Cost-benefit analysis of esophageal cancer endoscopic screening in high-risk areas of China

AIM:To estimate the cost-benefit of endoscopic screening strategies of esophageal cancer(EC)in high-risk areas of China. METHODS:Markov model-based analyses were conducted to compare the net present values(NPVs)and the benefit-cost ratios(BCRs)of 12 EC endoscopic screening strategies.Strategies varied according to the targeted screening age,screening frequencies,and follow-up intervals.Model parameters were collected from population-based studies in China,published literatures,and surveillance data. RESULTS:Compared with non-screening outcomes,all strategies with hypothetical 100 000 subjects saved life years.Among five dominant strategies determined by the incremental cost-effectiveness analysis,screening once at age 50 years incurred the lowest NPV(international dollar-I$55 million)and BCR(2.52).Screening six times between 40-70 years at a 5-year interval[i.e., six times(40)f-strategy]yielded the highest NPV(I$99 million)and BCR(3.06).Compared with six times(40)fstrategy,screening thrice between 40-70 years at a 10-year interval resulted in relatively lower NPV,but the same BCR. CONCLUSION:EC endoscopic screening is cost-beneficial in high-risk areas of China.Policy-makers should consider the cost-benefit,population acceptance,and local economic status when choosing suitable screening strategies.

Economic cost-benefit analysis for the agricultural use of sewage sludge treated with lime and fly ash

A tool for calculating the economic and environmental impacts of the use of byproducts of industrial processes that can substitute for perishable resources was presented.This was exemplified by fly ash(the fine fraction of ash originating from coal burned to generate electricity and collected by filtering exhaust gases leaving the furnace),added to soil as a component of sewage sludge stabilized with fly ash and lime(NVS).Application to soil of NVS has potential agricultural and environmental advantages and disadvantages.The costs and benefits of such application were calculated using both a database and expert opinions.The calculations assumed a representative assemblage of soils and crops,with weights assigned to each crop type and soil characteristic.The annual weighted benefits(additional income for the farmer)and costs per hectare reached 324$/ha and 131$/ha respectively.Major potential benefits include:Chemical fertilizer replacement,159$/ha;Improvement to the soil’s physical properties,75$/ha;Supply of vital trace elements,33$/ha.Major potential costs were:Regulatory limitations on marketing of crops pending proof of absence of risk of heavy metals or radionuclides accumulation in these crops,(17$/ha and 36$/ha respectively);Application and incorporation cost,50$/ha.The presented estimates of the costs and benefits refer to the array of soils and conditions typical to Israel.It is possible to maximize potential benefits by applying fly ash only to the most suitable agricultural soils while improper use of fly ash will increase the costs incurred from its use.

Cost-benefit analysis of trading strategies in the stock index futures market

With the introduction of many derivatives into the capital market,including stock index futures,the trading strategies in financial markets have been gradually enriched.However,there is still no theoretical model that can determine whether these strategies are effective,what the risks are,and how costly the strategies are.We built an agent-based cross-market platform that includes five stocks and one stock index future,and constructed an evaluation system for stock index futures trading strategies.The evaluation system includes four dimensions:effectiveness,risk,occupation of capital,and impact cost.The results show that the informed strategy performs well in all aspects.The risk of the technical strategy is relatively higher than that of the other strategies.Moreover,occupation of capital and impact cost are both higher for the arbitrage strategy.Finally,the wealth of noise traders is almost lost.

