Clinical Effectiveness of Cognitively Enhanced Tai Ji Quan Training on Global Cognition and Dual-Task Performance During Walking in Older Adults With Mild Cognitive Impairment or Self-Reported Memory Concerns : A Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) negatively impacts cognition and dual-task abilities. A physical-cognitive integrated treatment approach could mitigate this risk for dementia. OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness of cognitively enhanced tai ji quan versus standard tai ji quan or stretching exercise in improving global cognition and reducing dual-task walking costs in older adults with MCI or self-reported memory concerns. DESIGN: 3-group, randomized (1:1:1), superiority trial. (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04070703). SETTING: Community residential homes. PARTICIPANTS: 318 older adults with self-reported memory decline or concern and a Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) global score of 0.5 or lower at baseline. INTERVENTION: Cognitively enhanced tai ji quan (n = 105), standard tai ji quan (n = 107), or stretching (n = 106). All groups exercised at home via real-time videoconferencing, 1 hour semiweekly for 24 weeks. MEASUREMENTS: The co-primary endpoints were change in Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA; range, 0 to 30) and dual-task walking costs (difference between single- and dual-task gait speed, expressed in percentage) from baseline to 24 weeks. Secondary outcomes included CDR-Sum of Boxes (CDR-SB), Trail Making Test B, Digit Span Backward (DSB), and physical performance tests. Outcomes were assessed at 16, 24 (primary endpoint), and 48 weeks (6 months after intervention). RESULTS: A total of 304 participants (96%) completed the 24-week assessment. Cognitively enhanced tai ji quan outperformed standard tai ji quan and stretching with a greater improvement in MoCA score (mean difference, 1.5 points [98.75% CI, 0.7 to 2.2 points] and 2.8 points [CI, 2.1 to 3.6 points], respectively) and in dual-task walking (mean difference, 9.9% [CI, 2.8% to 16.6%] and 22% [CI, 13% to 31%], respectively). The intervention effects persisted at 48-week follow-up. LIMITATION: There was no nonexercise control group; participants had subjective or mild cognitive impairment. CONCLUSION: Among community-dwelling older adults with MCI, cognitively enriched tai ji quan therapy was superior to standard tai ji quan and stretching exercise in improving global cognition and reducing dual-task gait interference, with outcomes sustained at 48 weeks. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: National Institute on Aging.

LeGO-LOAM-FN: An Improved Simultaneous Localization and Mapping Method Fusing LeGO-LOAM, Faster_GICP and NDT in Complex Orchard Environments.

To solve the problem of cumulative errors when robots build maps in complex orchard environments due to their large scene size, similar features, and unstable motion, this study proposes a loopback registration algorithm based on the fusion of Faster Generalized Iterative Closest Point (Faster_GICP) and Normal Distributions Transform (NDT). First, the algorithm creates a K-Dimensional tree (KD-Tree) structure to eliminate the dynamic obstacle point clouds. Then, the method uses a two-step point filter to reduce the number of feature points of the current frame used for matching and the number of data used for optimization. It also calculates the matching degree of normal distribution probability by meshing the point cloud, and optimizes the precision registration using the Hessian matrix method. In the complex orchard environment with multiple loopback events, the root mean square error and standard deviation of the trajectory of the LeGO-LOAM-FN algorithm are 0.45 m and 0.26 m which are 67% and 73% higher than those of the loopback registration algorithm in the Lightweight and Ground-Optimized LiDAR Odometry and Mapping on Variable Terrain (LeGO-LOAM), respectively. The study proves that this method effectively reduces the influence of the cumulative error, and provides technical support for intelligent operation in the orchard environment.

Superelastic Cobalt Silicate@Resorcinol Formaldehyde Resin Core-Shell Nanobelt Aerogel Monoliths with Outstanding Fire Retardant and Thermal Insulating Capability.

