Analysis of neuropsychological and neuroradiological features for diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment.

BACKGROUND: Age-related neurodegenerative diseases are constantly increasing with prediction that in 2050 over 60 % of population will suffer from some level of cognitive impairment. A cure for the Alzheimer's disease (AD) does not exist, so early diagnosis is of a great importance. Machine learning techniques can help in early diagnosis with deep medical data processing, disease understanding, intervention analysis and knowledge discovery for achieving better medical decision making. METHODS: In this paper, we analyze the dataset consisting of 90 individuals and 482 input features. We investigate the achieved AD prediction performances using seven classifiers and five feature selection algorithms. We pay special focus on analyzing performance by utilizing only a subset of best ranked attributes to establish the minimum amount of input features that ensure acceptable performance. We also investigate the significance of neuropsychological (NP) and neuroradiological (NR) attributes for the AD diagnosis. RESULTS: The accuracy for the whole set of attributes ranged between 66.22 % and 81.00 %, and the weighted average AUROC was between 76.3 % and 95.0 %. The best results were achieved by the naive Bayes classifier and the Relief feature selection algorithm. Additionally, Support Vector Machines classifier shows the most stable results since it depends the least on the feature selection algorithm which is used. As the main result of this paper, we compare the performance of models trained with automatically selected features to models trained with hand-selected features performed by medical experts (NP and NR features). CONCLUSIONS: The results reveal that unlike the NR attributes, the NP attributes achieve a good performance that is comparable to the full set of attributes, which suggests that they possess a high predictive power for AD diagnosis.

Collective intelligence and knowledge exploration: an introduction.

Collective intelligence and Knowledge Exploration (CI and KE) have been adopted to solve many problems. They are particularly used by companies as a support for innovation to efficiently obtain usable results. CI is usually defined as a group ability to perform consistently well across a wide variety of tasks, and it has to be combined with KD to ensure processes optimization, efficient management process, participative management, leadership, continuous teamwork, and so on. The importance of innovation grows the same way as the importance of mixing CI and KE, ensuring the successful exploitation of knowledge. Here, we present a quick review of current knowledge-oriented CI developments and applications. It aims at showing some observations about what's currently missing. Our editorial presents some recent interesting studies that we have gathered after a tight selection process. It also concludes by proposing avenue challenges to continue pushing CI and KE research forward, particularly regarding knowledge exploration.

Artificial intelligence supporting cancer patients across Europe-The ASCAPE project.

INTRODUCTION: Breast and prostate cancer survivors can experience impaired quality of life (QoL) in several QoL domains. The current strategy to support cancer survivors with impaired QoL is suboptimal, leading to unmet patient needs. ASCAPE aims to provide personalized- and artificial intelligence (AI)-based predictions for QoL issues in breast- and prostate cancer patients as well as to suggest potential interventions to their physicians to offer a more modern and holistic approach on cancer rehabilitation. METHODS AND ANALYSES: An AI-based platform aiming to predict QoL issues and suggest appropriate interventions to clinicians will be built based on patient data gathered through medical records, questionnaires, apps, and wearables. This platform will be prospectively evaluated through a longitudinal study where breast and prostate cancer survivors from four different study sites across the Europe will be enrolled. The evaluation of the AI-based follow-up strategy through the ASCAPE platform will be based on patients' experience, engagement, and potential improvement in QoL during the study as well as on clinicians' view on how ASCAPE platform impacts their clinical practice and doctor-patient relationship, and their experience in using the platform. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: ASCAPE is the first research project that will prospectively investigate an AI-based approach for an individualized follow-up strategy for patients with breast- or prostate cancer focusing on patients' QoL issues. ASCAPE represents a paradigm shift both in terms of a more individualized approach for follow-up based on QoL issues, which is an unmet need for cancer survivors, and in terms of how to use Big Data in cancer care through democratizing the knowledge and the access to AI and Big Data related innovations. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Trial Registration on clinicaltrials.gov: NCT04879563.

Improved Effort and Cost Estimation Model Using Artificial Neural Networks and Taguchi Method with Different Activation Functions.