Cost-benefit analysis of screening for diabetic retinopathy among Chinese type 2 diabetes: decision from different perspectives of a population-based study

The purpose of this study is to explore whether it is worthwhile to launch a routine diabetic retinopathy (DR) screening for blindness pre-vention among Chinese type 2 diabetes from different perspective based on the popula-tion-based study in Kinmen, Taiwan. A total of 971 community dwelling adults previously di-agnosed with type 2 diabetes in 1991-1993 un-derwent DR screening in 1999-2002 by a panel of ophthalmologists using on-site indirect oph-thalmoscopy and 45-degree color fundus retinal photographs. The cost-benefit analysis is used to evaluate the DR screening. In terms of bene-fit-cost ratio, the different screening programs for DR could save New Taiwan Dollars (NTD) from 14.38 to 36.83 in discounted costs for each dollar incurred in different screening years from the societal viewpoint for Taiwan and save NTD from 0.81 to 1.80 in different screening years from health care payer’s perspective. The av-erage estimate of willingness-to-pay to translate into benefit yields NTD from 937.8 to 4,689 be- nefits per case due to DR screening in different screening years during 10-year follow-up. The net present value of the DR screening were NTD from -167,318 to -307,251.2 in different screening years. In conclusion, it is worthwhile to initial a routine DR screening of Chinese type 2 diabetes for blindness prevention from the societal per-spective but not from consumer decision based on the willingness-to-pay perspective.

The Cost-Benefit Analysis for Bananas Diversity Production in China Foc. Zones

Over 50 years ago, banana export plantations in Panama were ruined by Fusarium wilt race 1 (Foc. R1) since the popular cultivar Gros Michel is susceptible to Foc. R1 [1]. Fortunately, the resistant cultivar Cavendish replaced Gros Michel as the world biggest commercial fruit after ten years’ research and development. Due to its good economic profit, banana industry develops very fast recently in China. Unfortunately, Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense tropical race 4 (TR4) brought disaster to Cavendish plantation since 1996. Most of traditional banana planting zones of Guangdong and Hainan provinces were infected by Foc. TR4 to the end of 2009. In order to fight against Foc. TR4, here we tried to investigate the cost-benefit and disease resistance of six banana cultivars (Cavendish Baxijiao, Dajiao, Guangfen No. 1, Fenzha No. 1, Gongjiao, Haigongjiao) planted in China Foc. Zones. Comparisons were conducted on their economic characteristics, cost, benefit, as well as the advantage and disadvantage and their application in rota-tion. Generally, supposing the investment of $ 4400/ha, the banana plantation attains a good economic profit as $ 2200/ha. Rotation of these cultivars can maintain the biodiversity as well as improve the sustainable development of banana industry.

Cost-benefit Analysis of Land Development Projects Based on Fuzzy Comprehensive Evaluation Model

Ecological and environmental issues have always been the focus of government work. The economic losses caused by air pollution,water pollution,noise pollution and solid waste pollution caused by land use development projects are estimated,and the total population economic losses are incorporated into project costing. Using the analytic hierarchy process,four benefit indicators and five cost indicators are selected for constructing a fuzzy comprehensive evaluation model to evaluate the cost-benefit of projects of different scales. The projects of different scales are ranked according to the level of comprehensive scores. The results show that large-scale projects are cost-effective and stable over the long term,and there are differences in the main sources of pollution-caused economic losses for projects of different scales. At last,reasonable policy suggestions are made to relevant planning and management personnel.

Cost-benefit Analysis of Chestnut Production in Xingtai County

On the basis of market demand survey of chestnut,this article carries out cost-benefit analysis of the chestnut production in Xingtai County,to understand the profitability and payback period of local chestnut production.It points out that chestnut production has a high rate of return on investment,and chestnut can be promoted on a large scale in Xingtai County.However,there are still some problems in the production and marketing of chestnut in Xingtai County,such as low level of technology,extensive management,low level of organization,market imperfections and weak brand consciousness.Based on these problems,corresponding recommendations are put forth.