The practical applications of resorcinol formaldehyde resin (RFR) aerogels are prevented by their poor mechanical properties. Herein, a facile template-directed method is reported to produce macroscopic free-standing cobalt silicate (CS)@RFR core-shell nanobelt aerogels that display superelastic behavior and outstanding thermal insulating and fire-resistant capability. The synthesis relies on the polymerization of RFR on pre-formed CS nanobelts which leads to in situ formation of hydrogel monoliths that can be transformed to corresponding aerogels by a freeze-drying method. The composite nanobelt aerogel can withstand a compressive load of more than 4000 times of its own weight and fully recover after the removal of the weight. It can also sustain 1000 compressive cycles with 6.9% plastic deformation and 91.8% of the maximum stress remaining, with a constant energy loss coefficient as low as 0.16, at the set strain of 30%. The extraordinary mechanical properties are believed to be associated with the structural flexibility of the nanobelts and the RFR-reinforced joints between the crosslinked nanobelts. These inorganic-organic composite aerogels also show good thermal insulation and excellent fire-proof capability. This work provides an effective strategy for fabricating superelastic RFR-based aerogels which show promising applications in fields such as thermal insulation, energy storage, and catalyst support.

TSML: A New Pig Behavior Recognition Method Based on Two-Stream Mutual Learning Network.

Changes in pig behavior are crucial information in the livestock breeding process, and automatic pig behavior recognition is a vital method for improving pig welfare. However, most methods for pig behavior recognition rely on human observation and deep learning. Human observation is often time-consuming and labor-intensive, while deep learning models with a large number of parameters can result in slow training times and low efficiency. To address these issues, this paper proposes a novel deep mutual learning enhanced two-stream pig behavior recognition approach. The proposed model consists of two mutual learning networks, which include the red-green-blue color model (RGB) and flow streams. Additionally, each branch contains two student networks that learn collaboratively to effectively achieve robust and rich appearance or motion features, ultimately leading to improved recognition performance of pig behaviors. Finally, the results of RGB and flow branches are weighted and fused to further improve the performance of pig behavior recognition. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model, which achieves state-of-the-art recognition performance with an accuracy of 96.52%, surpassing other models by 2.71%.

Delivering exercise medicine to cancer survivors: has COVID-19 shifted the landscape for how and who can be reached with supervised group exercise?

PURPOSE: Due to stay-at-home orders during COVID-19, we transitioned supervised, group, in-person resistance training interventions in two clinical trials in cancer survivors to live, online delivery using video-conferencing technology. We describe the feasibility, preliminary efficacy, and safety of live online group training and compare to in-person training. METHODS: Adherence (% sessions attended), retention (% participants completing intervention), and safety (# adverse events) data of resistance training groups from two randomized controlled trials in cancer survivors that participated before or during the COVID-19 pandemic were collated. Participants were post-treatment breast cancer survivors and their spouses (n = 62) and prostate cancer survivors (n = 32) (age range: 38-82 years). During COVID-19, delivery of supervised, group resistance exercise sessions was delivered live online via video-conference. Preliminary evidence for training efficacy was assessed by chair stand performance over the 6-month intervention. RESULTS: Feasibility of online resistance training was better than in-person for both studies (adherence: 86% vs 82% and 91% vs. 81% and retention 95% vs. 80% and 92% vs. 84% for online and in-person classes). Improvements in chair stand time were similar in prostate cancer and spouse groups that trained online vs. in-person, except for breast cancer survivors who improved more with in-person training (7% vs. 14% for online vs. in-person). Safety was similar between formats (12 vs. 11 adverse events for online vs. in-person). CONCLUSION: Supervised, in-person group resistance training can be feasibly adapted for live, online delivery and could help broaden approaches to exercise delivery in cancer survivors, including older adults. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The studies described in this commentary were registered on ClinicalTrials.gov on August 3, 2018 (NCT03630354) and on October 30, 2018 (NCT03741335).

Combining convolutional sparse coding with total variation for sparse-view CT reconstruction.

Conventional dictionary-learning-based computed tomography (CT) reconstruction methods extract patches from an original image to train, ignoring the consistency of pixels in overlapping patches. To address the problem, this paper proposes a method combining convolutional sparse coding (CSC) with total variation (TV) for sparse-view CT reconstruction. The proposed method inherits the advantages of CSC by directly processing the whole image without dividing it into overlapping patches, which preserves more details and reduces artifacts caused by patch aggregation. By introducing a TV regularization term to enhance the constraint of the image domain, the noise can be effectively further suppressed. The alternating direction method of multipliers algorithm is employed to solve the objective function. Numerous experiments are conducted to validate the performance of the proposed method in different views. Qualitative and quantitative results show the superiority of the proposed method in terms of noise suppression, artifact reduction, and image details recovery.

