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PubMed2002

The Diagnostic Interview for Social and Communication Disorders: algorithms for ICD-10 childhood autism and Wing and Gould autistic spectrum disorder.

BACKGROUND: The Diagnostic Interview for Social and Communication Disorders (DISCO) is an interviewer-based schedule for use with parents and carers. In addition to its primary clinical purpose of helping the clinician to obtain a developmental history and description of the child or adult concerned, it can also be used to assist in providing a formal diagnostic category. METHOD: In this study we compared two algorithms based on the ninth revision of the schedule (DISCO 9). The algorithm for ICD-10 childhood autism comprised 91 individual, operationally defined items covering the behaviour outlined in the ICD-10 research criteria. The algorithm for the autistic spectrum disorder, as defined by Wing and Gould (1979), was based on 5 DISCO items that represented overarching categories of behaviour crucial for the diagnosis of autistic disorders. The aim of the study was to examine the implications for clinical diagnosis of these two different approaches. Parents of 36 children with clinical diagnoses of autistic disorder, 17 children with learning disability and 14 children with language disorders were interviewed by two interviewers. Algorithm diagnoses were applied to interview items in order to analyse the relationship between clinical and algorithm diagnoses and the inter-rater reliability between interviewers. RESULTS: Clinical diagnosis was significantly related to the diagnostic outputs for both algorithms. Inter-rater reliability was also high for both algorithms. The ICD childhood disorder algorithm produced more discrepant diagnoses than the Wing and Gould autistic spectrum algorithm. Analysis of the ICD-10 algorithm items and combination of items helped to explain the reason for these discrepancies. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that the DISCO is a reliable instrument for diagnosis when sources of information are used from the whole interview. It is particularly effective for diagnosing disorders of the broader autistic spectrum.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

A fast algorithm for computing inbreeding coefficients in large populations.

Inbreeding coefficients of animals are required in many genetic analyses of livestock records. A modification of Colleau's indirect algorithm to compute inbreeding coefficients in large populations is presented. With overlapping generations, the modified algorithm evaluated all progeny of each sire simultaneously in one back and forth exploration of a reduced pedigree. Simulation for a relatively large number of generations, different number of sires, family sizes and mating designs showed that Colleau's algorithm was faster (from 1.2 to 143 times) than two other algorithms under comparison (Tier, modified Meuwissen and Luo), in all situations investigated. Modifying Colleau's algorithm considerably decreased computation time (from 50 to 89%), resulting in a very fast algorithm. The number of sires mostly affected computational efficiency of the modified algorithm, whereas family size and mating design had virtually no effect. In the updating situation, when only animals born in the last year were evaluated, given known inbreeding coefficients for the other, the modified algorithm was also fast compared with the other three algorithms. Memory requirements for the algorithms were also discussed.

Algorithms↗
PubMed2006

Inaccuracy of Wolff-Parkinson-white accessory pathway localization algorithms in children and patients with congenital heart defects.

INTRODUCTION: ECG algorithms used to localize accessory pathways (AP) in patients with Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome have been validated in adults, but less is known of their use in children, especially in patients with congenital heart disease (CHD). We hypothesize that these algorithms have low diagnostic accuracy in children and even lower in those with CHD. METHODS: Pre-excited ECGs in 43 patients with WPW and CHD (median age 5.4 years [0.9-32 years]) were evaluated and compared to 43 consecutive WPW control patients without CHD (median age 14.5 years [1.8-18 years]). Two blinded observers predicted AP location using 2 adult and 1 pediatric WPW algorithms, and a third blinded observer served as a tiebreaker. Predicted locations were compared with ablation-verified AP location to identify (a) exact match for AP location and (b) match for laterality (left-sided vs right-sided AP). RESULTS: In control children, adult algorithms were accurate in only 56% and 60%, while the pediatric algorithm was correct in 77%. In 19 patients with Ebstein's anomaly, diagnostic accuracy was similar to controls with at times an even better ability to predict laterality. In non-Ebstein's CHD, however, the algorithms were markedly worse (29% for the adult algorithms and 42% for the pediatric algorithms). A relatively large degree of interobserver variability was seen (kappa values from 0.30 to 0.58). CONCLUSIONS: Adult localization algorithms have poor diagnostic accuracy in young patients with and without CHD. Both adult and pediatric algorithms are particularly misleading in non-Ebstein's CHD patients and should be interpreted with caution.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Cervical precancer detection using a multivariate statistical algorithm based on laser-induced fluorescence spectra at multiple excitation wavelengths.