Cost-benefit Analysis of Scale Pig Breeding in Shandong Province Based on Modified Entropy Weight-TOPSIS Model

According to the relevant statistical data in National Agricultural cost-benefit Data Compilation(2001- 2013),we use the modified entropy weight- TOPSIS model to research the cost-benefit status of scale pig breeding in Shandong Province from the perspective of comparing it with that of the entire country and 9 other main pig producing areas. The results show that compared with the national average,the cost-benefit ratio of small scale pig breeding in Shandong Province is lower,while the cost-benefit ratio of medium scale and large scale pig breeding is significantly improved; the cost-benefit ratio of small scale pig breeding in Shandong Province is basically the same as that in 9 other main pig producing areas,while the cost-benefit ratio of medium scale and large scale pig breeding is higher; the output value of main products and the purchase price of piglet are two major bottlenecks restricting the cost-benefit improvement of scale pig breeding in Shandong Province.

Study on Cost of Environmental Degradation Based on Cost-Benefit Analysis

With the rapid economic development of China,the environmental degradation brought by economic development cannot be ignored.In order to measure the cost of environmental degradation brought by land projects in the process of economic development and evaluate a land project,this paper establishes an ecological service evaluation model based on cost-benefit method to analyze the cost and benefit of land development projects from a new perspective,and explore effective strategies to alleviate environmental degradation.

Evaluating and Improving the Effectiveness of Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Programs: A Cost-Benefit Analysis Framework

Motor vehicle inspection and maintenance (I/M) programs are designed to identify high-emitting vehicles and mitigate their impacts on air quality and climate. I/M programs have been traditionally ranked superior among various vehicle emission control measures by the results of cost-benefit analysis, based on the assumption that these programs will achieve the targeted emission reduction outcomes. However, the actual effects of I/M programs may be greatly uncertain and when this uncertainty is taken into account, these programs may become suboptimal. This study develops a new a cost-benefit analysis framework that links various program design consideration, such as program participation rate, identification rate and effective repair rate, to the public health benefits as well as costs of the programs. This framework helps decision makers to investigate minimum implementation requirements that at least ensure the benefits are greater than the costs of implementing the programs in order to improve the overall effectiveness of the I/M programs. To illustrate the applications of the framework, it was applied to a particulate matter oriented I/M program targeting all diesel-fueled vehicles in the city of Bangkok, Thailand, a large metropolitan area that has been suffering from severe ambient PM pollution mainly attributable to its wide use of diesel-fueled vehicles and motorcycles. It was found that the health benefits achieved from the program are sensitive to several key program design elements, including participation rate and problem vehicle identification rate, fraction of effective repairs and illegal operation rate. Other variables, such as the testing cut-points and vehicle population growth rate, only have modest effects on the overall emission reduction and consequent health benefits. Overall, the performance of multiple variables associated with I/M program design needs to be improved simultaneous in order to achieve the targeted benefits of the program.

A New Criteria to Apply Weight-Dependent CATSthr to Cost-Benefit Analysis within the Framework of IMO EnvironmentaI-FSA Studies

The purpose of this paper is to investigate reasonable cost benefit criteria within the framework of environmental formal safety assessment （FSA）. In this study a statistical analysis of oil spill data was carried out based on the report of International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds. According to the statistical study of actual oil spill from tankers, it is found that collisions and groundings are the most probable causes of the oil spills from tankers. Probability distributions of costs of oil spill and oil spill amount are investigated, and a non-linear regression formula between costs of oil spills and oil spill weight are derived. Using the regression formula, an oil spill weight dependent CATStm （Cost of Averting a Ton of oil Spilt） is proposed. Moreover in order to apply the weight dependent CATSthr to cost benefit analysis （CBA）, a new cost-effective criterion is newly proposed with considering its concrete application to environmental FSA.

Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Wuxikou Integrated Flood Management Project Considering the Effects of Flood Risk Reduction and Resettlement

Evaluation of the economic costs and benefits of flood disaster risk management projects is crucial.However,current costbenefit analyses(CBA) often lack reliable estimates of the expected loss reduction from flood control measures and ignore quantitative assessments of resettlement.To address these limitations,this study incorporated a probabilistic risk analysis method and quantitative resettlement benefits assessment into the CBA framework,using the Wuxikou Integrated Flood Management Project(WIFMP) in Jiangxi Province,China,as a case study.The direct economic benefits of flood control were estimated by integrating hydrological statistics,numerical flood inundation simulation,and quantitative damage analysis with exposure and vulnerability data.Furthermore,the resettlement benefits were quantified by measuring the annual income growth of migrants based on assumptions about household employment.Our analysis shows that the total WIFMP investment is RMB 3546.1 million yuan(USD 1=RMB 6.976 yuan),including loan principal and interest of 244.4 million yuan,and operations and maintenance of 605.5 million yuan at 2020 prices.Annual project benefits are estimated at 351.3 million yuan in flood risk reduction,155.7-191.9 million yuan from increased resettlement income,and 42.7 million yuan in power and water revenues.Considering the costs and benefits across the entire project lifecycle,the internal rate of return ranges from 13.7 to 14.2%,and the net present value ranges from 31.8 to 352.6 billion yuan.Through improved benefit estimation methodology,this research enables a more reliable and holistic evaluation of costs and benefits for flood risk management projects.It provides insights for policymakers and practitioners involved in similar projects,contributing to more informed decision making and better allocation of resources in flood disaster risk management.

Data-driven approach to designing a BCI-integrated smart wheelchair through cost-benefit analysis

A smart wheelchair provides mobility assistance to persons with motor disabilities by processing sensory inputs from the person.This involves accurately collecting inputs from the user during various movement activities and using them to determine their intended motion.These smart wheelchairs work by collecting brain signals in the form of electroencephalography(EEG)signals and by processing them into a quantized format to provide movement assistance to people.Such systems can be referred to as brain-computer interface(BCI)systems that work with EEG signals.Acquiring data from human beings in the form of brain signals through EEG,along with processing of those signals and ensuring the correctness of actions instigated by those brain signals involve a huge amount of data.In this work,we carried out an experiment by taking 100 human subjects and recording their brain signals using a NeuroMax device.Typical wheelchairs are constrained by design as the motion of those is limited either by manual operation or controlled by haptic sensors and actuators.The main objective in this work was to design a wheelchair with better usability and control using machine learning-based knowledge,which is typically a data-driven approach.However,the proposed approach was designed to take inputs from human gestures and brain sensory activities to provide better usability to the wheelchair.The attention meditation cost–benefit analysis(AMCBA)proposed in this paper aims to reduce the risk of inappropriate results and improve performance by considering various cost-benefit parameters.The said classifier aims to improve the quality of emotion recognition by filtering features from EEG signals using methods of feature selection.The operation of the proposed method is described in two steps:in the first step,we assign weights to different channels for the extraction of spatial and temporal information from human behavior.The second step presents the cost-benefit model to improve the accuracy to help in decision-making.Moreover,we tried to assess the performance of the wheelchair for various assumptions and technical specifications.Finally,this study achieves improved performance in the most difficult circumstances to provide a better experience to persons with immobility.

Screening biomarkers for spinal cord injury using weighted gene co-expression network analysis and machine learning

