Evaluating the Role of AI in Predicting the Success of Dental Implants Based on Preoperative CBCT Images: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Dental implant surgery has become a widely accepted method for replacing missing teeth. However, the success of dental implant procedures can be influenced by various factors, including the quality of preoperative planning and assessment. Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) imaging provides valuable insights into a patient's oral anatomy, but accurately predicting implant success remains a challenge. Materials and Methods: In this randomized controlled trial (RCT), a cohort of 150 patients requiring dental implants was randomly divided into two groups: an artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted group and a traditional assessment group. Preoperative CBCT images of all patients were acquired and processed. The AI-assisted group utilized a machine learning model trained on historical data to assess implant success probability based on CBCT images, while the traditional assessment group relied on conventional methods and clinician expertise. Key parameters such as bone density, bone quality, and anatomical features were considered in the AI model. Results: After the completion of the study, the AI-assisted group demonstrated a significantly higher implant success rate, with 92% of implants successfully integrating into the bone compared to 78% in the traditional assessment group. The AI model showed an accuracy of 87% in predicting implant success, whereas traditional assessment methods achieved an accuracy of 71%. Additionally, the AI-assisted group had a lower rate of complications and required fewer postoperative interventions compared to the traditional assessment group. Conclusion: The AI-assisted approach significantly improved implant success rates and reduced complications, underscoring the importance of incorporating AI into the dental implant planning process.

Ictal autonomic activity recorded via wearable-sensors plus machine learning can discriminate epileptic and psychogenic nonepileptic seizures.

Differentiating epileptic seizures (ES) and psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) is commonly based on electroencephalogram and concurrent video recordings (vEEG). Here, we demonstrate that these two types of seizures can be discriminated based on signals related to autonomic nervous system activity recorded via wearable sensors. We used Empatica E4 Wristband sensors worn on both arms in vEEG confirmed seizures, and machine learning methods to train classifiers, specifically, extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost). Classification performance achieved a predictive accuracy of 78 ± 1.5% on previously unseen data for whether a seizure was epileptic or psychogenic, which is 6 standard deviations above the baseline of 68% accuracy. Our dataset contained altogether 35 seizures from 18 patients out of which 8 patients had 13 convulsive seizures. Prediction of seizure type was based on simple features derived from the segments of autonomic activity measurements (electrodermal activity, body temperature, blood volume pulse, and heart rate) and forearm acceleration. Features related to heart rate and electrodermal activity were ranked as the top predictors in XGBoost classifiers. We found that patients with PNES had a higher ictal heart rate and electrodermal activity than patients with ES. In contrast to existing published studies of mainly convulsive seizures, our classifier focuses on autonomic signals to differentiate convulsive or nonconvulsive semiology ES from PNES. Our results show that autonomic activity recorded via wearable sensors provides promising signals for detection and discrimination of psychogenic and epileptic seizures, but more work is necessary to improve the predictive power of the model.

Spatial distribution of health facilities in Islamabad, Pakistan.

There are no comprehensive, spatially referenced databases of public and private health facilities in any of the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region. This study in Pakistan was conducted to demonstrate the feasibility of creating a spatially referenced health facility database for a medium-sized city, in a low-cost, non-resource intensive manner and to visualize the spatial relationship between hospitals and clinics in the city of Islamabad. Cumulatively, 166 (77.6% of all clinics mapped) were in close proximity (within 1 km) to a hospital. Repeating such studies elsewhere would help us to better understand different spatial distribution patterns, the reasons for them and the implications for health-care planning.

Spatial distribution of health facilities in Islamabad, Pakistan

There are no comprehensive, spatially referenced databases of public and private health facilities in any of the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region. This study in Pakistan was conducted to demonstrate the feasibility of creating a spatially referenced health facility database for a medium-sized city, in a low-cost, non-resource intensive manner and to visualize the spatial relationship between hospitals and clinics in the city of Islamabad. Cumulatively, 166 [77.6% of all clinics mapped] were in close proximity [within 1 km] to a hospital. Repeating such studies elsewhere would help us to better understand different spatial distribution patterns, the reasons for them and the implications for health-care planning

Road rage and road traffic accidents among commercial vehicle drivers in Lahore, Pakistan.