Software estimation involves meeting a huge number of different requirements, such as resource allocation, cost estimation, effort estimation, time estimation, and the changing demands of software product customers. Numerous estimation models try to solve these problems. In our experiment, a clustering method of input values to mitigate the heterogeneous nature of selected projects was used. Additionally, homogeneity of the data was achieved with the fuzzification method, and we proposed two different activation functions inside a hidden layer, during the construction of artificial neural networks (ANNs). In this research, we present an experiment that uses two different architectures of ANNs, based on Taguchi's orthogonal vector plans, to satisfy the set conditions, with additional methods and criteria for validation of the proposed model, in this approach. The aim of this paper is the comparative analysis of the obtained results of mean magnitude relative error (MMRE) values. At the same time, our goal is also to find a relatively simple architecture that minimizes the error value while covering a wide range of different software projects. For this purpose, six different datasets are divided into four chosen clusters. The obtained results show that the estimation of diverse projects by dividing them into clusters can contribute to an efficient, reliable, and accurate software product assessment. The contribution of this paper is in the discovered solution that enables the execution of a small number of iterations, which reduces the execution time and achieves the minimum error.

Machine Learning for Predicting Cognitive Diseases: Methods, Data Sources and Risk Factors.

Machine learning and data mining approaches are being successfully applied to different fields of life sciences for the past 20 years. Medicine is one of the most suitable application domains for these techniques since they help model diagnostic information based on causal and/or statistical data and therefore reveal hidden dependencies between symptoms and illnesses. In this paper we give a detailed overview of the recent machine learning research and its applications for predicting cognitive diseases, especially the Alzheimer's disease, mild cognitive impairment and the Parkinson's disease. We survey different state-of-the-art methodological approaches, data sources and public data, and provide their comparative analysis. We conclude by identifying the open problems within the field that include an early detection of the cognitive diseases and inclusion of machine learning tools into diagnostic practice and therapy planning.

"Borderline" fluorotic region in Serbia: correlations among fluoride in drinking water, biomarkers of exposure and dental fluorosis in schoolchildren.

This study explores relation between dental fluorosis occurrence in schoolchildren, residents of Ritopek, a small local community near Belgrade, and fluoride exposure via drinking water. Additionally, fluoride levels were determined in children's urine and hair samples, and efforts were made to correlate them with dental fluorosis. Dental fluorosis and caries prevalence were examined in a total of 52 schoolchildren aged 7-15 years (29 boys and 23 girls). Fluoride levels in three types of samples were analyzed using composite fluoride ion-selective electrode. Results showed high prevalence of dental fluorosis (34.6 %) and low prevalence of dental caries (23.1 %, mean DMFT 0.96) among children exposed to wide range of water fluoride levels (0.11-4.14 mg/L, n = 27). About 11 % of water samples exceeded 1.5 mg/L, a drinking-water quality guideline value for fluoride given by the World Health Organization (2006). Fluoride levels in urine and hair samples ranged between 0.07-2.59 (n = 48) and 1.07-19.83 mg/L (n = 33), respectively. Severity of dental fluorosis was positively and linearly correlated with fluoride levels in drinking water (r = 0.79). Fluoride levels in urine and hair were strongly and positively correlated with levels in drinking water (r = 0.92 and 0.94, respectively). Fluoride levels in hair samples appeared to be a potentially promising biomarker of fluoride intake via drinking water on one hand, and severity of dental fluorosis on the other hand. Based on community fluorosis index value of 0.58, dental fluorosis revealed in Ritopek can be considered as "borderline" public health issue.

Analysis of the mineral composition of hypomineralized first permanent molars.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Hypomineralization of molars and incisors (molarincisor hypomineralization--MIH) is defined as enamel hypomineralization of systemic origin of one or more of the four first permanent molars, which may be associated with changes in the maxillary, and less frequently in the permanent mandibular in cisors. The aim of this study was to investigate the mineral content in hypomineralized teeth as a contribution to understanding the origin of these changes, which will be important for effective restorative approach. METHODS: A total of 10 extracted first permanent molars diagnosed with MIH were used in the study as the experimental group, and intact first premolars extracted for orthodontic reasons were used as the control group. A certain surface of hypomineralized and healthy enamel and dentin was analyzed using a scanning electron microscope equipped with an energy-dispersive spectrometer (SEM/EDS). RESULTS: By conducting quantitative chemical analysis of the distribution of the basic chemical elements, it was found that the concentration of calcium (Ca) and phosphorus (P) was significantly higher in healthy enamel (Ca = 28.80 w%, and P = 15.05 wt%) compared to hypomineralized enamel (Ca = 27.60 wt% and P = 14.32 wt/o). Carbon (C) concentration was statistically significantly higher in hypomineralized enamel (C = 11.70 wt%) compared to healthy enamel (C = 10.94 wt%). Hypomineralized and healthy enamel did not differ significantly regarding the ratio of calcium and phosphorus concentrations whereas the ratio of calcium and carbon concentrations was statistically significantly higher in healthy enamel compared to hypomineralized enamel. CONCLUSION: Concentration of the main chemical elements, primarily calcium and phosphorus, is significantly reduced in hypomineralized enamel whereas carbon concentration is increased compared to healthy enamel.