Immune changes and inflammatory responses have been identified as central events in the pathological process of spinal co rd injury.They can greatly affect nerve regeneration and functional recovery.However,there is still limited understanding of the peripheral immune inflammato ry response in spinal cord inju ry.In this study.we obtained microRNA expression profiles from the peripheral blood of patients with spinal co rd injury using high-throughput sequencing.We also obtained the mRNA expression profile of spinal cord injury patients from the Gene Expression Omnibus(GEO)database(GSE151371).We identified 54 differentially expressed microRNAs and 1656 diffe rentially expressed genes using bioinformatics approaches.Functional enrichment analysis revealed that various common immune and inflammation-related signaling pathways,such as neutrophil extracellular trap formation pathway,T cell receptor signaling pathway,and nuclear factor-κB signal pathway,we re abnormally activated or inhibited in spinal cord inju ry patient samples.We applied an integrated strategy that combines weighted gene co-expression network analysis,LASSO logistic regression,and SVM-RFE algorithm and identified three biomarke rs associated with spinal cord injury:ANO10,BST1,and ZFP36L2.We verified the expression levels and diagnostic perfo rmance of these three genes in the original training dataset and clinical samples through the receiver operating characteristic curve.Quantitative polymerase chain reaction results showed that ANO20 and BST1 mRNA levels were increased and ZFP36L2 mRNA was decreased in the peripheral blood of spinal cord injury patients.We also constructed a small RNA-mRNA interaction network using Cytoscape.Additionally,we evaluated the proportion of 22 types of immune cells in the peripheral blood of spinal co rd injury patients using the CIBERSORT tool.The proportions of naive B cells,plasma cells,monocytes,and neutrophils were increased while the proportions of memory B cells,CD8^(+)T cells,resting natural killer cells,resting dendritic cells,and eosinophils were markedly decreased in spinal cord injury patients increased compared with healthy subjects,and ANO10,BST1 and ZFP26L2we re closely related to the proportion of certain immune cell types.The findings from this study provide new directions for the development of treatment strategies related to immune inflammation in spinal co rd inju ry and suggest that ANO10,BST2,and ZFP36L2 are potential biomarkers for spinal cord injury.The study was registe red in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry(registration No.ChiCTR2200066985,December 12,2022).

Social-ecological perspective on the suicidal behaviour factors of early adolescents in China:a network analysis

Background In early adolescence,youth are highly prone to suicidal behaviours.Identifying modifiable risk factors during this critical phase is a priority to inform effective suicide prevention strategies.Aims To explore the risk and protective factors of suicidal behaviours(ie,suicidal ideation,plans and attempts)in early adolescence in China using a social-ecological perspective.Methods Using data from the cross-sectional project‘Healthy and Risky Behaviours Among Middle School Students in Anhui Province,China',stratified random cluster sampling was used to select 5724 middle school students who had completed self-report questionnaires in November 2020.Network analysis was employed to examine the correlates of suicidal ideation,plans and attempts at four levels,namely individual(sex,academic performance,serious physical llness/disability,history of self-harm,depression,impulsivity,sleep problems,resilience),family(family economic status,relationship with mother,relationship with father,family violence,childhood abuse,parental mental illness),school(relationship with teachers,relationship with classmates,school-bullying victimisation and perpetration)and social(social support,satisfaction with society).Results In total,37.9%,19.0%and 5.5%of the students reported suicidal ideation,plans and attempts in the past 6 months,respectively.The estimated network revealed that suicidal ideation,plans and attempts were collectively associated with a history of self-harm,sleep problems,childhood abuse,school bullying and victimisation.Centrality analysis indicated that the most influential nodes in the network were history of self-harm and childhood abuse.Notably,the network also showed unique correlates of suicidal ideation(sex,weight=0.60;impulsivity,weight=0.24;family violence,weight=0.17;relationship with teachers,weight=-0.03;school-bullying perpetration,weight=0.22),suicidal plans(social support,weight=-0.15)and suicidal attempts(relationship with mother,weight=-0.10;parental mental llness,weight=0.61).Conclusions This study identified the correlates of suicidal ideation,plans and attempts,and provided practical implications for suicide prevention for young adolescents in China.Firstly,this study highlighted the importance of joint interventions across multiple departments.Secondly,the common risk factors of suicidal ideation,plans and attempts were elucidated.Thirdly,this study proposed target interventions to address the unique influencing factors of suicidal ideation,plans and attempts.

