A Review of Recent Hardware and Software Advances in GPU-Accelerated Edge-Computing Single-Board Computers (SBCs) for Computer Vision.

Computer Vision (CV) has become increasingly important for Single-Board Computers (SBCs) due to their widespread deployment in addressing real-world problems. Specifically, in the context of smart cities, there is an emerging trend of developing end-to-end video analytics solutions designed to address urban challenges such as traffic management, disaster response, and waste management. However, deploying CV solutions on SBCs presents several pressing challenges (e.g., limited computation power, inefficient energy management, and real-time processing needs) hindering their use at scale. Graphical Processing Units (GPUs) and software-level developments have emerged recently in addressing these challenges to enable the elevated performance of SBCs; however, it is still an active area of research. There is a gap in the literature for a comprehensive review of such recent and rapidly evolving advancements on both software and hardware fronts. The presented review provides a detailed overview of the existing GPU-accelerated edge-computing SBCs and software advancements including algorithm optimization techniques, packages, development frameworks, and hardware deployment specific packages. This review provides a subjective comparative analysis based on critical factors to help applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) researchers in demonstrating the existing state of the art and selecting the best suited combinations for their specific use-case. At the end, the paper also discusses potential limitations of the existing SBCs and highlights the future research directions in this domain.

The role of treatment of hepatitis C with direct-acting antiviral agents on glycaemic control in diabetic patients: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis.

Recent studies suggested that successful clearance of chronic Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) by using direct-acting antiviral (DAA) agents could improve glycemic control in patients with diabetes; however, some studies failed to identify this benefit. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the impact of sustained virologic response (SVR) after treatment with DAA agents on glycemic control. Embase, Scopus and PubMed were searched through March 26th, 2023, for all studies evaluating whether eradication of HCV infection with DAAs is associated with an impact on glycemic control. Only studies with data on glycemic control, including haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), fasting glucose, or Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR), at least 12-week post-SVR were included. Sixteen studies met our eligibility criteria and were included in qualitative analysis. The mean HbA1c was 8.05% (95% CI: 7.79%-8.31%) before treatment and 7.19% (95% CI: 6.98%-7.39%) after treatment. There was a significant mean absolute reduction in HbA1c of 0.72% (95% CI: 0.52%-0.93%) with high heterogeneity between studies (I2 = 91.7%). The reduction in HbA1c remained significant in the subgroup analysis at 3 months follow up post SVR [0.74% (95% CI: 0.57%-0.91%)] and at least 6 months follow up [0.66% (95% CI: 0.23%-1.10%)]. We found a significant reduction in HbA1C after SVR in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, reflecting better glycemic control with HCV eradication. This data highlights an important extrahepatic benefit of HCV eradication.

An End-to-End Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) Solution for Protecting Pipeline Easements against External Interference-An Australian Use-Case.

High-pressure pipelines are critical for transporting hazardous materials over long distances, but they face threats from third-party interference activities. Preventive measures are implemented, but interference accidents can still occur, making the need for high-quality detection strategies vital. This paper proposes an end-to-end Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) solution to detect potential interference threats in real time. The solution involves developing a smart visual sensor capable of processing images using state-of-the-art computer vision algorithms and transmitting alerts to pipeline operators in real time. The system's core is based on the object-detection model (e.g., You Only Look Once version 4 (YOLOv4) and DETR with Improved deNoising anchOr boxes (DINO)), trained on a custom Pipeline Visual Threat Assessment (Pipe-VisTA) dataset. Among the trained models, DINO was able to achieve the best Mean Average Precision (mAP) of 71.2% for the unseen test dataset. However, for the deployment on a limited computational-ability edge computer (i.e., the NVIDIA Jetson Nano), the simpler and TensorRT-optimized YOLOv4 model was used, which achieved a mAP of 61.8% for the test dataset. The developed AIoT device captures the image using a camera, processes on the edge using the trained YOLOv4 model to detect the potential threat, transmits the threat alert to a Fleet Portal via LoRaWAN, and hosts the alert on a dashboard via a satellite network. The device has been fully tested in the field to ensure its functionality prior to deployment for the SEA Gas use-case. The AIoT smart solution has been deployed across the 10km stretch of the SEA Gas pipeline across the Murray Bridge section. In total, 48 AIoT devices and three Fleet Portals are installed to ensure the line-of-sight communication between the devices and portals.