A portable fluorimeter was developed and utilized to acquire fluorescence spectra from 381 cervical sites in 95 patients at 337, 380 and 460 nm excitation immediately prior to colposcopy. A multivariate statistical algorithm was used to extract clinically useful information from tissue spectra acquired in vivo. Two full-parameter algorithms were developed using tissue fluorescence emission spectra at all three excitation wavelengths (161 excitation-emission wavelength pairs) for cervical precancer (squamous intraepithelial lesion [SIL]) detection: a screening algorithm that discriminates between SIL and non-SIL with a sensitivity of 82 +/- 1.4% and specificity of 68 +/- 0.0%, and a diagnostic algorithm that differentiates high-grade SIL from non-high-grade SIL with a sensitivity and specificity of 79 +/- 2% and 78 +/- 6%, respectively. Multivariate statistical analysis was also employed to reduce the number of fluorescence excitation-emission wavelength pairs needed to redevelop algorithms that demonstrate a minimum decrease in classification accuracy. Two reduced-parameter algorithms that employ fluorescence intensities at only 15 excitation-emission wavelength pairs were developed: the screening algorithm differentiates SIL from non-SIL with a sensitivity of 84 +/- 1.5% and specificity of 65 +/- 2% and the diagnostic algorithm discriminates high-grade SIL from non-high-grade SIL with a sensitivity and specificity of 78 +/- 0.7% and 74 +/- 2%, respectively. Both the full-parameter and reduced-parameter screening algorithms discriminate between SIL and non-SIL with a similar specificity (+/-5%) and a substantially improved sensitivity relative to Pap smear screening. A comparison of the full-parameter and reduced-parameter diagnostic algorithms to colposcopy in expert hands indicates that all three have a very similar sensitivity and specificity for differentiating high-grade SIL from non-high-grade SIL.

Algorithms↗
PubMed2002

Comparison of algorithms for the simulation of action potentials with stochastic sodium channels.

This paper presents a comparison of computational algorithms to simulate action potentials using stochastic sodium channels. Four algorithms are compared in single-node models: Strassberg and DeFelice (1993) (SD), Rubinstein (1995) (R), Chow and White (1996) (CW), and Fox (1997) (F). Neural responses are simulated to a simple and a preconditioned monophasic current pulse. Three exact algorithms implementing Markov jumping processes (SD, R, CW) resulted in similar responses, while the approximation algorithm using Langevin's equation (F) showed quite different responses from those in the exact algorithms. The computational time was measured as well: 1(F), 7(CW), 32(SD), 39(R) relative to that of the F algorithm. Furthermore, it is shown that as the sampling step for integration of the transmembrane potential increases, neural responses in all algorithms tended to be different from those in dense sampling steps, however, the CW algorithm was robust even at a sparse sampling step. It is concluded that the most computationally efficient algorithm having appropriate properties of neural excitability is the CW algorithm.

Action Potentials↗
PubMed2004

A comparison of reconstruction algorithms for breast tomosynthesis.

Three algorithms for breast tomosynthesis reconstruction were compared in this paper, including (1) a back-projection (BP) algorithm (equivalent to the shift-and-add algorithm), (2) a Feldkamp filtered back-projection (FBP) algorithm, and (3) an iterative Maximum Likelihood (ML) algorithm. Our breast tomosynthesis system acquires 11 low-dose projections over a 50 degree angular range using an a-Si (CsI:Tl) flat-panel detector. The detector was stationary during the acquisition. Quality metrics such as signal difference to noise ratio (SDNR) and artifact spread function (ASF) were used for quantitative evaluation of tomosynthesis reconstructions. The results of the quantitative evaluation were in good agreement with the results of the qualitative assessment. In patient imaging, the superimposed breast tissues observed in two-dimensional (2D) mammograms were separated in tomosynthesis reconstructions by all three algorithms. It was shown in both phantom imaging and patient imaging that the BP algorithm provided the best SDNR for low-contrast masses but the conspicuity of the feature details was limited by interplane artifacts; the FBP algorithm provided the highest edge sharpness for microcalcifications but the quality of masses was poor; the information of both the masses and the microcalcifications were well restored with balanced quality by the ML algorithm, superior to the results from the other two algorithms.

