Using arterial spin labeling blood flow and its histogram analysis to distinguish early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma from lymphoid hyperplasia

To investigate the feasibility of arterial spin labeling (ASL) blood flow (BF) and its histogram analysis to distinguish early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) from nasopharyngeal lymphoid hyperplasia (NPLH).Sixty-three stage T1 NPC patients and benign NPLH patients underwent ASL on a 3.0-T magnetic resonance imaging system. BF histogram parameters were derived automatically, including the mean, median, maximum, minimum, kurtosis, skewness, and variance. Absolute values were obtained for skewness and kurtosis (absolute value of skewness [AVS] and absolute value of kurtosis [AVK], respectively). The Mann–Whitney U test, receiver operating characteristic curve, and multiple logistic regression models were used for statistical analysis.The mean, maximum, and variance of ASL BF values were significantly higher in early-stage NPC than in NPLH (all P < 0.0001), while the median and AVK values of early-stage NPC were also significantly higher than those of NPLH (all P < 0.001). No significant difference was found between the minimum and AVS values in early-stage NPC compared with NPLH (P = 0.125 and P = 0.084, respectively). The area under the curve (AUC) of the maximum was significantly higher than those of the mean and median (P < 0.05). The AUC of variance was significantly higher than those of the other parameters (all P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that variance was the only independent predictor of outcome (P < 0.05).ASL BF and its histogram analysis could distinguish early-stage NPC from NPLH, and the variance value was a unique independent predictor.     

Computation of Time-Constant Histograms from the Forced Expired Volume-Time Curves

An efficient BASIC program was established on Apple-Ⅱmicrocomputer with the CHESTAC-35F pulmonary function testing system tocalculate the time-constant histogram from the spirogram.By a set of analogousstudies,we confirmed that the recovered time-constant histogram was within onecompartment of the assumed one and that the root of mean square values of theresiduals between the experimental and model volume-time curves was 0.02.Infour healthy adult subjects,the mean value of time-constant histograms(TCx)hadthe variation coefficient 6.6％.The results show that our method is reliable andreproducible,and it can be used for clinical investigation.     

Septal unit activity and hippocampal EEG during the sleep-wakefulness cycle of the rat

The functional relationship between septal unit activity and hippocampal EEG was studied during the sleep-wakefulness cycle in chronically implanted unrestrained rats. Results were statistically analyzed in order to obtain the time interval and auto and crosscorrelation histograms. During REM sleep and restless wakefulness the hippocampal EEG showed a theta rhythm of 4–8 cps and the septal unit activity was characterized by the presence of rhythmic bursts with a frequency in every single instance similar to that of the hippocampus. The septal units showed a bimodal time interval histogram. Their autocorrelation histogram exhibited a sinusoidal pattern of decreasing amplitude. The crosscorrelation histogram of septal units and the hippocampal EEG also showed a sinusoidal pattern suggestive of the functional relationship between both neural structures. During slow wave sleep and quiet wakefulness there was a disappearance of the hippocampal theta rhythm and rhythmic septal unit bursts. The second mode was missing in the time interval histogram and the auto and crosscorrelation histograms showed an irregular pattern. It is concluded that medial septal nucleus and hippocampal temporal patterns of activity are similar during REM sleep and restless wakefulness.     

医学图像增强方法综述

医学图像增强的目的是通过图像增强的方法得到优化的医学图像,以帮助医生从图像中获得更多细节信息,进一步做出更加客观的诊断及制定更全面的治疗方案,在一定程度上可提高临床诊断的准确性。本文首先归纳总结当前应用较为广泛的医学图像增强处理技术,包括传统的图像增强方法、改进的图像增强方法、融合的图像增强方法以及深度学习方法,然后对这些方法的原理、优缺点加以分析和总结。最后指出无论是传统方法还是现代图像增强方法,都应在最大限度保留其优势的情况下进行融合,取长补短,注重简单化和时效性,使提高图像的视觉质量同时更具有实用性。     

Predominantβ-adrenoceptor blocking effect of xamoterol averaged over the day in patients with mild to moderate heart failure: insight into the mechanism of its long-term clinical efficacy

Summary Xamoterol acts as a ₁-adrenoceptor agonist at low sympathetic activity and as an antagonist at high activity. Although its long-term efficacy has been proven in patients with mild to moderate heart failure, it remains unclear which effect, agonism or antagonism, accounts for its long-term activity.To clarify the effect of xamoterol on cardiac sympathetic activity in daily life, 24-h R-R interval histograms were obtained during administration of xamoterol 100 mg b. d. for 1 week to 10 patients with mild to moderate heart failure. Eight normal subjects were also studied as controls. To examine the relation between the effect of xamoterol and sympathetic activity, plasma noradrenaline (NA) levels were measured under 5 graded conditions simulating daily living.Xamoterol administration significantly decreased the standard deviation of the R-R interval, both in patients with heart failure and in normal subjects. The mean R-R interval, however, was increased in patients with heart failure, relative to normal subjects.In both groups, the R-R interval histograms had two peaks, i. e. a short daytime peak and a long night-time peak. Xamoterol decreased the median of the night-time peak without changing the daytime peak in normal subjects. In contrast, it increased the median of the daytime peak without producing a significant change in the nighttime peak in patients with heart failure. Levels of plasma NA were significantly higher in patients than in normal subjects under all conditions.Thus, in normal subjects xamoterol predominantly increased the slower heart rate at night with only a minor effect on the higher heart rate in the daytime, whereas it predominantly attenuated the daytime tachycardia induced by sympathetic stimulation in patients with heart failure.It is concluded that xamoterol tends overall to act as a-adrenoceptor antagonist during the day, especially in the daytime in patients with mild to moderate heart failure. Its antagonist rather than its agonist effect may account for the long-term efficacy of xamoterol in patients with mild to moderate heart failure.     

超声医学图像灰度校正方法的改进

介绍了超声医学图像灰度校正常用方法的基本原理,这些方法主要有灰度级校正、灰度变换及直方图修正。对广泛应用且效果较好的直方图均衡化法作了较详细阐述,并针对其对于局部细节增强不显著及不具交互特征等缺点提出了改进方法,并将几种灰度校正方法级联起来对超声图像进行处理,实现了有选择地增强某个灰度值范围对比度的功能,增强了超声诊断图像的实用性。     

一种基于内容的医学图像检索方法的实现

介绍颜色相关图及其改进算法在医学图像检索中的应用,并与标准灰度直方图的检索效果做了比较.     

基于对称边缘方向直方图自动提取主要道路

提出一种从航空影像中自动提取主要道路的方法。以对称边缘方向直方图作为主要道路特征矢量,先采用一种顾及数据空间分布特性的模糊C均值聚类算法分割提取主要道路种子段,然后利用Snakes算法跟踪提取完整主要道路网络。实验结果表明,所提方法能有效地从航空影像中自动提取主要道路网。     

Artefact Recognition And Diazepam In Electric Response Audiometry

In measurements near auditory threshold, the influence of nonstationary artifacts (movement, swallowing, muscle activity, etc.) leads to response-like averaged results which should be further evaluated before determining the objective threshold. It is pointed out that, especially in recording VIII-nerve compound action potentials, as well as cortical potentials near threshold, the difference-amplitude histogram is a helpful procedure for identifying real neural responses.

Diazepam-induced reducation of amplitude of the averaged result observed in a few adults with relative weak response amplitudes leads to the conclusion that this was caused by a further increase of latency variability. It is also mentioned that a complex interplay exists between the influence of diazepam upon amplitude and latency variability of the single response, which sometimes may result in a peculiar response of the average (e.g., increase of both may result in no change of the average).