28.9%, 35.3% and 13.4% in China. A statistically significant association was observed between temperature gradient and the prevalence of hypertension. There were 10,667 (95% confidence interval 8063-13,345) disability-adjusted life years per 100,000 people. In total, 78.3% of disability-adjusted life years were from years lived with disability and 21.7% from years of life lost due to premature mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Although there has been a slight improvement in rates for the treatment and control of hypertension, these rates were still suboptimal, especially for men and people living in rural areas. Low and middle-income provinces had a comparatively huge burden of hypertension, which is a considerable risk factor for reducing life expectancy. Our analysis may be helpful in generating a current overview of hypertension in China.

[Breviscapine listed on progress of new varieties and dosage form research].

Breviscapine, a flavone glucuronide, is a cardiovascular medicine extracted from a Chinese herb Erigeron breviscapinus. Modern pharmacological research shows breviscapine has a therapeutic effect on cardiovascular diseases such as cerebral thrombus,cerebral ischemia hemiparesis and platelet aggregation et al. However, its poor water solubility and low bioavailability in vivo severely restrict the clinical application. In this article, we reviewed the marketing preparations of breviscapine and its research progress on the new dosage forms.

Safety assessment of ovarian cryopreservation and transplantation in nude mice bearing human epithelial ovarian cancer.

OBJECTIVE: Nude mice with orthotopic transplantation of human ovarian epithelial cancer were used to investigate screening criteria for paraneoplastic normal ovarian tissue and the security of the freezing and thawing for ovarian tissue transplantation. METHODS: Expression of CK-7, CA125, P53, survivin, MMP-2/TIMP- 2 in paraneoplastic normal ovarian tissues were detected by RT-PCR as well as immunohistochemistry. The tissues of the groups with all negative indicators of RT-PCR, all negative indicators of immunohistochemistry, negative expression of CK-7, CA125 and survivin, positive expression of CK-7, CA125 and survivin, cancer tissues and normal ovarian tissues of nude mice were used for freezing and thawing transplantation, to analyze overt and occult carcinogenesis rates after transplantation. RESULTS: When all indicators or the main indicators, CK-7, CA125 and survivin, were negative, tumorigenesis did not occur after transplantation. In addition the occult carcinogenesis rate was lower than in the group with positive expression of CK-7, CA125 and survivin (P<0.01). After subcutaneous and orthotopic transplantation of ovarian tissues, rates did not change (P>0.05). There was no statistical significance among rates after transplantation of ovarian tissues which were obtained under different severity conditions (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: Negative expression of CK-7, CA125 and survivin can be treated as screening criteria for security of ovarian tissues for transplantation. Immunohistochemical methods can be used as the primary detection approach. Both subcutaneous and orthotopic transplantation are safe. The initial severity does not affect the carcinogenesis rate after tissue transplantation. Freezing and thawing ovarian tissue transplantation in nude mice with human epithelial ovarian carcinoma is feasible and safe.

Monte Carlo simulation of vapor-liquid equilibrium and critical asymmetry of square-well dimer fluid.

The critical behavior of square-well dimer fluid has been investigated using grand canonical ensemble Monte Carlo simulations combined with a histogram reweighting technique, hyper-parallel tempering and finite-size scaling. The critical temperature and density obtained are T(c)*=1.5495±0.0009 and ρ(c)*=0.1473±0.0007, which are 2.5% lower and 5.2% higher than previous results. Coexistence curves both near to and far from the critical point were obtained. The vapor-liquid equilibrium data far from the critical point are consistent with previous results. Simulation results show that the contribution of |t|(1-α) to the coexistence diameter of square-well dimer fluid dominates the critical behavior and the contribution of |t|(2ß) is larger than for a hard-core square-well fluid.