Road rage and road traffic accidents increase the burden of morbidity and mortality in a population. A cross-sectional survey with convenience sampling was conducted among commercial vehicle drivers in Lahore, Pakistan (n = 901) to record their behaviours/experiences regarding road rage and road traffic accidents. Respondents were asked about incidents of shouting/cursing/rude gestures or threats to physically hurt the person/vehicle, by others or themselves, in the previous 24 hours or 3 months, and their involvement in road traffic accidents in the previous 12 months. Auto-rickshaw drivers were significantly more likely to report various road rage experiences/behaviours and involvement in accidents compared with bus and wagon drivers. A total of 112 respondents (12.4%) reported being involved in a road traffic accident in the previous 12 months but traffic police did not record the accident in 52.7% of cases. The results of this study underline the need to improve road safety in Pakistan.

Road rage and road traffic accidents among commercial vehicle drivers in Lahore, Pakistan

Road rage and road traffic accidents increase the burden of morbidity and mortality in a population. A cross-sectional survey with convenience sampling was conducted among commercial vehicle drivers in Lahore, Pakistan [N= 901] to record their behaviours/experiences regarding road rage and road traffic accidents. Respondents were asked about incidents of shouting/cursing/rude gestures or threats to physically hurt the person/vehicle, by others or themselves, in the previous 24 hours or 3 months, and their involvement in road traffic accidents in the previous 12 months. Auto-rickshaw drivers were significantly more likely to report various road rage experiences/ behaviours and involvement in accidents compared with bus and wagon drivers. A total of 112 respondents [12.4%] reported being involved in a road traffic accident in the previous 12 months but traffic police did not record the accident in 52.7% of cases. The results of this study underline the need to improve road safety in Pakistan

Road rage behaviour and experiences of rickshaw drivers in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.

A cross-sectional survey with convenience sampling was conducted among rickshaw drivers in Rawalpindi, Pakistan to study their road rage behaviour and experiences. Cumulatively 318 male drivers participated in this study. The most common forms of road rage reported were: having been shouted at; and having experienced rude gestures from other drivers (78.9% each). Least common forms of road rage reported were: threats of physical hurt or having actually been physically hurt ( < or = 3% each). Rickshaw drivers with shorter driving time (< or = 10 years) had significantly more road rage experiences than those who had been driving for more than 10 years (P < 0.01). There is a need for nationally representative surveys to study road age in commercial vehicle drivers so as to improve road safety in Pakistan.

Prostatic assessment in rats after bilateral orchidectomy and calcitonin treatment.

OBJECTIVE: Bilateral orchidectomy is widely used as a treatment in patients with metastatic prostatic cancer, but post-orchidectomy osteoporosis is a common sequel which is commonly treated by postoperative calcitonin injection. Since the increase in the invasiveness of malignant prostatic cells has been attributed to the use of calcitonin, this study was aimed to elucidate the effect of calcitonin on the structure of the prostate after orchidectomy in rats used as mammalian model. METHODS: A total of 84 adult male albino rats were divided into three groups: Group 1 (12 control rats); Group 2 (36 rats subjected to bilateral orchidectomy); Group 3 (36 rats subjected to bilateral orchidectomy and injected subcutaneously with calcitonin (5 µg/kg) every other day. Six animals of Group 2 and 3 were sacrificed two, four, eight, sixteen and twenty four weeks after orchidectomy. The prostates were removed and processed for morphometric measurements by using the image analyzer computer system. RESULTS: The present study demonstrated a decrease in the height and apoptosis of the epithelial lining of the prostatic acini. There was also an increase in the interacinar fibromuscular stroma. However, calcitonin administration following orchidectomy limited these changes. CONCLUSION: Bilateral orchidectomy produced time related atrophic changes in the prostate, while a simultaneous administration of calcitonin inhibits the development of these atrophic changes.