CyberPsychological Computation on Social Community of Ubiquitous Learning.

Under the modern network environment, ubiquitous learning has been a popular way for people to study knowledge, exchange ideas, and share skills in the cyberspace. Existing research findings indicate that the learners' initiative and community cohesion play vital roles in the social communities of ubiquitous learning, and therefore how to stimulate the learners' interest and participation willingness so as to improve their enjoyable experiences in the learning process should be the primary consideration on this issue. This paper aims to explore an effective method to monitor the learners' psychological reactions based on their behavioral features in cyberspace and therefore provide useful references for adjusting the strategies in the learning process. In doing so, this paper firstly analyzes the psychological assessment of the learners' situations as well as their typical behavioral patterns and then discusses the relationship between the learners' psychological reactions and their observable features in cyberspace. Finally, this paper puts forward a CyberPsychological computation method to estimate the learners' psychological states online. Considering the diversity of learners' habitual behaviors in the reactions to their psychological changes, a BP-GA neural network is proposed for the computation based on their personalized behavioral patterns.

Neural Cognition and Affective Computing on Cyber Language.

Characterized by its customary symbol system and simple and vivid expression patterns, cyber language acts as not only a tool for convenient communication but also a carrier of abundant emotions and causes high attention in public opinion analysis, internet marketing, service feedback monitoring, and social emergency management. Based on our multidisciplinary research, this paper presents a classification of the emotional symbols in cyber language, analyzes the cognitive characteristics of different symbols, and puts forward a mechanism model to show the dominant neural activities in that process. Through the comparative study of Chinese, English, and Spanish, which are used by the largest population in the world, this paper discusses the expressive patterns of emotions in international cyber languages and proposes an intelligent method for affective computing on cyber language in a unified PAD (Pleasure-Arousal-Dominance) emotional space.

Knowledge, attitudes and behavior of children in relation to oral health.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Health education plays a very important role in maintaining health of individuals. Good oral health, as a part of general health, is largely dependent on the level of knowledge, attitudes and habits that children already have. The aim of this study is to examine the level of knowledge and habits in children regarding oral hygiene, diet and bad habits. METHODS: The study included 506 school children aged 12 and 15 years in three towns (Foca, Cajnice, Kalinovik, Bosnia and Herzegovina). The survey was conducted in order to assess knowledge, attitudes and habits that children have in relation to their own oral health. RESULTS: Most respondents stated that they began to brush their teeth at the age of 4, while a smaller number linked beginning of tooth brushing to the start of school. The parents more often help the boys during tooth brushing. A total of 54.9% of children brush their teeth after every meal, while 40.1% of them brush teeth only once during the day. Twelve year olds brush their teeth more often, especially after a meal. A total of 92.5% of children had never used fluoride tablets nor are the tablets recommended to them by anyone. More than half of the children (61.7%) visited the dentist for the first time before starting school that is on the regular examination that is performed upon enrollment to school. A pain as a reason for dental visits was present in 43.9%, while the preventive check in only 31.4% of the children. CONCLUSION; Children included in this study, particularly 15-year-olds, are quite well informed about teeth brushing frequency and proper selection of tools for hygiene maintenance, but this knowledge is not applied. Girls are more responsible for their own health, and come regularly to the preventive dental checkups.

Distribution and characteristics of molar-incisor hypomineralization.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Developmental disorders of teeth are the problems that are becoming more present in pediatric dentistry, especially on first permanent molars and incisors. Molar Incisor Hypomineralization (MIH) is proposed term for this phenomenon. The aim of this study was to establish the MIH prevalence in children living in the Foca municipality (Bosnia and Herzegovina) as well as to assess characteristics and expression of hypomineralization within the tested population. METHODS: A total of 141 children from the Foca municipality, 8 years of age, were included in this study. Criteria according to Weerhejm have been used for diagnosis of hypomineralization: demarcated opacity (DO), post-eruptive breakdown (PEB), atypical restoration (AR), extracted molars due to MIH (E-MIH) and unerupted tooth (UT). Level and the prominence of color changes have been determined for patients with DO, PEB and AR. RESULTS: MIH in this area was present in 12.8% of children. The prevalence of MIH changes expressed in percentages was as follows: DO was at 9.2%, PEB in 3.5%, AR in 5.6%, while E-MIH was 5.6%. A total of 9.9% of the examinees had mild, 5.6% moderate, and 7.8% severe form of MIH. White form of MIH defects was found in 9.9% of the examinees, white-yellow one in 5.6% and yellow-brown color in 3.5% of the examined children. These changes were more often present in the lower jaw (60.3%). In total, 6.4% of children had these changes present only on molars, while 6.4% of them both on molars and incisors simultaneously. CONCLUSION: A total of 12.8% of the examinees with MIH is not to be disregarded. With timely diagnosis, prevention and therapy complications could be avoided or mitigated.

