No abstract

Manhole covers, which are a key element of urban infrastructure management, have a direct impact on travel safety. At present, there is no automatic, safe, and efficient system specially used for the intelligent detection, identification, and assessment of manhole covers. In this work, we developed an automatic detection, identification, and assessment system for manhole covers. First, we developed a sequential exposure system via the addition of multiple cameras in a symmetrical arrangement to realize the joint acquisition of high-precision laser data and ultra-high-resolution ground images. Second, we proposed an improved histogram of an oriented gradient with symmetry features and a support vector machine method to detect manhole covers effectively and accurately, by using the intensity images and ground orthophotos that are derived from the laser points and images, respectively, and apply the graph segmentation and statistical analysis to achieve the detection, identification, and assessment of manhole covers. Qualitative and quantitative analyses are performed using large experimental datasets that were acquired with the modified manhole-cover detection system. The detected results yield an average accuracy of 96.18%, completeness of 94.27%, and F-measure value of 95.22% in manhole cover detection. Defective manhole-cover monitoring and manhole-cover ownership information are achieved from these detection results. The results not only provide strong support for road administration works, such as data acquisition, manhole cover inquiry and inspection, and statistical analysis of resources, but also demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method, which reduces the risk involved in performing manual inspections, improves the manhole-cover detection accuracy, and serves as a powerful tool in intelligent road administration.

Background and purposeSeveral case reports and studies have suggested that there is an increased survival rate for patients who undergo resection of solitary adrenal metastasis from non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This study aimed to investigate whether NSCLC patients with solitary adrenal metastasis could gain a higher survival rate after adrenalectomy (ADX) when compared with those patients undergoing nonsurgical treatment, and to investigate the potential prognostic factors.Patients and methodsA total of 1,302 NSCLC inpatients’ data from 2001 to 2015 were retrospectively reviewed to identify those with solitary adrenal metastasis. Overall survival for those who underwent both primary resection and ADX was compared to those patients with conservative treatment using the log-rank test. Potential prognostic variables were evaluated with univariate and multivariate analyses including clinical, therapeutic, pathologic, primary and metastatic data.ResultsA total of 22 NSCLC patients with solitary adrenal metastasis were identified, with an overall median survival of 11 months (95% confidence interval: 9.4–12.6 months) and a 1-year survival rate of 51.4% (95% confidence interval: 29.6%–73.2%). All of the patients had died by 30 months. There was no significant survival difference between patients who underwent primary and metastasis resection (n=10) and those treated conservatively (n=12), (P=0.209). Univariate analysis identified Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (ECOG PS) as the significant predictor of survival (P=0.024). Age (<65 vs ≥65 years), sex, pathologic type, mediastinal lymph node stage (N2 vs N0/N1), primary tumor size (<5 vs ≥5 cm), primary location (central vs peripheral), metastatic tumor size (<5 vs ≥5 cm), metastasis laterality, synchronous metastasis, and metastatic field radiotherapy were not identified as potential prognostic factors in relation to survival rate. In multivariate analysis, a stepwise selection procedure allowed both ECOG PS (P=0.007, relative risk =3.57) and pathologic type (P=0.069) to enter the Cox’s hazard function.ConclusionPrimary and metastatic radical resection may not prolong the survival of NSCLC patients with solitary adrenal metastasis. ECOG PS and pathologic type might be the prognostic factors for these patients.

BackgroundThis study investigated the outcomes of preoperative HGT as an adjunct treatment for severe thoracic kyphoscoliosis, its role in radiographic correction, and pulmonary function improvement, together with nursing strategy and incidence of complications.Material/MethodsEleven patients with a mean age of 18.8 years were retrospectively reviewed. Inclusion criteria were: patients with severe kyphoscoliosis (coronal Cobb angle and kyphosis angle ≥80°); duration of HGT ≥8 weeks; patients undergoing HGT for at least 12 h per day; traction weight no less than 40% of body weight; and patients not receiving physical therapies. All patients underwent respiratory training.ResultsThe major coronal curve scoliosis averaged 114.00±24.43° and was reduced to 80.55±17.98° after HGT. The major kyphosis was 103.91±18.95° and was reduced to 80.55±17.98°. Significantly improved percent-predicted values for FVC was found after HGT (p=0.014), and significantly increased forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1%) was also observed (p<0.001), with significantly improved percent-predicted values for PEF (p=0.003) after HGT.ConclusionsOur data reveal that preoperative HGT can be performed safely, and can help achieve excellent curve correction in both the coronal and sagittal planes, together with improved respiratory function and no severe complications in patients with severe thoracic kyphoscoliosis.