Beliefs about euthanasia among university students: perspectives from Pakistan.

Opinions of university students about euthanasia were studied in 4 cities in Pakistan using convenience sampling. A total of 836 students (316 males and 520 females) completed a questionnaire in which euthanasia was defined as deliberate administration of an overdose of a drug by a doctor to relieve pain and suffering of a dying patient at his/her explicit request to end his/her life. Only 25.6% of students agreed that euthanasia should be legalized in Pakistan. The most common reason cited for legalization of euthanasia was to relieve patient's suffering but only when a committee of physicians agreed to recommend it. Students who opposed legalization (74.4%) cited impediments to future medical research as the most common reason, followed by the risk of misuse by physicians or family members. Only 8.9% of students cited religious beliefs as a reason against legalization. There is a need in Pakistan for more debate about euthanasia.

Road rage behaviour and experiences of rickshaw drivers in Rawalpindi, Pakistan

A cross-sectional survey with convenience sampling was conducted among rickshaw drivers in Rawalpindi, Pakistan to study their road rage behaviour and experiences. Cumulatively 318 male drivers participated in this study. The most common forms of road rage reported were: having been shouted at; and having experienced rude gestures from other drivers [78.9% each]. Least common forms of road rage reported were: threats of physical hurt or having actually been physically hurt [</= 3% each]. Rickshaw drivers with shorter driving time [</=10 years] had significantly more road rage experiences than those who had been driving for more than 10 years [P < 0.01]. There is a need for nationally representative surveys to study road age in commercial vehicle drivers so as to improve road safety in Pakistan

Beliefs about euthanasia among university students: perspectives from Pakistan

Opinions of university students about euthanasia were studied in 4 cities in Pakistan using convenience sampling. A total of 836 students [316 males and 520 females] completed a questionnaire in which euthanasia was defined as deliberate administration of an overdose of a drug by a doctor to relieve pain and suffering of a dying patient at his/her explicit request to end his/her life. Only 25.6% of students agreed that euthanasia should be legalized in Pakistan. The most common reason cited for legalization of euthanasia was to relieve patient's suffering but only when a committee of physicians agreed to recommend it Students who opposed legalization [74.4%] cited impediments to future medical research as the most common reason, followed by the risk of misuse by physicians or family members. Only 8.9% of students cited religious beliefs as a reason against legalization. There is a need in Pakistan for more debate about euthanasia

HMX based enhanced energy LOVA gun propellant.

Efforts to develop gun propellants with low vulnerability have recently been focused on enhancing the energy with a further improvement in its sensitivity characteristics. These propellants not only prevent catastrophic disasters due to unplanned initiation of currently used gun propellants (based on nitrate esters) but also realize enhanced energy levels to increase the muzzle velocity of the projectiles. Now, in order to replace nitroglycerine, which is highly sensitive to friction and impact, nitramines meet the requirements as they offer superior energy due to positive heat of formation, typical stoichiometry with higher decomposition temperatures and also owing to negative oxygen balance are less sensitive than stoichiometrically balanced NG. RDX has been widely reported for use in LOVA propellant. In this paper we have made an effort to present the work on scantily reported nitramine HMX based LOVA gun propellant while incorporating energetic plasticizer glycidyl azide polymer to enhance the energy level. HMX is known to be thermally stable at higher temperature than RDX and also proved to be less vulnerable to small scale shaped charge jet attack as its decomposition temperature is 270 degrees C. HMX also offers improved impulse due to its superior heat of formation (+17 kcal/mol) as compared to RDX (+14 kcal/mol). It has also been reported that a break point will not appear until 35,000 psi for propellant comprising of 5 microm HMX. Since no work has been reported in open literature regarding replacement of RDX by HMX, the present studies were carried out.

Knowledge and misconceptions about sexually transmitted infections in married women--perspective from Islamabad.

