Three-dimensional visual communications, made through the use of stereoscopic images, are able to achieve total display realism. In order to create a 3D system with two images (left and right) that ...should be transmitted simultaneously, the large amount of information contained in the images should be reduced, and an efficient coding appropriate for stereoscopic images is developed. Stereoscopic image sequence compression involves the exploitation of the spatial redundancy between the left and right image frames to achieve the compression ratio higher than that are by the independent compression of the two frames. In order to further achieve the higher compression ratio, in this paper, we employ the mixed-resolution psychophysical experiments to the stereo image compression. The experiments have shown that a stereo image pair with one high-resolution image and one lower-resolution image is sufficient to provide good stereoscopic depth perception. Thus, one image sequence is compressed independent of the other sequence using the motion compensation, while the other sequence is estimated at a lower resolution from this stream using the low-resolution disparity compensation. To implement the mixed-resolution coding, a wavelet multiresolution framework has been adopted to facilitate such an estimation of motion and disparity vectors at different resolutions. Experimental results indicate that the compression ratio for a typical stereoscopic image sequence is about 90, without any significant loss in the perceived 3D stereoscopic image quality.
碩士
國立交通大學
電信研究所
85
This paper investigates the application of multi-code SS-CDMA
techniquesto three-dimensional stereoscopic video transmission
over wireless ATM networks. 3D visual communications, ...made
through the use of stereoscopic images, are able toachieve total
display realism. Such services allow users to share the virtual
reality (VR)world without any geographical restrictions. In
order to create a 3D system with two images (left and right)
that should be transmitted over a bandlimited mobile
channelsimultaneously, a cost-effective MPEG-based wavelet
multiresolution coding with an joint motion- and disparity-
compensation is developed to reduce a large amount of
information contained in the images in order to the meet the low
transmission rate limitationof mobile channels. However, the
rapidly variable bit rate (VBR) characteristics of the MPEG-
based 3D videos seems a weakness to the transmission of such
videos via a constantbit-rate (CBR) mobile channel.The ATM
technique is especially wellsuited for
Conventional linear optical activity effects are widely used for studying chiral materials. However, poor contrast and artifacts due to sample anisotropy limit the applicability of these methods. ...Here we demonstrate that nonlinear second-harmonic-generation circular dichroism spectral microscopy can overcome these limits. In intact collagenous tissues, clear spectral resonance is observed with sub-micrometer spatial resolution. By performing gradual protein denaturation studies, we show that the resonant responses are dominantly due to the molecular chirality.
Background
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) due to severe influenza A H1N1 pneumonitis would result in impaired pulmonary functions and health‐related quality of life (HRQoL) after hospital ...discharge.
Objectives
The recovery of pulmonary functions, exercise capacity, and HRQoL in the survivors of ARDS due to 2009 pandemic influenza A H1N1 pneumonitis (H1N1‐ARDS) was evaluated in a tertiary teaching hospital in northern Taiwan between May 2010 and June 2011.
Patients and Methods
Data of spirometry, total lung capacity (TLC), diffusing capacity of carbon monoxide (DLCO), and 6‐minute walk distance (6MWD) in the patients survived from H1N1‐ARDS were collected 1, 3, and 6 months post‐hospital discharge. HRQoL was evaluated with St. George respiratory questionnaire (SGRQ).
Results
Nine survivors of H1N1‐ARDS in the study period were included. All these patients received 2 months’ pulmonary rehabilitation program. Pulmonary functions and exercise capacity included TLC, forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1), DLCO, and 6MWD improved from 1 to 3 months post‐hospital discharge. Only TLC had further significant improvement from 3 to 6 months. HRQoL represented as the total score of SGRQ had no significant improvement in the first 3 months but improved significantly from 3 to 6 months post‐discharge.
Conclusion
The impaired pulmonary functions and exercise capacity in the survivors of H1N1‐ARDS improved soon at 3 months after hospital discharge. Their quality of life had keeping improved at 6 months even though there was no further improvement of their pulmonary functions and exercise capacity.
Tidal volume at peak exercise and vital capacity ratio (V
/VC) and V
/inspiratory capacity (IC) were used to differentiate lung expansion in subjects with normal health and chronic obstructive ...pulmonary disease (COPD) from that in subjects with restrictive ventilation. However, VC and IC variably change due to pseudorestriction of lung volumes. Thus, these variables are currently not recommended. In contrast, total lung capacity (TLC) does little change during exercise. The aims of the study investigated whether V
/TLC is more significantly correlated with static air trapping and lung hyperinflation in patients with COPD than V
/IC, V
/FVC, and V
/SVC (study 1), and developed a marker to replace dynamic IC maneuvers by evaluation of the relationship between end-expiratory lung volume (EELV) and V
/TLC and identification of a cutoff value for V
/TLC (study 2). One hundred adults with COPD (study 1) and 23 with COPD and 19 controls (study 2) were analyzed. Spirometry, lung volume, diffusing capacity, incremental cardiopulmonary exercise tests with dynamic IC maneuvers were compared between groups. An ROC curve was generated to identify a cut off value for V
/TLC. In study 1, V
/TLC was more significantly associated with airflow obstruction, static air trapping and hyperinflation. In study 2, V
/TLC was highly correlated with EELV in the patients (r = -0.83), and V
/TLC ≥ 0.27 predicted that 18% of the patients with static air trapping and hyperinflation can expand their V
equivalent to the controls. In conclusions, V
/TLC was superior to other V
/capacities. V
/TLC may be a marker of dynamic hyperinflation in subjects with COPD, thereby avoiding the need for dynamic IC maneuvers. V
/TLC < 0.27 identified approximately 82% of subjects with COPD who could not adequately expand their tidal volume. As most of our participants were male, further studies are required to elucidate whether the results of this study can be applied to female patients with COPD.
