| 2121. |
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| 2122. |
- Schmidt, H., et al.
(author)
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Selecting control configurations for performance with independent design
- 2003
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In: Computers and Chemical Engineering. - 0098-1354 .- 1873-4375. ; 27:1, s. 101-109
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- An important task in the design of decentralized control systems for multivariable plants is the choice of the structure of interconnections between manipulated variables and controlled outputs, i.e. the control configuration. Most tools available for this task, such as the RGA, address mainly the stability properties of the overall system. In this paper we focus on performance, and consider in particular the problem of selecting control structures that enable a desired performance to be achieved through independent tuning of the subsystems. We show that, for this task, the common assumption of perfect control within the bandwidths of the subsystems is a poor one. Based on this, a new measure of interactions, the decentralized relative gain (dRG), is proposed. Finally, it is stressed that the effect of interactions on the magnitude as well as on the phase lag of the subsystems should be considered when selecting control configurations for performance.
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| 2123. |
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| 2124. |
- Schmidt, H, et al.
(author)
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Validity of wet-mount bacterial morphotype identification of vaginal fluid by phase-contrast microscopy for diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis in family practice
- 2001
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In: Acta Pathologica, Microbiologica et Immunologica Scandinavica (APMIS). - 0903-4641 .- 1600-0463. ; 109:9, s. 589-594
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The aim of this study was to determine the accuracy of a wet-mount bacterial morphology scoring (BMS) system and Nugent's Gram stain analysis for the diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis, using Amsel's criteria as the gold standard. The three diagnostic criteria were assessed independently. The BMS diagnosis was based on a scoring system which weighed the number of small bacterial morphotypes regarded as typical of bacterial vaginosis against lactobacillary morphotypes in phase-contrast microscopy of wet-mount preparations. Three groups of non-pregnant women attending either because of vaginal discharge, other genitourinary symptoms, or for a routine check-up, and a group of pregnant women attending for antenatal care were studied. The diagnostic accuracy was measured by sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and likelihood ratio. The accuracy of the BMS diagnosis was substantially high in all of the examined groups (LR 15.4-20.3). The accuracy of the Gram stain diagnosis was lower (LR 7.6-10.9). In the total material, the accuracy of the BMS diagnosis was higher than that of the Nugent's Gram staining. Intra- and inter-observer reproducibility of all three criteria applied was high. We propose greater routine use of the new BMS diagnosis for point-of-care testing in family practice as well as in research and in microbiology laboratories.
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| 2125. |
- Schmidt-Hellerau, K., et al.
(author)
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Homecare for sick family members while waiting for medical help during the 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone : A mixed methods study
- 2020
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In: BMJ Global Health. - : BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. - 2059-7908. ; 5:7
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Introduction Caring for an Ebola patient is a known risk factor for disease transmission. In Sierra Leone during the outbreak in 2014/2015, isolation of patients in specialised facilities was not always immediately available and caring for a relative at home was sometimes the only alternative. This study sought to assess population-level protective caregiving intentions, to understand how families cared for their sick and to explore perceived barriers and facilitators influencing caregiving behaviours. Methods Data from a nationwide household survey conducted in December 2014 were used to assess intended protective behaviours if caring for a family member with suspected Ebola. Their association with socio-demographic variables, Ebola-specific knowledge and risk perception was analysed using multilevel logistic regression. To put the results into context, semi-structured interviews with caregivers were conducted in Freetown. Results Ebola-specific knowledge was positively associated with the intention to avoid touching a sick person and their bodily fluids (adjusted OR (AOR) 1.29; 95% CI 1.01 to 1.54) and the intention to take multiple protective measures (AOR 1.38; 95% CI 1.16 to 1.63). Compared with residing in the mostly urban Western Area, respondents from the initial epicentre of the outbreak (Eastern Province) had increased odds to avoid touching a sick person or their body fluids (AOR 4.74; 95% CI 2.55 to 8.81) and to take more than one protective measure (AOR 2.94; 95% CI 1.37 to 6.34). However, interviews revealed that caregivers, who were mostly aware of the risk of transmission and general protective measures, felt constrained by different contextual factors. Withholding care was not seen as an option and there was a perceived lack of practical advice. Conclusions Ebola outbreak responses need to take the sociocultural reality of caregiving and the availability of resources into account, offering adapted and acceptable practical advice. The necessity to care for a loved one when no alternatives exist should not be underestimated.