A cognitively enhanced online Tai Ji Quan training intervention for community-dwelling older adults with mild cognitive impairment: A feasibility trial.

BACKGROUND: This study examines the feasibility, acceptability, and safety of a newly developed cognitive-enhancing Tai Ji Quan training intervention, delivered via remote videoconferencing, for older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). METHODS: In a three-arm feasibility trial, community-dwelling older adults with MCI (N = 69; mean age = 74.6 years, 57% women) were randomized to a cognitively enhanced Tai Ji Quan (n = 23), standard Tai Ji Quan (n = 22), or stretching group (n = 24) and participated in a 60-minute online exercise session via Zoom, twice weekly for 16 weeks. Participants were recruited primarily in the state of Oregon through mass mailing and word of mouth. The primary outcomes were intervention feasibility (with respect to recruitment, online intervention delivery, fidelity and compliance, and attrition and retention rates), acceptability, and safety. We also assessed feasibility of online data collection and test-retest reliability and explored preliminary trends on secondary outcomes that included global cognitive function, dual-task cost, and domain-specific cognition function. RESULTS: The study had an average recruitment rate of 55%. Feasibility was demonstrated by the overall successful online program implementation, with good fidelity, acceptable compliance (76%), and excellent retention (94%). The cognitively enhanced Tai Ji Quan intervention was shown to be acceptable to participants as well as safe, with no major intervention-related moderate/severe events. At week 16, the group receiving cognitively enhanced Tai Ji Quan training showed a positive trend in the cognitive function and dual-task outcome measures whereas the group receiving standard Tai Ji Quan training exhibited positive trends on global and domain-specific cognitive measures. CONCLUSIONS: Preliminary findings of this pilot study indicate the feasibility, acceptability, and safety of a tailored, cognitively enhanced Tai Ji Quan training intervention delivered remotely to home settings via videoconferencing for community-dwelling older adults with MCI. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT04070703.

A Novel Improved YOLOv3-SC Model for Individual Pig Detection.

Pork is the most widely consumed meat product in the world, and achieving accurate detection of individual pigs is of great significance for intelligent pig breeding and health monitoring. Improved pig detection has important implications for improving pork production and quality, as well as economics. However, most of the current approaches are based on manual labor, resulting in unfeasible performance. In order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of individual pig detection, this paper describes the development of an attention module enhanced YOLOv3-SC model (YOLOv3-SPP-CBAM. SPP denotes the Spatial Pyramid Pooling module and CBAM indicates the Convolutional Block Attention Module). Specifically, leveraging the attention module, the network will extract much richer feature information, leading the improved performance. Furthermore, by integrating the SPP structured network, multi-scale feature fusion can be achieved, which makes the network more robust. On the constructed dataset of 4019 samples, the experimental results showed that the YOLOv3-SC network achieved 99.24% mAP in identifying individual pigs with a detection time of 16 ms. Compared with the other popular four models, including YOLOv1, YOLOv2, Faster-RCNN, and YOLOv3, the mAP of pig identification was improved by 2.31%, 1.44%, 1.28%, and 0.61%, respectively. The YOLOv3-SC proposed in this paper can achieve accurate individual detection of pigs. Consequently, this novel proposed model can be employed for the rapid detection of individual pigs on farms, and provides new ideas for individual pig detection.