Safety and efficacy of EsoFLIP dilation in patients with esophageal dysmotility: a systematic review.

Esophageal manometry is utilized for the evaluation and classification of esophageal motility disorders. EndoFlip has been introduced as an adjunctive test to evaluate esophagogastric junction (EGJ) distensibility. Treatment options for achalasia and EGJ outflow obstruction (EGJOO) include pneumatic dilation, myotomy, and botulinum toxin. Recently, a therapeutic 30 mm hydrostatic balloon dilator (EsoFLIP, Medtronic, Minneapolis, MN, USA) has been introduced, which uses impedance planimetry technology like EndoFlip. We performed a systematic review to evaluate the safety and efficacy of EsoFLIP in the management of esophageal motility disorders. A systematic literature search was performed with Medline, Embase, Web of science, and Cochrane library databases from inception to November 2022 to identify studies utilizing EsoFLIP for management of esophageal motility disorders. Our primary outcome was clinical success, and secondary outcomes were adverse events. Eight observational studies including 222 patients met inclusion criteria. Diagnoses included achalasia (158), EGJOO (48), post-reflux surgery dysphagia (8), and achalasia-like disorder (8). All studies used 30 mm maximum balloon dilation except one which used 25 mm. The clinical success rate was 68.7%. Follow-up duration ranged from 1 week to a mean of 5.7 months. Perforation or tear occurred in four patients. EsoFLIP is a new therapeutic option for the management of achalasia and EGJOO and appears to be effective and safe. Future comparative studies with other therapeutic modalities are needed to understand its role in the management of esophageal motility disorders.

Case Report: Acute abdomen and large mesenteric mass as another face of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in an adolescent child: measure twice, act once!

Introduction: During the Covid-19 era, acute abdomen and mesenteric lymphadenopathy were encountered as frequent mimic of appendicitis. This phenomenon can further complicate the diagnosis of acute abdominal conditions, not solely due to bacterial or viral intestinal infections but also attributable to post-infectious acute inflammatory states resulting in either undertreatment of inflammatory conditions or unnecessary surgery. Case presentation: In this case study, we present the case of an 11-year-old female who initially presented with fever and right lower quadrant abdominal pain, raising concerns of appendicitis. However, upon further investigation, it was revealed that she harbored a sizable mesenteric mass. Subsequent biopsy results unveiled a significant necrotic mesenteric lymphadenitis. Notably, this patient fulfilled the criteria for Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), a condition that manifested following persistent postoperative fever. Remarkably, the patient exhibited a highly favorable response to the treatment administered. This clinical scenario presents an atypical manifestation of MIS-C, as the patient displayed a substantial mesenteric mass alongside symptoms mimicking appendicitis, within the context of an acute abdomen. Conclusion: Clinicians should consider MIS-C and other post-infectious inflammatory conditions in mind when diagnosing acute abdominal cases. The presented case underscores the importance of recognizing atypical presentations of MIS-C that can mimic appendicitis, sometimes necessitating surgical resection of a large lymph node. We propose diagnostic flow chart to aid in the differentiation of acute bacterial appendicitis from MIS-C.

Changing Trends in Liver Biopsy Practices: A Single-Center Analysis.