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) has a high mortality rate in intensive care units (ICU). The elderly patients remain to be increased of ICU patients. The aim is to investigate the survival ...predictors of elderly patients with ARDS. We reported a prospective observational cohort research, including the patients with ARDS between October 2012 and May 2015. Demographic, comorbidities, severity, lung mechanics, laboratory data and survival outcomes were analyzed. A total of 463 patients with ARDS were ≥65 years old were enrolled and analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) odds ratio (OR) 1.111, 95% CI 1.010-1.222, p = 0.031, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score (OR 1.127, 95% CI 1.054-1.206, p < 0.001) and peak inspiratory pressure (PIP) (OR 1.061, 95% CI 1.024-1.099, p = 0.001) which were independently associated with hospital mortality. Regarding the subgroups patients as 65-74 years old, 75-84 years old and ≥85 years old, the baseline characteristics were not significant difference and the hospital mortality rates were also not significant difference. In conclusion, CCI, SOFA score and PIP were identified as survival predictors in elderly patient with ARDS. Assessing comorbidities with CCI is essential in predicting the survival for elderly patients with ARDS.
Long-acting beta-agonists (LABA) and long-acting muscarinic antagonists (LAMA) combination therapy improved lung function and health-related quality-of-life and reduced exacerbation rates and dyspnea ...in symptomatic chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. We compared the real-world effects of three fixed-dose LABA/LAMA combinations for COPD in Taiwan.
This multicenter, retrospective study evaluated 1-year outcomes after LABA/LAMA combination therapy in patients with symptomatic COPD. Exacerbations and symptoms of COPD, lung functions, and therapy escalation were compared among patients using tiotropium/olodaterol, umeclidinium/vilanterol and indacaterol/glycopyrronium. Propensity score matching (PSM) was applied to balance the baseline characteristics.
Data of 1,617 patients were collected. After PSM, time to first moderate-to-severe COPD exacerbation was comparable among three groups, while the annualized rates of the exacerbation (episodes/patient/year) in patients receiving tiotropium/olodaterol (0.19) or umeclidinium/vilanterol (0.17) were significantly lower than those receiving indacaterol/glycopyrronium (0.38). COPD-related symptoms were stable over the treatment period, and there was no significant difference in the changes of symptom scores including CAT and mMRC among three groups at the end of the study period.
This study presented valuable real-world outcome in terms of exacerbation and treatment response of COPD patients treated with fixed-dose LABA/LAMA regimens in Taiwan. The annualized rates of moderate-to-severe exacerbation in patients receiving tiotropium/olodaterol or umeclidinium/vilanterol were significantly lower than those receiving indacaterol/glycopyrronium, though the time to first moderate-to-severe exacerbation was similar among different fixed-dose LABA/LAMA combinations.
Oxygen pulse (O
P) is a function of stroke volume and cellular oxygen extraction and O
P curve pattern (O
PCP) can provide continuous measurements of O
P. However, measurements of these two ...components are difficult during incremental maximum exercise. As cardiac function is evaluated using ejection fraction (EF) according to the guidelines and EF can be obtained using first-pass radionuclide ventriculography, the aim of this study was to investigate associations of O
P%predicted and O
PCP with EF in patients with heart failure with reduced or mildly reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF/HFmrEF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and also in normal controls. This was a prospective observational cross-sectional study. Correlations of resting left ventricular EF, dynamic right and left ventricular EFs and outcomes with O
P% and O
PCP across the three participant groups were analyzed. A total of 237 male subjects were screened and 90 were enrolled (27 with HFrEF/HFmrEF, 30 with COPD and 33 normal controls). O
P% and the proportions of the three types of O
PCP were similar across the three groups. O
P% reflected dynamic right and left ventricular EFs in the control and HFrEF/HFmrEF groups, but did not reflect resting left ventricular EF in all participants. O
PCP did not reflect resting or dynamic ventricular EFs in any of the subjects. A decrease in O
PCP was significantly related to nonfatal cardiac events in the HFrEF/HFmrEF group (log rank test,
= 0.01), whereas O
P% and O
PCP did not predict severe acute exacerbations of COPD. The findings of this study may clarify the utility of O
P and O
PCP, and may contribute to the currently used interpretation algorithm and the strategy for managing patients, especially those with HFrEF/HFmrEF. (Trial registration number NCT05189301.).
Highlights • Providing clinical evidence of EGFR-TKI retreatment following chemotherapy. • Survival benefit was pronounced in patients with longer drug holidays. • Females with exon 21 mutation are ...most likely to benefit from this strategy.
PDF