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| 2126. |
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| 2127. |
- Schmidt, J, et al.
(author)
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Serological assays for the detection of human andes hantavirus infections based on its yeast-expressed nucleocapsid protein
- 2006
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In: Intervirology. - : S. Karger AG. - 0300-5526 .- 1423-0100. ; 49:3, s. 173-184
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- <i>Background:</i> The objective of the study was to develop and evaluate IgM and IgG ELISAs and an IgG Western blot test for the serological detection of human infections with Andes virus (ANDV), the major cause of hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS) in South America. <i>Methods:</i> The entire nucleocapsid (N) protein-encoding sequence of ANDV (strain AH-1) was cloned and expressed in the yeast <i>Saccharomyces cerevisiae.</i> The polyhistidine-tagged recombinant N (rN) protein of ANDV was purified by nickel-chelation chromatography and characterized by its reactivity with different N-specific monoclonal antibodies. To detect an antibody response directed against ANDV in humans, indirect IgM and IgG ELISAs and an IgG Western blot test based on ANDV rN antigen were developed. The evaluation of the tests was performed using a negative serum panel and 63 blinded sera from Argentina and Chile, containing acute-phase and convalescent sera from HCPS patients. <i>Results:</i> The specificities and sensitivities for the IgM and IgG ELISAs were demonstrated to be very high. The IgG ELISA data were confirmed by the IgG Western blot assay based on the same rN antigen. Almost all anti-ANDV-positive sera reacted to higher endpoint titers with N protein of ANDV than with those of Sin Nombre, Laguna Negra or Puumala virus. The cross-reactivity of anti-ANDV-N IgG-positive sera to rN proteins of other hantaviruses was found to be increased with time after the onset of HCPS. <i>Conclusion:</i> The high sensitivity of the novel assays should facilitate early diagnosis of ANDV infections and might contribute to a successful treatment of HCPS patients.
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| 2128. |
- Schmidt, K. B., et al.
(author)
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Three-Dimensional Optimal Spectral Extraction (TDOSE) from integral field spectroscopy
- 2019
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 628
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The amount of integral field spectrograph (IFS) data has grown considerably over the last few decades. The demand for tools to analyze such data is therefore bigger now than ever. We present a flexible Python tool for Three-Dimensional Optimal Spectral Extraction (TDOSE) from IFS data cubes. TDOSE works on any three-dimensional data cube and bases the spectral extractions on morphological reference image models. By default, these models are generated and composed of multiple multivariate Gaussian components, but can also be constructed with independent modeling tools and be provided as input to TDOSE. In each wavelength layer of the IFS data cube, TDOSE simultaneously optimizes all sources in the morphological model to minimize the difference between the scaled model components and the IFS data. The flux optimization produces individual data cubes containing the scaled three-dimensional source models. This allows the efficient de-blending of flux in both the spatial and spectral dimensions of the IFS data cubes, and extraction of the corresponding one-dimensional spectra. TDOSE implicitly requires an assumption about the two-dimensional light distribution. We describe how the flexibility of TDOSE can be used to mitigate and correct for deviations from the input distribution. Furthermore, we present an example of how the three-dimensional source models generated by TDOSE can be used to improve two-dimensional maps of physical parameters like velocity, metallicity, or star formation rate when flux contamination is a problem. By extracting TDOSE spectra of similar to 150 [OII] emitters from the MUSE-Wide survey we show that the median increase in line flux is similar to 5% when using multi-component models as opposed to single-component models. However, the increase in recovered line emission in individual cases can be as much as 50%. Comparing the TDOSE model-based extractions of the MUSE-Wide [OII] emitters with aperture spectra, the TDOSE spectra provides a median flux (S/N) increase of 9% (14%). Hence, TDOSE spectra optimize the S/N while still being able to recover the total emitted flux.
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| 2129. |
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| 2130. |
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