Introduction To assess the trends for liver biopsy (LB) indications, technique, and histopathologic diagnosis, we retrospectively evaluated liver biopsies in two one-year periods, separated by a decade. Methods A pathology database query was performed for all parenchymal LB in patients over 18 years (11/2017 to 10/2018) and compared to those performed over a one-year period, a decade ago. We identified 427 parenchymal liver biopsies in the recent group and 166 in the decade-old group. Results Elevated liver enzymes are the most common indication for LB. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become the most common diagnosis compared to 10 years ago, when it was viral hepatitis. Routes of LB were significantly different between the two groups, endoscopic ultrasound-guided liver biopsy (EUS-LB) (80.3% vs 0; p<0.0001), computed tomography-guided (0 vs 42.8%, p<0.0001), percutaneous by gastroenterologists (0% vs 29.5%, p<0.0001), and transjugular-LB (15.1% vs 17.6%, p<0.0001). The adequacy of the tissue for pathological diagnosis was similar, and there was no difference in adverse events. Conclusion At our institution, practice patterns have changed significantly for liver biopsy. There has been an increase in liver biopsy volume, and EUS guidance has become the most common approach for liver biopsy.

Safety and Efficacy of Powered Non-Thermal Endoscopic Resection Device for Removal of Colonic Polyps: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Endoscopic mucosal resection is a frequently employed method for removing colonic polyps. Nonetheless, the recurrence of these polyps over a healed submucosal base can complicate the extraction of leftover lesions through standard procedures. EndoRotor®, a non-thermal device specifically designed for endoscopic mucosal resection, has recently been assessed for its utility in removing colonic polyps, non-dysplastic Barrett's esophagus, and pancreatic necrosis. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to ascertain the safety and efficacy of EndoRotor® in resecting scared or recurrence colonic polyps. Methods: We conducted an exhaustive review of existing literature using databases such as Medline, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library until January 2023. Our aim was to find all studies that assessed the safety of non-thermal endoscopic resection devices in removing colonic polyps. The primary outcome we focused on was the rate of technical success. Secondary outcomes that we considered included the frequency of remaining lesions and instances of adverse events. To analyze these data, we used comprehensive meta-analysis software. Results: Our analysis incorporated three studies comprising 54 patients who underwent resection of 60 lesions. The combined technical success rate was 93.9% (95% confidence interval (CI): 77.7-98.6%, I2 = 25.5%). In patients who had another endoscopic examination, 20 were found to have a residual lesion. After the initial session, the combined rate of remaining lesions was 39.8% (95% CI: 15.3-70.8%, I2 = 74.5%). There were eight occurrences of intraoperative bleeding and four instances of bleeding post-procedure. The combined rate of intraoperative bleeding was 13.2% (95% CI: 6.7-24.3%, I2 = 0%), and post-procedure bleeding stood at 8.5% (95% CI: 3.4-19.8%, I2 = 0%). Only one major bleeding event was recorded, and no cases of perforation were reported. Conclusion: Our research indicates that the EndoRotor® effectively removes scarred colonic polyps, though the rate of remaining lesions is significant, potentially necessitating several sessions for a thorough removal. There is a need for broader prospective studies, mainly randomized controlled trials, to further assess EndoRotor®'s efficiency and safety in eliminating colonic polyps.

Efficacy of cap-assisted endoscopy for the visualization of the major duodenal papilla: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The current standard of practice is to use a duodenoscope for the evaluation of the major duodenal papilla (MDP). Recently, cap-assisted endoscopy (CAE), which uses a transparent cap at the tip of a standard front-viewing endoscope, has emerged as an alternative. METHODS: A systematic literature search was performed in several databases from inception to January 2023 to identify studies evaluating the efficacy of CAE for the evaluation of the MDP. RESULTS: Nine studies including 806 patients met our inclusion criteria. The pooled rate of technical success for CAE was 93.2% (95% confidence interval, 85.6-96.9; I2 = 84.6%). A subgroup analysis comparing CAE with a standard endoscope showed higher odds for the evaluation of the MDP with CAE (but not a duodenoscope, which was better than CAE) with an odds ratio of 57.294 (95% confidence interval, 17.767-184.755; I2 = 45.303%). CONCLUSIONS: CAE offers a significant advantage with high rates of complete MDP evaluation compared with standard forward-viewing endoscopy. However, CAE is associated with lower rates of success when compared with side-viewing endoscopes.