Algorithms↗
PubMed2006

Development and evaluation of an exact fan-beam reconstruction algorithm using an equal weighting scheme via locally compensated filtered backprojection (LCFBP).

A novel exact fan-beam image reconstruction formula is presented and validated using both phantom data and clinical data. This algorithm takes the form of the standard ramp filtered backprojection (FBP) algorithm plus local compensation terms. This algorithm will be referred to as a locally compensated filtered backprojection (LCFBP). An equal weighting scheme is utilized in this algorithm in order to properly account for redundantly measured projection data. The algorithm has the desirable property of maintaining a mathematically exact result for: the full scan mode (2pi), the short scan mode (pi+ full fan angle), and the supershort scan mode [less than (pi+ full fan angle)]. Another desirable feature of this algorithm is that it is derivative-free. This feature is beneficial in preserving the spatial resolution of the reconstructed images. The third feature is that an equal weighting scheme has been utilized in the algorithm, thus the new algorithm has better noise properties than the standard filtered backprojection image reconstruction with a smooth weighting function. Both phantom data and clinical data were utilized to validate the algorithm and demonstrate the superior noise properties of the new algorithm.

Algorithms↗
PubMed1999

Comparison of algorithms for multileaf collimator field segmentation.

In the "stop and shoot" method of intensity modulated radiation therapy, it is desirable to use an efficient multileaf collimator (MLC) field segmentation algorithm in the sense that it translates beam intensity maps into the least number of MLC field segments. In this work, we compare the performance of eight different algorithms, including the ones by Bortfeld et al., Galvin et al., Xia and Verhey, the Siemens IMFAST algorithm, and four other algorithms which have not been studied before. We find that the algorithm of Xia and Verhey is most frequently the algorithm that needs the least MLC field segments. However, no single algorithm is the most efficient for all clinical cases or intensity maps. This suggests that it is desirable to have multiple algorithms available in a clinical treatment planning system which will search through all algorithms automatically and find the most efficient delivery sequence for a given treatment. Each intensity map in a treatment could be delivered by a different algorithm, whichever is the most efficient for that map. It is pointed out that when the background intensity level is not zero, it is not always efficient to deliver a segment to bring the background level down to zero.

Algorithms↗
PubMed1999

Intensity-modulation radiotherapy using independent collimators: an algorithm study.

The purpose of this work is to investigate algorithms for the delivery of intensity-modulated fields using independent collimators (IC). Two heuristic algorithms are proposed to calculate jaw-setting sequences for arbitrary 2D intensity distributions. The first algorithm is based on searching the whole intensity matrix to find the largest nonzero rectangular area as a segment while the second algorithm is to find a nonzero rectangular area as a segment which makes the complexity of the remaining intensity matrix minimum. After a sequence is obtained, the delivery order of all its segments is optimized with the technique of simulated annealing to minimize the total jaw-moving time. To evaluate these two algorithms, randomly generated intensity matrices and three clinical cases of different complexity have been tested, and the results have been compared with one algorithm proposed for MLC technique. It is shown that the efficiency of IC technique becomes increasingly lower than that of MLC technique, and the relative efficiency of two algorithms proposed here is related to machine dose rate and jaw speed. Assuming the prescribed dose is 200 cGY per fraction, machine dose rate is 250 MU/min, and jaw speed is 1.5 cm/s, the treatment can be delivered within about 20 min for all three cases with the first algorithm. The second algorithm requires longer delivery time under such assumptions. The delivery time can be further reduced through increasing machine dose rate and jaw speed, and developing more efficient algorithms. The use of IC for intensity-modulation radiotherapy has some potential advantages over other techniques.

Algorithms↗
PubMed1991

Evaluation of a diagnostic algorithm for heart disease in neonates.