Time-series analysis in the medical domain: a study of Tacrolimus administration and influence on kidney graft function.

There exists a major concern regarding toxic effects of immunosuppressive medication on the kidney graft during post-transplant care, with observed variation in individual susceptibility to adverse drug effects amongst patients. To date, there has been no possibility to identify susceptible patients prospectively. This study analyzes medical data which includes time series of measures of renal function and trough levels of immunosuppressive drug Tacrolimus, with the main aim of identifying patients susceptible to drug toxicity. We evaluate a plethora of time-series distance measures, determining their appropriateness to the domain based on two criteria: (1) preserving the expected correlations between distances, and (2) ability to detect the expected patterns of interaction between immunosuppressive drug levels and renal function. Besides identifying the most suitable time-series distance measures, we observed that the majority of patients do not exhibit an association between impaired graft function and higher Tacrolimus dosing. On the other hand, the minority of patients determined most sensitive to varying Tacrolimus levels showed a strong tendency to prefer low Tacrolimus dosing.

[The state of oral health in children at the age of 12 in Montenegro].

BACKGROUND/AIM: Oral health is very important for the function and the quality of human life. The aim of this study was to determine the spread of caries on the permanent teeth, the state of health of the periodontium and the state of oral hygiene in the children at the age of 12 in Montenegro. METHODS: The research was carried out within 2006 and included 455 primary school pupils of both sex, the age of 12 in the northern, midlle and southern area of Montenegro. The parameters used to estimate oral health condition were: mean number of decayed, missing, and filled teeth due to caries (DMFT), Significant Caries Index (SiC), Community Periodontal Index of Treatment Needs (CPITN), presence of sealants, and to estimate oral hygiene condition: Debris Index (Green-Vermillion) and Calculus Index (Green). A dental team clinically examined all the subjects in line with World Health Organization (WHO) methodology and criteria. All chosen children from the sample were checked by the standard dental diagnostic equipment (plane dental mirror, dental, standard CPITN periodontal probe) under the artificial light on the dry teeth, on the dental chair. RESULTS: The average value of Index DMFT at 12-year-old in Montenegro was 3.43. On average, 88.35% of the examined children had dental caries. The SiC Index was 6.35. Among the examined children, 11.9% had at least one tooth with a fissure sealant. The healty periodontium had 64% of the 12-year-old children. The average value of Debris Index was 1.086, and the average value of Calculus Index was 0.6508. CONCLUSION: Oral health condition in children at the age of 12 in Montenegro does not satisfy. Thus the importance of the modern preventive measures and programmes should be emphasized and applied through the system of primary oral protection and intensively promote oral health.

[Prevention of oral diseases in children with acute leukaemia].

Oral manifestations are often present in all types of leukaemia, and are particularly severe in children. Oral diseases may result as complications of aggressive cytotoxic therapy. On the other hand, oral diseases that are already present in the oral cavity could be aggravating the patient's general condition and lead to serious life-threatening infections. The aim of this paper was to highlight the importance of preventive measures in maintaining oral health, as well the measures for controlling oral disorders onset during the course of illness and applied therapy in children with acute leukaemia. All preventive measures that include proper, regular hygiene and intervention depend on the patient's haematological status and general health condition, and are performed with the consultation and approval of the haematologists-in-charge. The preventive program can be implicated in three stages; before the beginning of cytotoxic therapy, during active cytotoxic therapy and after cytotoxic therapy. Having in mind that oral disease can influence general treatment in children with acute leukaemia dramatically, developing protocols on the implementation of all measures of oral prevention and treatment is mandatory.

[Oral manifestations of acute leukaemia].