The Usefulness of Bioelectrical Impedance as a Marker of Fluid Status in Patients With Congestive Heart Failure: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is a method that measures electrical currents conducted through water, which assesses fluid status by measuring extracellular water (ECW), total body water (TBW), and resistance (R). Limited studies are done to evaluate the utility of BIA in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF), and therefore, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate this. A comprehensive literature search was performed at Medline and Embase until March 2022. Our primary outcome was a comparison of TBW and ECW between patients with CHF and controls. Our secondary outcome was to compare R between the groups. All analysis was conducted using RevMan 5.4 software. Six studies with 1,046 patients met our inclusion criteria. Out of 1,046 patients, 526 had CHF and 538 had no CHF. Among patients with CHF, all 526 had decompensated CHF. There was no significant difference in TBW between patients with heart failure and the control group (mean deviation (MD) = 1.42 (-0.44-3.27), percent of variation (I2) = 0%, p = 0.13). ECW was significantly higher with an assessment of BIA in heart failure patients compared to patients in the control group (MD = 1.62 (0.82-2.42), I2 = 0%, p < 0.0001). Resistance of extracellular fluid was significantly lower in the heart failure group (MD = -45.64 (-72.88--18.41), I2 = 83%, p = 0.001). Publication bias was deferred as the number of included studies was less than 10. BIA can be helpful in ambulatory and inpatient setting to identify patients' fluid status, which can improve outcomes. However, larger prospective studies are needed to further evaluate the usefulness of BIA in the CHF population.

Outcomes and Complications of Radiological Gastrostomy vs. Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy for Enteral Feeding: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) and percutaneous radiological gastrostomy (PRG) are commonly utilized to establish access to enteral nutrition. However, data comparing the outcomes of PEG vs. PRG are conflicting. Therefore, we aimed to conduct an updated systemic review and meta-analysis comparing PRG and PEG outcomes. Methods: Medline, Embase, and Cochrane library databases were searched until February 24, 2023. Primary outcomes included 30-day mortality, tube leakage, tube dislodgement, perforation, and peritonitis. Secondary outcomes included bleeding, infectious complications, and aspiration pneumonia. All analyses were conducted using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis Software. Results: The initial search revealed 872 studies. Of these, 43 of these studies met our inclusion criteria and were included in the final meta-analysis. Of 471,208 total patients, 194,399 received PRG and 276,809 received PEG. PRG was associated with higher odds of 30-day mortality when compared to PEG (odds ratio (OR): 1.205, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.015 - 1.430, I2 = 55%). In addition, tube leakage and tube dislodgement were higher in the PRG group than in PEG (OR: 2.231, 95% CI: 1.184 - 4.2 and OR: 2.602, 95% CI: 1.911 - 3.541, respectively). Perforation, peritonitis, bleeding, and infectious complications were higher with PRG than PEG. Conclusion: PEG is associated with lower 30-day mortality, tube leakage, and tube dislodgement rates than PRG.

Comparative Efficacy of Treatment Options for the Prevention of Post-TIPS Hepatic Encephalopathy: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) is often used in patients with cirrhosis to manage portal hypertension-related complications. Unfortunately, 35-50% of patients develop overt hepatic encephalopathy (HE) after TIPS. However, data on lactulose and rifaximin to prevent post-TIPS HE is limited. Therefore, we aimed to perform a network meta-analysis to investigate the efficacy of multiple pharmacological regimens in the prevention of post-TIPS HE. METHODS: A comprehensive search strategy to identify reports of studies of rifaximin use on post-TIPS hepatic encephalopathy was constructed using truncated keywords, phrases, and subject headings developed in Embase. This strategy was translated to MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and the Web of Science Core Collection, with all searches performed on 10 February 2022. No publication date or language limits were used. RESULTS: The initial search identified 72 studies, and 56 studies were screened after removing duplicates. Five studies, two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and three retrospective studies, met our inclusion criteria and were included in the final analysis. A total of 840 patients were included, with 65% male. Our meta- analysis did not find a statistically significant difference between lactulose vs placebo/no prophylaxis, nor rifaximin vs placebo/no prophylaxis, nor rifaximin plus lactulose vs placebo/no prophylaxis in the reduction of post-TIPS HE. CONCLUSIONS: Rifaximin alone, lactulose alone, and rifaximin plus lactulose did not significantly reduce the development of post-TIPS HE. Based on the P-scores of the three treatment groups, the combination of rifaximin plus lactulose showed the most promising trend towards preventing post-TIPS HE. More studies, especially large RCTs, are warranted.