OBJECTIVE: To develop, test, and validate an algorithm for diagnosing disease in neonates during an over the telephone referral to a specialist cardiac centre. DESIGN: A draft algorithm requiring only data available to a referring paediatrician was generated. This was modified in the light of a retrospective review of case records. A questionnaire to elicit all the data required by the algorithm was then generated. There followed a prospective three phase evaluation during consecutive over the telephone referrals. This consisted of (a) a conventional phase with unstructured referral consultations, (b) a phase with referrals structured around the questionnaire but independent of the algorithm, and (c) a validation phase with the algorithm (and its previous errors) available during the referral consultation. SETTING: 59 paediatric centres in south east England and a central specialist paediatric cardiology unit. PATIENTS: Consecutive neonates (aged less than 31 days) referred with suspected heart disease. The retrospective review was of records of 174 neonates from 1979. In the prospective evaluation (1987-90) the conventional phase comprised 71 neonates (over 5.5 months), the structured phase 203 neonates (over 14 months), and the validation phase 195 neonates (over 12 months). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Diagnostic accuracy (assigning patients to the correct diagnostic category (out of 27)), of the referring paediatrician, the specialist after the referral consultation, and the algorithm as compared with the definitive diagnosis by echocardiography at the specialist centre, and score for the appropriateness of management in transit. RESULTS: Simply structuring the consultation by questionnaire (that is, proceeding from the conventional phase to the structured phase) improved the diagnostic accuracy of both paediatricians (from 34% (24/71 cases) to 48% (97/203) correct) and specialists (from 54% (38/71 cases) to 64% (130/203) correct). The algorithm (structured phase) would have been even more accurate (78% (158/203 cases); p less than 0.01). Management scores in the structured phase were also better than in the conventional phase (80%(162/203 cases)v 58% (41/71) appropriate; p less than 0.01). Management scores would have improved to 91% appropriate (185/203; p less than 0.001) had the algorithmic diagnoses dictated management. The superiority of the algorithm was maintained but not bettered in the validation phase. CONCLUSIONS: Applying the algorithm should reduce the morbidity and mortality of neonates with critical heart disease by aiding clinicians in therapeutic decisions for in transit care.

Algorithms↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Fast exact string pattern-matching algorithms adapted to the characteristics of the medical language.

OBJECTIVE: The authors consider the problem of exact string pattern matching using algorithms that do not require any preprocessing. To choose the most appropriate algorithm, distinctive features of the medical language must be taken into account. The characteristics of medical language are emphasized in this regard, the best algorithm of those reviewed is proposed, and detailed evaluations of time complexity for processing medical texts are provided. DESIGN: The authors first illustrate and discuss the techniques of various string pattern-matching algorithms. Next, the source code and the behavior of representative exact string pattern-matching algorithms are presented in a comprehensive manner to promote their implementation. Detailed explanations of the use of various techniques to improve performance are given. MEASUREMENTS: Real-time measures of time complexity with English medical texts are presented. They lead to results distinct from those found in the computer science literature, which are typically computed with normally distributed texts. RESULTS: The Boyer-Moore-Horspool algorithm achieves the best overall results when used with medical texts. This algorithm usually performs at least twice as fast as the other algorithms tested. CONCLUSION: The time performance of exact string pattern matching can be greatly improved if an efficient algorithm is used. Considering the growing amount of text handled in the electronic patient record, it is worth implementing this efficient algorithm.

Algorithms↗
PubMed1994

Receiver-operated characteristic curve analysis of two algorithms assessing human growth hormone pulsatile secretion (PULSAR, CLUSTER): comparison of peak detection efficacy.

Computer-based peak identification algorithms reduce observer bias in the analysis of pulsatile hormone secretion. With increasing peak detection stringency, an algorithm will detect varying proportions of true-positive and false-positive peaks, determining its receiver-operated characteristics (ROC). To demonstrate that ROC curve analysis can characterize algorithm performance, we analyzed growth hormone (hGH) profiles from 94 children obtained with different hGH assay techniques [radioimmunoassay (RIA), immunoradiometric assay (IRMA)] at different sampling intervals (group A: 1 h/RIA; group B: 1 h/IRMA; group C: 20 min/RIA; group D: 20 min/IRMA), using the PULSAR and CLUSTER algorithms. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was taken to compare the efficacy of both algorithms over a range of peak recognition stringency thresholds kept constant between algorithms, using hGH noise series for threshold calibration and the results of multiple visual inspection as reference standards. AUC by PULSAR ranged from 0.926 (group C) to 0.961 (group A), indicating good algorithm performance. AUC by CLUSTER ranged from 0.869 (group B) to 0.916 (group D) in the 20-min series, decreasing to 0.756 (group C) and 0.868 (group A) in the 1-hour series. At lower sampling intensity, significant discordant sensitivity existed between algorithms for RIA (p < 0.001) and IRMA (p < 0.0026). When adjusted to a high, assay-specific, comparable stringency, and employed on 20-min sampling hGH data, both the CLUSTER and PULSAR algorithm operated at a similarly high peak detection efficacy. The PULSAR algorithm appears to be more robust when hGH series with lower sampling intensities are analyzed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Algorithms↗
PubMed2005

A linear memory algorithm for Baum-Welch training.