OBJECTIVE: To study the knowledge of married women regarding existence of sexually transmitted infection (STI) their complications, treatment seeking, ways of preventing STI acquisition and opinion about sex education in schools/colleges and media. SETTING: The Mother and Child Health Center, a tertiary care hospital in Islamabad. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey based on sample of convenience was conducted, using a structured questionnaire with both close and open-ended questions. Trained women physician interviewers conducted the interviews after obtaining verbal consent. RESULTS: Out of 218 women approached for interviewing, only two refused to participate in the study. The mean age of the respondents was 28.5 years (range 18-53 years). One hundred and sixty-eight (77.8%) respondents had heard/knew about sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Two hundred and ten (97.2%) respondents had heard/ knew about AIDS and out of these 162 (77.1%) knew that it is also transmitted through sexual contact. One hundred and eighty two (84.2%) felt a need for sex education in the media, both print and electronic and 204 (94.4%) respondents said that they would like to learn more about sexually transmitted infections. One hundred ninety four (98.8%) respondents had heard the Latin term Leukorrhoea. Of these 158 (81.5%) thought it was a gynecological disease. Majority thought it caused weakness. CONCLUSION: Widespread misperceptions were found to exist, which does not augur well for the effective prevention of STIs in the country. Population based studies are required to study the knowledge and epidemiology of STIs, as well as a need for a health education campaign in the country (JPMA 51:389; 2001).

Influence of diabetes on manifestations and treatment outcome of pulmonary TB patients.

OBJECTIVE: To understand the influence of diabetes on the clinical and bacteriological aspects and treatment outcome of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) patients. SETTING AND DESIGN: Records of 692 consecutive smear-positive PTB patients admitted to a referral hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, were reviewed retrospectively. The characteristics of 187 patients with diabetes mellitus (PTB-DM group) were compared to 505 patients without DM (PTB group). RESULTS: In the PTB-DM group, 65.2% of the patients had numerous acid-fast bacilli (AFB) on sputum smear examination compared to 54.1% in the control group (P = 0.008). Among new cases, PTB-DM patients had a lower prevalence of resistance to any anti-tuberculosis drug (6.4% vs. 16.0%, P = 0.007) and achieved higher sputum conversion rates at the end of 3 months of treatment (98.9% vs. 94.7%, P = 0.013). Favourable outcomes (cured/treatment completed), failure, death and default were comparable in both groups (P = 0.7005). CONCLUSIONS: PTB-DM patients have a higher pre-treatment bacillary load, a lower prevalence of anti-tuberculosis drug resistance and achieve slightly higher sputum conversion by the end of 3 months of treatment compared to non-diabetic patients. The association of diabetes does not alter the final treatment outcome among PTB patients.

Factors predicting persistent sputum smear positivity among pulmonary tuberculosis patients 2 months after treatment.

SETTING: Studies have shown that adverse outcomes are more likely in patients showing persistent sputum positivity at the end of 2 months of anti-tuberculosis treatment. OBJECTIVE: To identify simple clinical, microbiological or radiological factors associated with persistent sputum positivity under national programme conditions. DESIGN: Sputum smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients admitted in 2 consecutive years to a referral hospital, and who received standard short-course chemotherapy under direct observation, were reviewed retrospectively. Factors associated with persistent sputum smear positivity were analysed. RESULTS: A total of 514 patients were available for review. Logistic regression analysis showed that age groups 41-60 years and more than 60 years, numerous bacilli on initial sputum smear examination, and presence of multiple cavitary diseases were significant factors associated with persistent sputum positivity at the end of 2 months of treatment (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Identification of high risk factors associated with persistent sputum positivity, such as specific age groups, numerous bacilli on initial sputum smear examination, and presence of multiple cavitary diseases, may be helpful in stratifying the patients according to the risk of adverse outcome, thus allowing greater efficiency in resource utilisation.

Prevalence of resistance to antituberculosis drugs in Riyadh and a review of previous reports.