Gastrointestinal Bleeding Secondary to Splenic Artery Pseudoaneurysm: A Delayed Complication of a Lumen-Apposing Metal Stent.

Lumen-apposing metal stents (LAMSs) have been widely used for drainage of peripancreatic collections. A 71-year-old woman with a history of necrotizing pancreatitis who underwent LAMS placement 3 months ago for symptomatic pancreatic fluid collection presented with hematochezia and hemodynamic instability. Computed tomographic angiography of the abdomen showed concerns for stent erosion into the splenic artery. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed a large pulsating nonbleeding vessel within the LAMS. She underwent a mesenteric angiogram, which showed splenic artery pseudoaneurysm, and coil embolization was performed. Gastrointestinal bleeding secondary to pseudoaneurysm should be considered in patients with recent LAMS placement who present with signs of gastrointestinal bleeding.

Role of rifaximin in the management of alcohol-associated hepatitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Alcohol-associated hepatitis (AAH) is an acute, inflammatory liver disease with severe short-term and long-term morbidity and mortality. AAH can lead to severe complications including hepatic failure, gastrointestinal bleeding, sepsis, and the development or decompensation of cirrhosis. Rifaximin is an antibiotic that reduces bacterial overgrowth and gut translocation, and it may have a role in decreasing systemic inflammation and infection in patients with AAH. Therefore, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the role of rifaximin in the management of AAH. METHODS: A comprehensive search strategy was used to identify studies that met our inclusion criteria in Embase, MEDLINE (PubMed), Cochrane Library, Web of Science Core Collection, and Google Scholar. Outcomes of interest included rates of infection, 90-day mortality, and overall mortality between the rifaximin versus non-rifaximin group. Open Meta Analyst software was used to compute the results. RESULTS: Three studies with a total of 162 patients were included in the final meta-analysis. Of the three studies, two were randomized control trials (RCTs), and one was a case-control study. There was a significantly lower rate of infection in the rifaximin group versus the non-rifaximin group (RR: 0.331, 95% CI: 0.159-0.689, I2  = 0%, P = 0.003). There was no significant difference in 90-day mortality in the rifaximin versus non-rifaximin group (RR: 0.743, 95% CI: 0.298-1.850, I2  = 24%, P = 0.523), nor was there a significant difference in overall mortality (RR: 0.624, 95% 95% CI: 0.299-1.3, I2  = 7.1%, P = 0.208). CONCLUSIONS: The use of rifaximin in AAH is associated with a lower rate of infection rate than the non-rifaximin group. Additional research is needed to determine whether this effect is more pronounced in patients concurrently being treated with prednisolone. Differences in 90-day or overall mortality did not reach statistical significance. Further studies, particularly large randomized controlled trials, are needed to establish the role of rifaximin in AAH, especially as an adjunct therapy with prednisolone.

V2ReID: Vision-Outlooker-Based Vehicle Re-Identification.

With the increase of large camera networks around us, it is becoming more difficult to manually identify vehicles. Computer vision enables us to automate this task. More specifically, vehicle re-identification (ReID) aims to identify cars in a camera network with non-overlapping views. Images captured of vehicles can undergo intense variations of appearance due to illumination, pose, or viewpoint. Furthermore, due to small inter-class similarities and large intra-class differences, feature learning is often enhanced with non-visual cues, such as the topology of camera networks and temporal information. These are, however, not always available or can be resource intensive for the model. Following the success of Transformer baselines in ReID, we propose for the first time an outlook-attention-based vehicle ReID framework using the Vision Outlooker as its backbone, which is able to encode finer-level features. We show that, without embedding any additional side information and using only the visual cues, we can achieve an 80.31% mAP and 97.13% R-1 on the VeRi-776 dataset. Besides documenting our research, this paper also aims to provide a comprehensive walkthrough of vehicle ReID. We aim to provide a starting point for individuals and organisations, as it is difficult to navigate through the myriad of complex research in this field.