BACKGROUND: Baum-Welch training is an expectation-maximisation algorithm for training the emission and transition probabilities of hidden Markov models in a fully automated way. It can be employed as long as a training set of annotated sequences is known, and provides a rigorous way to derive parameter values which are guaranteed to be at least locally optimal. For complex hidden Markov models such as pair hidden Markov models and very long training sequences, even the most efficient algorithms for Baum-Welch training are currently too memory-consuming. This has so far effectively prevented the automatic parameter training of hidden Markov models that are currently used for biological sequence analyses. RESULTS: We introduce the first linear space algorithm for Baum-Welch training. For a hidden Markov model with M states, T free transition and E free emission parameters, and an input sequence of length L, our new algorithm requires O(M) memory and O(LMTmax (T + E)) time for one Baum-Welch iteration, where Tmax is the maximum number of states that any state is connected to. The most memory efficient algorithm until now was the checkpointing algorithm with O(log(L)M) memory and O(log(L)LMTmax) time requirement. Our novel algorithm thus renders the memory requirement completely independent of the length of the training sequences. More generally, for an n-hidden Markov model and n input sequences of length L, the memory requirement of O(log(L)L(n-1) M) is reduced to O(L(n-1) M) memory while the running time is changed from O(log(L)Ln MTmax + Ln(T + E)) to O(Ln MTmax (T + E)). An added advantage of our new algorithm is that a reduced time requirement can be traded for an increased memory requirement and vice versa, such that for any c e {1, ..., (T + E)}, a time requirement of Ln MTmax c incurs a memory requirement of L(n-1) M(T + E - c). CONCLUSION: For the large class of hidden Markov models used for example in gene prediction, whose number of states does not scale with the length of the input sequence, our novel algorithm can thus be both faster and more memory-efficient than any of the existing algorithms.

Algorithms↗
PubMed2004

Validity of the American Thoracic Society and other spirometric algorithms using FVC and forced expiratory volume at 6 s for predicting a reduced total lung capacity.

OBJECTIVES: (1) To compare the performance of three spirometric algorithms developed to predict whether the total lung capacity (TLC) is reduced vs normal or increased, (2) to determine if forced expiratory volume at 6 s (FEV(6)) can be substituted for FVC in these algorithms, and (3) to determine if ascertainment bias was present in patients referred for the measurement of spirometry and TLC compared to patients referred for spirometry only. METHODS: We analyzed the results of 219 consenting consecutive patients referred to a New Zealand tertiary hospital respiratory laboratory for spirometry and TLC measurements. Spirometry results from 370 patients referred for spirometry but not lung volumes were used to test for potential ascertainment bias. Spirometry results were analyzed using the lower limit of normal (LLN) values from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Study reference equations. The equations of Goldman and Becklake, and Crapo were used to classify TLC as normal or abnormal. Receiver operator characteristic curves were used to produce an algorithm using the LLN for FVC and FEV(6). The performances of previous algorithms and our own algorithms were analyzed for predicting a reduced lung volume against the "gold standard," plethysmographic TLC. RESULTS: All three algorithms predicted a reduced TLC with an accuracy of approximately 50%. In contrast, all algorithms predicted TLC was either normal or increased with an accuracy of > or = 99% regardless of the reference set used. The algorithms based on FEV(6) performed equally as well as the FVC algorithms. No ascertainment bias was found. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence that spirometry-based algorithms can accurately predict when TLC is either normal or increased, and can also increase the a priori probability that TLC is reduced to approximately 50%. FEV(6) is equivalent to FVC in these predictions.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Evaluation of simple diagnostic algorithms for Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis cervical infections in female sex workers in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.