Efficacy of exercise-based interventions in preventing falls among community-dwelling older persons with cognitive impairment: is there enough evidence? An updated systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Exercise prevents falls in the general older population, but evidence is inconclusive for older adults living with cognitive impairment. We performed an updated systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the potential effectiveness of interventions for reducing falls in older persons with cognitive impairment. METHODS: PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Scopus, CENTRAL and PEDro were searched from inception to 10 November 2020. We included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated the effects of physical training compared to a control condition (usual care, waitlist, education, placebo control) on reducing falls among community-dwelling older adults with cognitive impairment (i.e. any stage of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, mild cognitive impairment). RESULTS: We identified and meta-analysed nine studies, published between 2013 and 2020, that included 12 comparisons (N = 1,411; mean age = 78 years; 56% women). Overall, in comparison to control, interventions produced a statistically significant reduction of approximately 30% in the rate of falls (incidence rate ratio = 0.70; 95% CI, 0.52-0.95). There was significant between-trial heterogeneity (I2 = 74%), with most trials (n = 6 studies [eight comparisons]) showing no reductions on fall rates. Subgroup analyses showed no differences in the fall rates by trial-level characteristics. Exercise-based interventions had no impact on reducing the number of fallers (relative risk = 1.01; 95% CI, 0.90-1.14). Concerns about risk of bias in these RCTs were noted, and the quality of evidence was rated as low. CONCLUSIONS: The positive statistical findings on reducing fall rate in this meta-analysis were driven by a few studies. Therefore, current evidence is insufficient to inform evidence-based recommendations or treatment decisions for clinical practice.PROSPERO Registration number: CRD42020202094.

Physical activity and health in Chinese children and adolescents: expert consensus statement (2020).

China is experiencing significant public health challenges related to social and demographic transitions and lifestyle transformations following unprecedented economic reforms four decades ago. Of particular public health concern is the fourfold increase in overweight and obesity rates in the nation's youth population, coupled with the low prevalence of adolescents meeting recommended levels of physical activity. Improving the overall health of China's more than 170 million children and adolescents has become a national priority. However, advancing nationwide health initiatives and physical activity promotion in this population has been hampered by the lack of a population-specific and culturally relevant consensus on recommendations for achieving these ends. To address this deficiency and inform policies to achieve Healthy China 2030 goals, a panel of Chinese experts, complemented by international professionals, developed this consensus statement. The consensus was achieved through an iterative process that began with a literature search from electronic databases; in-depth reviews, conducted by a steering committee, of the resulting articles; and panel group evaluations and discussions in the form of email correspondence, conference calls and written communications. Ultimately, the panel agreed on 10 major themes with strong scientific evidence that, in children and adolescents aged 6-17, participating in moderate to vigorous physical activities led to multiple positive health outcomes. Our consensus statement also (1) highlights major challenges in promoting physical activity, (2) identifies future research that addresses current knowledge gaps, and (3) provides recommendations for teachers, education experts, parents and policymakers for promoting physical activity among Chinese school-aged children and adolescents. This consensus statement aligns with international efforts to develop global physical activity guidelines to promote physical activity and health and prevent lifestyle-related diseases in children and adolescents. More importantly, it provides a foundation for developing culturally appropriate and effective physical activity interventions, health promotion strategies and policy initiatives to improve the health of Chinese children and adolescents.

Implementing an Evidence-Based Fall Prevention Intervention in Community Senior Centers.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the impact of implementing an evidence-based fall prevention intervention in community senior centers. METHODS: We used a single-group design to evaluate the Tai Ji Quan: Moving for Better Balance (TJQMBB) program's adoption, population reach, implementation, effectiveness, and maintenance among 36 senior centers in 4 Oregon counties between 2012 and 2016. The primary outcome measure, as part of the effectiveness evaluation, was number of falls as ascertained by self-report. Trained TJQMBB instructors delivered the program to community-dwelling older adults for 48 weeks, with a 6-month postintervention follow-up. RESULTS: TJQMBB was adopted by 89% of the senior centers approached and reached 90% of the target population. The program resulted in a 49% reduction in the total number of falls and improved physical performance. Participation was well maintained after the program's completion. The average cost-effectiveness ratio for the 48-week program implementation was $917 per fall prevented and $676 per fall prevented for multiple falls. CONCLUSIONS: TJQMBB is an effective public health program that can be broadly implemented in community senior centers for primary prevention of falls among community-dwelling older adults.

Tai chi and postural stability in patients with Parkinson's disease.

