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R Long

Publications and source records attributed to R Long.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2001

A radius of curvature-based approach to cervical spine vertebra image analysis.

Radiologists interpret the normality of vertebras within cervical spine x-rays for determining the presence of osteoporosis. Features relating to vertebra fracture such as contrasting anterior and posterior heights are used in the vertebra normality assessment. Vertebra distortion along the anterior boundary can be used as an indicator of vertebra normality. As the vertebra becomes less normal in appearance, the vertebra boundary increasingly deviates from the general rectangular shape. This research introduces a radius of curvature-based approach to quantify the distortion in vertebra boundary shape for anterior osteophytes classification of vertebras within cervical spine x-ray images. An adaptive histogram analysis technique is used to enhance the vertebras within cervical spine x-ray images to facilitate vertebra feature extraction. A least squares technique is used for calculating the radii of curvature along the vertebra boundary. Radius of curvature and gray-level based features are computed using the anterior boundary point position with the minimum radius of curvature as the reference. A total of 118 cervical spine vertebras are used for training and testing various classifiers including a standard back propagation neural network, K-Means algorithm, quadratic discriminant classifier and LVQ3. The results from those classifiers are reported for recognizing vertebras as normal or abnormal.

Artificial Intelligence↗
PubMed2001

Increasing safety, managing risk.

Before criminal background checks became standard industry practice, a long term care administrator in Illinois paid $15 per inquiry for such checks on potential hires for his facility. Management ordered the inquiries halted for budgetary reasons. A few months later, facing holiday staff shortages around Christmastime, the administrator hired two new aides to help round out a skeletal staff. "I did the registry checks, the reference checks, everything came in fine," recalls the administrator, who asked to remain anonymous in our reportage. "I came back in on Monday--Christmas was on Sunday--and got a report from [a resident's] family members that their mother had been sexually abused Christmas night." A year later, in legal proceedings over the incident, the administrator was summoned to give a deposition about the center's hiring practices. In fact, it had been discovered that one of the aides hired did have a record of abuse. Because the administrator cited that he was not permitted to perform criminal background checks, a decision with which he disagreed, he became a key witness for the plaintiff. Management admitted liability and paid $1 million in damages awarded the plaintiff.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

Drug-resistant tuberculosis.

Globally the proportion of tuberculosis cases caused by drug-resistant strains is increasing. Interruptions in the drug supply, improper drug prescription and nonadherence to treatment protocols promote drug resistance through mechanisms that are now well understood. The treatment of tuberculosis must take into account the possibility of drug resistance and include at least 2 drugs, preferably 3, to which the isolate is proven or anticipated to be susceptible.

Antitubercular Agents↗
PubMed2000

Computed tomographic abnormalities in Mycobacterium avium complex lung disease include the mosaic pattern of reduced lung attenuation.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the range and frequency of abnormalities on computed tomographic (CT) scans in patients who met the American Thoracic Society (ATS) case definition of Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) lung disease. Further, to report the effect of time and treatment on the progression of these abnormalities. METHODS: The demographic, clinical and radiologic features of 10 patients with proven MAC lung disease (mean age 71 years, standard deviation 12 years) were described. The presence or absence of 14 CT abnormalities was recorded in each of 10 lung zones. The effects of time and treatment on the abnormalities were recorded. RESULTS: The patients' lung function was minimally impaired. Pretreatment CT scans showed small nodules in 47% of the lung zones, reduced lung attenuation in 41%, and bronchiectasis in 27%. Bronchiectasis was associated with nodules in 20 zones from 9 patients and with no nodules in 7 zones from 1 patient. Reduced attenuation was associated with bronchiectasis alone in 8 zones, with nodules alone in 25 zones and with both bronchiectasis and nodules in 8 zones. In patients without treatment, or with non-curative treatment, bronchiectasis developed or worsened in 12 of 26 zones and resolved or improved in none. In contrast, after curative treatment, small nodules disappeared completely in 10 of 21 zones and developed in none. Of 7 zones with only nodules and reduced attenuation before treatment, 6 had no abnormalities after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that the 3 leading CT abnormalities in nodular-bronchiectatic MAC lung disease are small nodules, reduced attenuation and bronchiectasis. Reduced attenuation appeared to result from gas trapping and hypoxic vasoconstriction due to bronchiolocentric inflammatory nodules. Bronchiectasis appeared to be secondary to this bronchiolar disease.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

Familial ovarian germ cell cancer: report and review.

Ovarian germ cell cancers are rare malignancies accounting for less than 5% of all ovarian cancers. We present a family in which three closely related women were diagnosed with ovarian germ cell malignancies. This family's cancer history prompted a family history investigation of women treated for ovarian germ cell malignancies in the Gynecologic-Oncology Clinic at the University of Wisconsin. One of the eight patients whose family histories were reviewed had an uncle who had been diagnosed with testicular germ cell cancer. A review found six other previously reported families in which more than one relative had been diagnosed with a malignant ovarian germ cell tumor. Additionally, several cases of families with both males and females diagnosed with germ cell cancers have been documented. The low incidence of ovarian germ cell cancers suggests that multiple occurrences in the same family may not be due to chance. Rather, it is possible that a gene conferring susceptibility to ovarian germ cell cancers, and possibly to germ cell tumors in males as well, is present in at least some of these families.

Adolescent↗