The relationship between inflammation and tumor development and progression has been recognized in recent decades. NLR is an easily reproducible and widely used inflammatory response marker. The prognostic value of NLR for urologic tumors has been reported in succession. Here, we perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to summarize the association between the NLR and prognosis of urologic...

Background To investigate the correlation between presence and severity of urologic symptoms and self-reported systemic health conditions in minority men. Methods Questionnaires were distributed at a Men's Minority Health Fair. Urologic symptoms were assessed with the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), Sexual Health Inventory for Men (SHIM) and NIH Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Score ...

Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) is a recently developed non-invasive technique for obtaining high resolution, cross-sectional images of human tissue. This work investigated the capability of OCT to differentiate the architectural morphology of urologic tissue with the long term aim of using OCT as an adjunct to endoscopic imaging and to improve the efficiency of interventional procedures suc...

Objective. To present our experience of using transperitoneal subcostal access, Palmer's point (3 cm below the left costal margin in the midclavicular line), and its right corresponding site, in urologic laparoscopy. Methods. We used Palmer's point and the right corresponding site for initial access in 302 urologic surgeries (62 cases with prior surgeries). The record of these cases was reviewe...

Personalized item recommendation is useful in narrowing down the list of options provided to a user. In this paper, we address the problem scenario where the user is currently holding a basket of items, and the task is to recommend an item to be added to the basket. Here, we assume that items currently in a basket share some association based on an underlying latent need, e.g., ingredients to p...

The statements of researchers on the topic of basket divination and the statements of basket diviners in northwest Zambia, Africa, do not fully agree. While researchers rightly stress the importance of observation, analysis and interpretation in basket divination, going so far as to describe diviners as scientists, they fail to recognize that divination is not an abstract, disembodied undertaki...

CONTEXT Though uncommon, pancreatic duct stones can cause significant discomfort and morbidity. Endoscopic removal of pancreatic stones may decrease intraductal pressure by augmenting ductal drainage. Endoscopy is shown to be most effective when used early in the course of the disease. Endoscopic methods such as mechanical lithotripsy are often successful in removing the majority of pancreatic ...

BACKGROUND Cervical laminoplasty, utilizing different spacers to ''keep the door open,'' is the gold standard in Japan for treating ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL) and cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM). Here, we utilized a novel titanium ''basket'' spacer (Laminoplasty Basket: L-Basket; Ammtec, Tokyo) to perform open door cervical laminoplasty to keep the "door op...

We develop a new approach to valuing and hedging basket and spread options. We consider baskets of assets with potentially negative portfolio weights (spread options are a subclass of such basket options). The basket distribution is approximated using a generalized family of log-normal distributions. This approximation copes with negative basket values as well as negative skewness of the basket...

The market basket is defined as an itemset bought together by a customer on a single visit to a store. The market basket analysis is a powerful tool for the implementation of cross-selling strategies. Although some algorithms can find the market basket, they can be inefficient in computational time. The aim of this paper is to present a faster algorithm for the market basket analysis using data...