BACKGROUND: Patients with Parkinson's disease have substantially impaired balance, leading to diminished functional ability and an increased risk of falling. Although exercise is routinely encouraged by health care providers, few programs have been proven effective. METHODS: We conducted a randomized, controlled trial to determine whether a tailored tai chi program could improve postural control in patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease. We randomly assigned 195 patients with stage 1 to 4 disease on the Hoehn and Yahr staging scale (which ranges from 1 to 5, with higher stages indicating more severe disease) to one of three groups: tai chi, resistance training, or stretching. The patients participated in 60-minute exercise sessions twice weekly for 24 weeks. The primary outcomes were changes from baseline in the limits-of-stability test (maximum excursion and directional control; range, 0 to 100%). Secondary outcomes included measures of gait and strength, scores on functional-reach and timed up-and-go tests, motor scores on the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale, and number of falls. RESULTS: The tai chi group performed consistently better than the resistance-training and stretching groups in maximum excursion (between-group difference in the change from baseline, 5.55 percentage points; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12 to 9.97; and 11.98 percentage points; 95% CI, 7.21 to 16.74, respectively) and in directional control (10.45 percentage points; 95% CI, 3.89 to 17.00; and 11.38 percentage points; 95% CI, 5.50 to 17.27, respectively). The tai chi group also performed better than the stretching group in all secondary outcomes and outperformed the resistance-training group in stride length and functional reach. Tai chi lowered the incidence of falls as compared with stretching but not as compared with resistance training. The effects of tai chi training were maintained at 3 months after the intervention. No serious adverse events were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Tai chi training appears to reduce balance impairments in patients with mild-to-moderate Parkinson's disease, with additional benefits of improved functional capacity and reduced falls. (Funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00611481.).

Economic Evaluation of a Tai Ji Quan Intervention to Reduce Falls in People With Parkinson Disease, Oregon, 2008-2011.

INTRODUCTION: Exercise is effective in reducing falls in people with Parkinson disease. However, information on the cost effectiveness of this approach is lacking. We conducted a cost-effectiveness analysis of Tai Ji Quan for reducing falls among patients with mild-to-moderate Parkinson disease. METHODS: We used data from a previous intervention trial to analyze resource use costs related to intervention delivery and number of falls observed during a 9-month study period. Cost effectiveness was estimated via incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) in which Tai Ji Quan was compared with 2 alternative interventions (Resistance training and Stretching) on the primary outcome of per fall prevented and the secondary outcome of per participant quality-adjusted life years (QALY) gained. We also conducted subgroup and sensitivity analyses. RESULTS: Tai Ji Quan was more effective than either Resistance training or Stretching; it had the lowest cost and was the most effective in improving primary and secondary outcomes. Compared with Stretching, Tai Ji Quan cost an average of $175 less for each additional fall prevented and produced a substantial improvement in QALY gained at a lower cost. Results from subgroup and sensitivity analyses showed no variation in cost-effectiveness estimates. However, sensitivity analyses demonstrated a much lower ICER ($27) when only intervention costs were considered. CONCLUSION: Tai Ji Quan represents a cost-effective strategy for optimizing spending to prevent falls and maximize health gains in people with Parkinson disease. While these results are promising, they warrant further validation.

A randomized controlled trial of patient-reported outcomes with tai chi exercise in Parkinson's disease.

A previous randomized, controlled trial of tai chi showed improvements in objectively measured balance and other motor-related outcomes in patients with Parkinson's disease. This study evaluated whether patient-reported outcomes could be improved through exercise interventions and whether improvements were associated with clinical outcomes and exercise adherence. In a secondary analysis of the tai chi trial, patient-reported and clinical outcomes and exercise adherence measures were compared between tai chi and resistance training and between tai chi and stretching exercise. Patient-reported outcome measures were perceptions of health-related benefits resulting from participation, assessed by the Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-8) and Vitality Plus Scale (VPS). Clinical outcome measures included motor symptoms, assessed by a modified Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale-Motor Examination (UPDRS-ME) and a 50-foot speed walk. Information on continuing exercise after the structured interventions were terminated was obtained at a 3-month postintervention follow-up. Tai chi participants reported significantly better improvement in the PDQ-8 (-5.77 points, P = 0.014) than did resistance training participants and in PDQ-8 (-9.56 points, P < 0.001) and VPS (2.80 points, P = 0.003) than did stretching participants. For tai chi, patient-reported improvement in the PDQ-8 and VPS was significantly correlated with their clinical outcomes of UPDRS-ME and a 50-foot walk, but these correlations were not statistically different from those shown for resistance training or stretching. However, patient-reported outcomes from tai chi training were associated with greater probability of continued exercise behavior than were either clinical outcomes or patient-reported outcomes from resistance training or stretching. Tai chi improved patient-reported perceptions of health-related benefits, which were found to be associated with a greater probability of exercise adherence. The findings indicate the potential of patient perceptions to drive exercise behavior after structured exercise programs are completed and the value of strengthening such perceptions in any behavioral intervention.

