Palmprint Phenotype Feature Extraction and Classification Based on Deep Learning.

Palmprints are of long practical and cultural interest. Palmprint principal lines, also called primary palmar lines, are one of the most dominant palmprint features and do not change over the lifespan. The existing methods utilize filters and edge detection operators to get the principal lines from the palm region of interest (ROI), but can not distinguish the principal lines from fine wrinkles. This paper proposes a novel deep-learning architecture to extract palmprint principal lines, which could greatly reduce the influence of fine wrinkles, and classify palmprint phenotypes further from 2D palmprint images. This architecture includes three modules, ROI extraction module (REM) using pre-trained hand key point location model, principal line extraction module (PLEM) using deep edge detection model, and phenotype classifier (PC) based on ResNet34 network. Compared with the current ROI extraction method, our extraction is competitive with a success rate of 95.2%. For principal line extraction, the similarity score between our extracted lines and ground truth palmprint lines achieves 0.813. And the proposed architecture achieves a phenotype classification accuracy of 95.7% based on our self-built palmprint dataset CAS_Palm.

[Clinical research of auricular gold-needle therapy in treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome of qi deficiency constitution].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical therapeutic effects of auricular gold-needle therapy on chronic fatigue syndrome of qi deficiency constitution and explore its potential mechanism. METHODS: A total of 120 patients were randomized into an auricular gold-needle therapy group, an auricular point pressure therapy group and a Chinese herb group, 40 cases in each one. Additionally, a health control group (40 cases) was set up, without any intervention. In the auricular gold-needle therapy group, the gold needle was used to stimulate the auricular points on one side and the cowherb seed pressure therapy on the other side. In the auricular point pressure therapy group, the cowherb seed pressure therapy was adopted only on one side. The auricular points were shen (CO10), xin (CO15), fei (CO14), pizhixia (AT4), etc. in the two groups. The auricular points on both sides were used alternatively. The treatment was given once a week, 4 treatments as one course and the consecutive 3 courses of treatment were required. In the Chinese herb group, buzhong yiqi wan was prescribed for oral administration, 6 g, twice a day, the medication for 1 month was as one session and the consecutive 3 sessions of medication were required. Before and after treatment, separately, the clinical symptom score, the levels of the serum immunoglobulins, i.e. IgA, IgG and IgM were observed in the patients of the three groups. The therapeutic effects were evaluated in the three groups. RESULTS: The total effective rate was 90.0% (36/40) in the auricular gold-needle therapy group, better than 80.0% (32/40) in the auricular point pressure therapy group and 82.5% (33/40) in the Chinese herb group (both P<0.05). Before treatment, the clinical symptom scores of the patients in the three groups were obviously higher than the health control group (all P<0.001). After treatment, the symptom scores were all reduced as compared the scores before treatment in the three groups (all P<0.001) and the symptom scores in the auricular gold-needle therapy group were better than the auricular point pressure therapy group and the Chinese herb group (both P<0.01). Before treatment, the levels of serum IgA, IgG and IgM of the patients in the three groups were lower than the health control group (all P<0.001). The levels were all improved after treatment in the three groups (all P<0.01), and the levels in the auricular gold-needle therapy group was better than the auricular point pressure therapy group and the Chinese herb group (all P<0.05). CONCLUSION: The auricular gold-needle therapy achieves the significant therapeutic effects on chronic fatigue syndrome of qi deficiency constitution and its mechanism is probably related to the regulation of immune function.

[Clinical research on auricular point therapy for 1477 cases of biased constitution].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the efficacy of biased constitution patients treated by auricular point therapy on the basis of "preventive treatment" theory. METHODS: By means of self-control, 1477 cases of biased constitution were regulated by auricular point sticking therapy or acupuncture, and follow-up and statistical analysis were conducted to observe the efficacy. RESULTS: There were 322 markedly effective patients, 914 effective patients, 241 failed patients and the total effective rate was 83.7% (1236/1477). CONCLUSION: The comprehensive auricular treatment which is easy to operate and acceptable for patients has obvious effect in biased constitution patients. As a new direction of the "preventive treatment" theory, it can be promoted to be a new intervention way of health care.