Edge-Computing Video Analytics Solution for Automated Plastic-Bag Contamination Detection: A Case from Remondis.

The increased global waste generation rates over the last few decades have made the waste management task a significant problem. One of the potential approaches adopted globally is to recycle a significant portion of generated waste. However, the contamination of recyclable waste has been a major problem in this context and causes almost 75% of recyclable waste to be unusable. For sustainable development, efficient management and recycling of waste are of huge importance. To reduce the waste contamination rates, conventionally, a manual bin-tagging approach is adopted; however, this is inefficient and requires huge labor effort. Within household waste contamination, plastic bags have been found to be one of the main contaminants. Towards automating the process of plastic-bag contamination detection, this paper proposes an edge-computing video analytics solution using the latest Artificial Intelligence (AI), Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) and computer vision technologies. The proposed system is based on the idea of capturing video of waste from the truck hopper, processing it using edge-computing hardware to detect plastic-bag contamination and storing the contamination-related information for further analysis. Faster R-CNN and You Only Look Once version 4 (YOLOv4) deep learning model variants are trained using the Remondis Contamination Dataset (RCD) developed from Remondis manual tagging historical records. The overall system was evaluated in terms of software and hardware performance using standard evaluation measures (i.e., training performance, testing performance, Frames Per Second (FPS), system usage, power consumption). From the detailed analysis, YOLOv4 with CSPDarkNet_tiny was identified as a suitable candidate with a Mean Average Precision (mAP) of 63% and FPS of 24.8 with NVIDIA Jetson TX2 hardware. The data collected from the deployment of edge-computing hardware on waste collection trucks was used to retrain the models and improved performance in terms of mAP, False Positives (FPs), False Negatives (FNs) and True Positives (TPs) was achieved for the retrained YOLOv4 with CSPDarkNet_tiny backbone model. A detailed cost analysis of the proposed system is also provided for stakeholders and policy makers.

Safety of endoscopic mucosal resection of large colonic polyps in elderly patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) is a procedure commonly used for large sessile and flat polyps. However, it may cause bleeding, perforation, and complications related to anesthesia. There are limited data on the safety and efficacy of EMR in the elderly. Therefore, we conducted a comprehensive review and meta-analysis to assess EMR safety in elderly patients. Methods: We searched MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Web of Science Core Collection for studies evaluating EMR for large colorectal lesions (>20 mm) in older patients (75+ years). Our primary result was post-polypectomy bleeding and perforation, while our secondary outcome was recurrence or residual polyp. Results: The meta-analysis included 6 studies with 2903 patients. The rate of post-polypectomy bleeding was 5.3% (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.3-11.7%), I 2=73.7%; and perforation was 1.9% (95%CI 0.9-3.8%), I 2=0%, in patients over 75 years old. The pooled risk of post-polypectomy bleeding was 2.4%, 95%CI 1.2-4.8%, I 2=0%; and perforation was 2.1%, 95%CI 0.7-5.8%, I 2=8.6%, in patients over 80 years old. The risk of post-polypectomy bleeding (odds ratio [OR] 0.922, 95%CI 0.359-2.367, I 2=0%); and perforation (OR 1.066, 95%CI 0.188-6.031, I 2=0%) did not differ significantly between patients aged over 80 and younger patients. The pooled rate of residual or recurrence of polyps in patients aged over 80 was significantly higher (25%, 95%CI 17-35.3%, I 2=59.5%) vs. younger patients (OR 2.234, 95%CI 1.549-3.223, I 2=0%). Conclusion: EMR is as safe for the elderly as it is for younger patients, and is not associated with a greater risk of bleeding or perforation.