The effect of Tai Chi lower extremity exercise on the balance control of older adults in assistant living communities.

BACKGROUND: Although Tai Chi (TC) is an evidence-based fall prevention training for older adults, its effective movements remain unclear, which may limit the practice of TC. The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of TC lower extremity exercise (TC LEE), the 8-form Tai Chi (8-form TC), and a stretching control intervention for improving balance and functional mobility among older adults. METHODS: This was a randomized controlled trial. A total of 102 participants (79 ± 6 years old) were recruited from assisted living facilities. All participants were randomly assigned to the TC LEE (n = 40), 8-form TC (n = 31), and stretching (n = 31) groups in which they received the respective interventions for 16 weeks. The Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, and center of pressure (COP) measurements during quiet stance were collected prior to and following the 16-week interventions. Comparisons on all measurements were conducted among all groups. RESULTS: Significant improvements were found in BBS (P = 0.002), TUG test (P = 0.001), root mean square amplitude of COP displacement in the anterior-posterior (P = 0.001) and medial-lateral (P = 0.001) directions, and average COP speed in the anterior-posterior (P = 0.001) and medial-lateral (P = 0.001) directions after training in the TC intervention groups compared with the stretching group. The upper limit of the 95% confidence interval (CI) of differences in change scores on the BBS (-0.8 - 1.3 points) between the TC LEE group and the 8-form TC group was within equivalence margins (1.8 points), while the upper limit of the 95% CI of differences in change scores on the TUG test (0.1 - 2.1 s) exceeded the equivalence margin (0.7 s) with the TC LEE group having the larger change scores. CONCLUSION: TC LEE can improve balance and functional mobility in older adults, and may have greater effect than the 8-form TC on improving functional mobility as measured by the TUG test. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ChiCTR2300070600 retrospectively registered.

Can strength training or tai ji quan training reduce frailty in postmenopausal women treated with chemotherapy? A secondary data analysis of the GET FIT trial.

PURPOSE: To determine whether strength training or tai ji quan can reduce frailty in older, postmenopausal women treated with chemotherapy for cancer. METHODS: We conducted a secondary data analysis from a 3-arm, single-blind, randomized controlled trial where older (50-75 years), postmenopausal women cancer survivors were randomized to supervised group exercise programs: tai ji quan, strength training, or stretching control for 6 months. We assessed frailty using a 4-criteria model consisting of weakness, fatigue, inactivity, and slowness. Using logistic regression, we determined whether the frailty phenotype (pre-frailty or frailty) decreased post-intervention, how many and which frailty criteria decreased, and what characteristics identified women most likely to reduce frailty. RESULTS: Data from 386 women who completed baseline and 6-month testing were used (mean age of 62.0 ± 6.4 years). The odds of reducing overall frailty over 6 months were significantly higher in the strength training group compared to controls (OR [95%CI] 1.86 [1.09, 3.17]) but not for tai ji quan (1.44 [0.84, 2.50]). Both strength training (OR 1.99 [1.10, 3.65]) and tai ji quan (OR 2.10 [1.16, 3.84]) led to significantly higher odds of reducing ≥ 1 frailty criterion compared to controls. Strength training led to a three-fold reduction in inactivity (p < 0.01) and tai ji quan to a two-fold reduction in fatigue (p = 0.08) versus control. Higher baseline BMI, comorbidity score, and frailty status characterized women were more likely to reduce frailty than other women. CONCLUSIONS: Strength training appears superior to tai ji quan and stretching with respect to reducing overall frailty phenotype among postmenopausal women treated with chemotherapy for cancer, but tai ji quan favorably reduced the number of frailty criteria. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: GET FIT was registered as a clinical trial in clinicaltrials.gov: NCT01635413. IMPLICATIONS FOR CANCER SURVIVORS: Supervised, group exercise training that emphasizes strength training and/or tai ji quan may help combat accelerated aging and reduce frailty after cancer treatment.

Cattle Body Detection Based on YOLOv5-EMA for Precision Livestock Farming.