OBJECTIVE: To generate simple algorithms for the diagnosis of cervical infection with Neisseria gonorrhoeae or Chlamydia trachomatis in female sex workers in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire and to evaluate their validity. METHODS: From October 1992 to the end of June 1993, female sex workers were interviewed and clinically examined at a confidential clinic. N gonorrhoeae was cultured on modified Thayer-Martin medium and C trachomatis was detected by polymerase chain reaction. The associations of gonococcal or chlamydial cervical infection with sociodemographic, behavioural, clinical, and biological factors were assessed and three algorithms were generated. The validity parameters of these diagnostic algorithms were calculated and compared to those of standard algorithms and mass treatment. RESULTS: Among 683 women, cervical infection was present in 239 (35%). The sensitivity an algorithm incorporating sociodemographic and behavioural factors and symptoms, of an algorithm incorporating clinical signs and simple laboratory tests, and of a combined algorithm was 83%, 86%, and 79% respectively while the specificity was 32%, 44%, and 54%, and the positive predictive value 40%, 46%, and 48% respectively. A standard algorithm incorporating only the symptom vaginal discharge, and a standard algorithm requiring both the symptom vaginal discharge and the presence of an endocervical mucopurulent discharge on examination had a sensitivity of 44% and 18%, a specificity of 75% and 95%, and a positive predictive value of 49% and 67% respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The algorithms generated in this study may be useful for the control of cervical infections in female sex workers in resource poor settings in the absence of rapid, inexpensive, and accurate laboratory tests for the diagnosis of cervical infections.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

[Improvement on simulation algorithm of excitation propagation in heart modeling].

It is important to simulate the excitation propagation process of cardiac bio-electricity in the research of ECG forward problem. Traditional methods describe them with wave simulation algorithm such as LFX simulation algorithm and vector propagation algorithm etc, these methods have some problems to certain extent, due to the presence of discreteness of space and time and asymmetry of the myocardium. This paper discussed the simulation algorithm in 2-dimension space under the circumstance of layered and non-layered structure of myocardium. By calculating the theoretic values of simulating time based on Huygen's principle, we found that there were errors in LFX algorithm and no errors in vector propagation algorithm under the circumstance of non-layered structure of the myocardium, no mater what myocardium is isotropic or anisotropic. However, there exist errors from both algorithms when the myocardium has the layered structure. An improved algorithm is proposed and the simulations have been performed to examine the efficacy of the new algorithm, and the errors are reduced obviously. By increasing the number of myocardial blocks in the model, we also analyzed its influence on the error of simulation algorithm.

Algorithms↗
PubMed2004

Diagnosis of paediatric HIV infection in a primary health care setting with a clinical algorithm.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the validity of an algorithm used by primary care health workers to identify children with symptomatic human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. This HIV algorithm is being implemented in South Africa as part of the Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI), a strategy that aims to improve childhood morbidity and mortality by improving care at the primary care level. As AIDS is a leading cause of death in children in southern Africa, diagnosis and management of symptomatic HIV infection was added to the existing IMCI algorithm. METHODS: In total, 690 children who attended the outpatients department in a district hospital in South Africa were assessed with the HIV algorithm and by a paediatrician. All children were then tested for HIV viral load. The validity of the algorithm in detecting symptomatic HIV was compared with clinical diagnosis by a paediatrician and the result of an HIV test. Detailed clinical data were used to improve the algorithm. FINDINGS: Overall, 198 (28.7%) enrolled children were infected with HIV. The paediatrician correctly identified 142 (71.7%) children infected with HIV, whereas the IMCI/HIV algorithm identified 111 (56.1%). Odds ratios were calculated to identify predictors of HIV infection and used to develop an improved HIV algorithm that is 67.2% sensitive and 81.5% specific in clinically detecting HIV infection. CONCLUSIONS: Children with symptomatic HIV infection can be identified effectively by primary level health workers through the use of an algorithm. The improved HIV algorithm developed in this study could be used by countries with high prevalences of HIV to enable IMCI practitioners to identify and care for HIV-infected children.

AIDS Serodiagnosis↗
PubMed2002

A fast annealing evolutionary algorithm for global optimization.

By combining the aspect of population in genetic algorithms (GAs) and the simulated annealing algorithm (SAA), a novel algorithm, called fast annealing evolutionary algorithm (FAEA), is proposed. The algorithm is similar to the annealing evolutionary algorithm (AEA), and a very fast annealing technique is adopted for the annealing procedure. By an application of the algorithm to the optimization of test functions and a comparison of the algorithm with other stochastic optimization methods, it is shown that the algorithm is a highly efficient optimization method. It was also applied in optimization of Lennard-Jones clusters and compared with other methods in this study. The results indicate that the algorithm is a good tool for the energy minimization problem.

Journal Article↗