Acute leukaemia is the most common form of childhood cancer. The aim of this paper was to underline the importance of oral manifestations in children with acute leukaemia. The disease and its treatment can directly or indirectly affect oral health. Oral manifestations are gingival inflammation and enlargement. Leukaemic cells are capable of infiltrating the gingiva and the deeper periodontal tissues which leads to ulceration and infection of oral tissues. Gingival bleeding is a common sign in patients with leukaemia. Symptoms include local lymphadenopathy, mucous membrane Petechiae and ecchymoses. Cytotoxic drugs have direct effects like mucositis, involving atrophy, desquamation and ulceration of the mucosa, with increasing the risk for local and systemic infections. Leukaemia can directly influence dental care and dental treatment, while oral lesions may have life-threatening consequences. Knowledge and skills among dentists may also not be adequate to treat children with acute leukaemia. It is therefore imperative that all stomatologists be aware of dental problems that occur in leukaemia in order to be able to effectively carry out appropriate measures to mitigate these problems.

Evaluation of a prevention programme efficiency for patients with fixed orthodontic appliances.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Orthodontic treatment enables the establishment of functional occlusion and improvement of oral health, however, it increases the risk of periodontal disease development. The aim of this paper was to examine the efficiency of the applied programme for the prevention of gingivitis in children undergoing the fixed orthodontic appliance therapy and to determine the most efficient devices and techniques for maintaining oral hygiene during orthodontic treatment. METHODS: The study included 80 patients of both genders--60 patients comprised the experimental group and 20 patients comprised the control group. All of them were patients of the Clinic for Orthodontics at the School of Dentistry in Belgrade, aged between 13 and 18. The Silness-Löe Plaque Index (PI) was utilised for the assessment of oral hygiene quality and Silness-Löe Gingival Index (GI) and Mühlemann Papilla Bleeding Index (PBI) were utilised for the assessment of gingival state. Checkups were conducted as a single-blind study at the beginning and after the first, the third and the sixth month of the preventive and prophylactic programme. RESULTS: During the observed period, a statistically significant change in PI, GI and PBI values was noticed (p < 0.005), as well as the difference in the dynamics of value changes during the periods between the observed groups. CONCLUSION: The preventive programme, applied to children undergoing the fixed orthodontic appliance therapy, had a positive effect both on oral hygiene quality and gingival state. The values of the examined parameters of the patients from the experimental group were significantly lower in comparison with those of the patients from the control group. The most efficient combination of devices for oral hygiene during orthodontic treatment was: a Curaprox CP5460 toothbrush, CD Ortho 60 orthodontic toothbrush and Curaprox CPS 14 interdental brush.

Clinical effects of fixed functional herbst appliance in the treatment of Class II/1 malocclusion.

INTRODUCTION: Sagittal mandible deficiency is the most common cause of skeletal Class II malocclusion. Treatment objective is to stimulate sagittal mandible growth. Fixed functional Herbst appliance use is beneficial for shortening the time required for treatment and does not depend on patient compliance. CASE OUTLINE: A 13-year-old girl was referred to the Clinic of Orthodontics, School of Dentistry in Belgrade following previous unsuccessful treatment of her skeletal Class II malocclusion using an activator. The patient's poor cooperation had led to failure of the treatment. Patient was subjected to the Herbst treatment for 6 months followed by fixed appliance for another 8 months. Lateral cephalograms before and after the treatment was performed. The remodelation of condylar and fossal articulation was assessed by superimposition of pre- and post-treatment temporomandibular joint tomograms. The promotion of oral hygiene and fluoride use was performed because orthodontic treatment carries a high caries risk and risk for periodontal disease. Skeletal and dental changes were observed after treatment (correction [Max+Mand]: molar relation 7 mm, overjet 8 mm, skeletal relation 5 mm, molars 2 mm, incisors 3 mm). Combination of Herbst and fixed appliances was effective in the treatment of dental and skeletal irregularities for a short period of time. CONCLUSION: In the retention period, 14 months after treatment, occlusal stability exists. Follow-up care in oral prevention is based on regular recalls at the dental office and supervision at home by the parents.

[Molar incisor hypomineralisation in the first permanent teeth].

The aim of this study was to point out the prevalence of hypomineralised molars and incisors and emphasize importance of this condition in paediatric dentistry. This condition is defined as hypomineralisation of one or more first permanent molars frequently affecting incisors and referred to as molar incisor hypomineralisation (MIH). Aetiology of MIH has not been fully clarified and numerous aetiological factors have been cited. Hypomineralised molars are more prone to caries, cause severe restorative problems and are frequently extracted due to serious damage and caries complications. Incisors can present demarcated enamel opacities, while enamel breakdown is uncommon. Considering the fact that permanent first molars with severe defects demand complex treatment, they represent a serious problem for the patient as well as for the dentist.