Advances in microfluidic-based DNA methylation analysis

DNA methylation has been extensively investigated in recent years,not least because of its known relationship with various diseases.Progress in analytical methods can greatly increase the relevance of DNA methylation studies to both clinical medicine and scientific research.Microflu-idic chips are excellent carriers for molecular analysis,and their use can provide improvements from multiple aspects.On-chip molecular analysis has received extensive attention owing to its advantages of portability,high throughput,low cost,and high efficiency.In recent years,the use of novel microfluidic chips for DNA methylation analysis has been widely reported and has shown obvious superiority to conventional methods.In this review,wefirst focus on DNA methylation and its applications.Then,we discuss advanced microfluidic-based methods for DNA methylation analysis and describe the great progress that has been made in recent years.Finally,we summarize the advantages that microfluidic technology brings to DNA methylation analysis and describe several challenges and perspectives for on-chip DNA methylation analysis.This review should help researchers improve their understanding and make progress in developing microfluidic-based methods for DNA methylation analysis.

A Review on Sources,Extractions and Analysis Methods of a Sustainable Biomaterial:Tannins

Condensed and hydrolysable tannins are non-toxic natural polyphenols that are a commercial commodity industrialized for tanning hides to obtain leather and for a growing number of other industrial applications mainly to substitute petroleum-based products.They are a definite class of sustainable materials of the forestry industry.They have been in operation for hundreds of years to manufacture leather and now for a growing number of applications in a variety of other industries,such as wood adhesives,metal coating,pharmaceutical/medical applications and several others.This review presents the main sources,either already or potentially commercial of this forestry by-materials,their industrial and laboratory extraction systems,their systems of analysis with their advantages and drawbacks,be these methods so simple to even appear primitive but nonetheless of proven effectiveness,or very modern and instrumental.It constitutes a basic but essential summary of what is necessary to know of these sustainable materials.In doing so,the review highlights some of the main challenges that remain to be addressed to deliver the quality and economics of tannin supply necessary to fulfill the industrial production requirements for some materials-based uses.

Lagrangian coherent structure analysis on transport of Acetes chinensis along coast of Lianyungang,China

Spatial heterogeneity or“patchiness”of plankton distributions in the ocean has always been an attractive and challenging scientific issue to oceanographers.We focused on the accumulation and dynamic mechanism of the Acetes chinensis in the Lianyungang nearshore licensed fishing area.The Lagrangian frame approaches including the Lagrangian coherent structures theory,Lagrangian residual current,and Lagrangian particle-tracking model were applied to find the transport pathways and aggregation characteristics of Acetes chinensis.There exist some material transport pathways for Acetes chinensis passing through the licensed fishing area,and Acetes chinensis is easy to accumulate in the licensed fishing area.The main mechanism forming this distribution pattern is the local circulation induced by the nonlinear interaction of topography and tidal flow.Both the Lagrangian coherent structure analysis and the particle trajectory tracking indicate that Acetes chinensis in the licensed fishing area come from the nearshore estuary.This work contributed to the adjustment of licensed fishing area and the efficient utilization of fishery resources.

Iron and ferritin effects on intensive care unit mortality:A metaanalysis

BACKGROUND The effect of serum iron or ferritin parameters on mortality among critically ill patients is not well characterized.AIM To determine the association between serum iron or ferritin parameters and mortality among critically ill patients.METHODS Web of Science,Embase,PubMed,and Cochrane Library databases were searched for studies on serum iron or ferritin parameters and mortality among critically ill patients.Two reviewers independently assessed,selected,and abstracted data from studies reporting on serum iron or ferritin parameters and mortality among critically ill patients.Data on serum iron or ferritin levels,mortality,and demographics were extracted.RESULTS Nineteen studies comprising 125490 patients were eligible for inclusion.We observed a slight negative effect of serum ferritin on mortality in the United States population[relative risk(RR)1.002;95%CI:1.002-1.004].In patients with sepsis,serum iron had a significant negative effect on mortality(RR=1.567;95%CI:1.208-1.925).CONCLUSION This systematic review presents evidence of a negative correlation between serum iron levels and mortality among patients with sepsis.Furthermore,it reveals a minor yet adverse impact of serum ferritin on mortality among the United States population.