BACKGROUND: Resistance to antituberculosis drugs is an important cause of treatment failure. We evaluated the prevalence and pattern of antituberculosis drug resistance in the central region of Saudi Arabia, and reviewed previous reports from Saudi Arabia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively examined the records of sputum smear and culture-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients admitted consecutively from 1998 through 1999 in a main referral hospital in Riyadh, and analyzed drug sensitivity reports. We also reviewed previous reports on antituberculosis drug resistance in Saudi Arabia. RESULTS: Of 515 patients with pulmonary tuberculosis, 80 (15.5%) had resistance to at least one antituberculosis drug. Resistance to streptomycin was most frequent (9.7% ), followed by rifampicin (9.5%), isoniazid (4.3%), and ethambutol (0.2%). Resistance to one antituberculosis drug was found in 8.9%, resistance to two drugs in 5.2%, resistance to three drugs in 1.2%, and resistance to four drugs in 0.2%. Multidrug resistance (defined as resistance to at least isoniazid and rifampicin) was found in 1.9% of patients. A literature review including 6114 patients in Saudi Arabia showed that resistance against streptomycin was most common (8.8%), followed by rifampicin (8%), and isoniazid (7.2%). Of the 6114 patients, 6.8% patients were resistant to only one drug, 3.6% were resistant to two drugs, and 3.7% to three drugs. CONCLUSION: The high prevalence of rifampicin resistance and resistance to multiple drugs in the Riyadh region and in other parts of Saudi Arabia is a major challenge to the control of tuberculosis in this country. Efforts should be made to prevent the emergence of further antituberculosis drug resistance.

Influence of anti-tuberculosis drug resistance on the treatment outcome of pulmonary tuberculosis patients receiving DOTS in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the influence of anti-tuberculosis drug resistance existing prior to treatment on the outcome of pulmonary tuberculosis patients receiving standard short-course chemotherapy (SCC) under direct observation under national programme guidelines. DESIGN: Treatment outcomes of sputum smear- and culture-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients admitted consecutively from 1998 through 1999 in a referral hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, were reviewed retrospectively. RESULTS: A total of 515 patients were reviewed; 139 patients were deported or transferred out. Treatment outcomes and follow-up for about 2 years were analysed for the remaining 376 patients. Among 315 patients with sensitive isolates, 301 achieved favourable outcome, none relapsed or failed, 10 defaulted, one died and three were lost to follow-up at 6 months. Mono-resistance to isoniazid, streptomycin or ethambutol did not influence the treatment outcome. All the 18 patients with mono-resistance to rifampicin were cured, but two relapsed later. Among 39 patients with any rifampicin resistance, 37 patients had favourable outcome and two failed treatment; three later relapsed. Among eight patients with MDR-TB, six had favourable outcome and two failed treatment; one later relapsed. Sputum smear conversion rates at the end of 3 months of treatment in patients with any rifampicin resistance or with multidrug resistance were inferior to those of patients with sensitive strains (89.8% vs. 96.3%, P = 0.016 and 80% vs. 96.3%, P = 0.008, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Anti-tuberculosis drug resistance existing prior to treatment, especially rifampicin and multidrug resistance, has an adverse effect on treatment outcome, even with directly observed standard SCC under national programme guidelines.

Adolescent's knowledge about AIDS--perspective from Islamabad.

OBJECTIVE: To study the adolescent student's knowledge and its sources about AIDS, and its mode of spread in Islamabad. SETTING: One boys and two girls schools in Islamabad. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted, using an anonymous, self-administered, brief Urdu questionnaire which was distributed among 100 boys and 182 girls. RESULTS: The response rate was 100% and the average age of respondents was 14.6 years in boys and 12 years in girls. Most respondents knew about AIDS and reported television as their main source of knowledge. Most respondents also correctly believed that AIDS patient can pass on the disease to others, however, they had erroneous beliefs about its mode of transmission. CONCLUSION: This study testifies to the effectiveness of the successful television based health education campaign regarding AIDS in the adolescent boys and girls, in Islamabad.