Accurate cattle body detection is crucial for precision livestock farming. However, traditional cattle body detection methods rely on manual observation, which is both time-consuming and labor-intensive. Moreover, computer-vision-based methods suffer prolonged training times and training difficulties. To address these issues, this paper proposes a novel YOLOv5-EMA model for accurate cattle body detection. By incorporating the Efficient Multi-Scale Attention (EMA) module into the backbone of YOLO series detection models, the performance of detecting smaller targets, such as heads and legs, has been significantly improved. The Efficient Multi-Scale Attention (EMA) module utilizes the large receptive fields of parallel sub-networks to gather multi-scale spatial information and establishes mutual dependencies between different spatial positions, enabling cross-spatial learning. This enhancement empowers the model to gather and integrate more comprehensive feature information, thereby improving the effectiveness of cattle body detection. The experimental results confirm the good performance of the YOLOv5-EMA model, showcasing promising results across all quantitative evaluation metrics, qualitative detection findings, and visualized Grad-CAM heatmaps. To be specific, the YOLOv5-EMA model achieves an average precision (mAP@0.5) of 95.1% in cattle body detection, 94.8% in individual cattle detection, 94.8% in leg detection, and 95.5% in head detection. Moreover, this model facilitates the efficient and precise detection of individual cattle and essential body parts in complex scenarios, especially when dealing with small targets and occlusions, significantly advancing the field of precision livestock farming.

YOLOv5-SA-FC: A Novel Pig Detection and Counting Method Based on Shuffle Attention and Focal Complete Intersection over Union.

The efficient detection and counting of pig populations is critical for the promotion of intelligent breeding. Traditional methods for pig detection and counting mainly rely on manual labor, which is either time-consuming and inefficient or lacks sufficient detection accuracy. To address these issues, a novel model for pig detection and counting based on YOLOv5 enhanced with shuffle attention (SA) and Focal-CIoU (FC) is proposed in this paper, which we call YOLOv5-SA-FC. The SA attention module in this model enables multi-channel information fusion with almost no additional parameters, enhancing the richness and robustness of feature extraction. Furthermore, the Focal-CIoU localization loss helps to reduce the impact of sample imbalance on the detection results, improving the overall performance of the model. From the experimental results, the proposed YOLOv5-SA-FC model achieved a mean average precision (mAP) and count accuracy of 93.8% and 95.6%, outperforming other methods in terms of pig detection and counting by 10.2% and 15.8%, respectively. These findings verify the effectiveness of the proposed YOLOv5-SA-FC model for pig population detection and counting in the context of intelligent pig breeding.

GET FIT: A Randomized Clinical Trial of Tai Ji Quan Versus Strength Training for Fall Prevention After Chemotherapy in Older, Postmenopausal Women Cancer Survivors.

PURPOSE: To compare the efficacy of tai ji quan versus strength training to prevent falls after chemotherapy in older, postmenopaual women. METHODS: We conducted a three-arm, single-blind, randomized controlled trial where older (50+ years), postmenopausal women cancer survivors participated in one of three supervised group exercise programs (tai ji quan, strength training, or stretching control) twice weekly for 6 months and were followed up 6 months after training stopped. The primary outcome was the incidence of falls. Secondary outcomes included fall-related injuries, leg strength (1 repetition maximum; kg), and balance (sensory organization [equilibrium score] and limits of stability [LOS; %] tests). RESULTS: Four hundred sixty-two women were enrolled (mean age, 62 ± 6.3 years). Retention was 93%, and adherence averaged 72.9%. In primary analysis, there was no difference in the incidence of falls between groups after 6 months of training, nor during 6-month follow-up. A post hoc analysis detected a significantly reduced incidence of fall-related injuries within the tai ji quan group over the first 6 months, dropping from 4.3 falls per 100 person-months (95% CI, 2.9 to 5.6) at baseline to 2.4 falls per person-months (95% CI, 1.2 to 3.5). No significant changes occurred during 6-month follow-up. Over the intervention period, leg strength significantly improved in the strength group and balance (LOS) improved in the tai ji quan group, compared with controls (P < .05). CONCLUSION: We found no significant reduction in falls for tai ji quan or strength training relative to stretching control in postmenopausal women treated with chemotherapy.