Magnetic and electrical stimulation in the rehabilitative treatment of patients with organic nervous system lesions]

89 patients with organic damages of nervous system with paralyses and pareses as the main symptoms in clinical pattern were treated. Their treatment was complex with application of impulse magnetic field and electrostimulation which permitted to achieve multilevel electrostimulation. The control group was formed by 49 patients with analogous diseases which were treated by sinusoidal current electrostimulation only. Combined application of magnetic stimulation and electrostimulation was more effective. That was confirmed by data of roentgenographic and electromyographic studies.     

Usefulness of fixed-dose drug combinations]

Diurnal rhythm of serum melatonin concentrations was estimated in 12 men with low back pain syndrome before and after exposure to a very low-frequency magnetic field (2.9 mT, 40 Hz, square wave, bipolar). Patients were exposed to the magnetic field for 3 weeks (20 min per day, 5 days per week) either in the morning (at 10:00 hr) or in the late afternoon (at 18:00 hr). Significant depression in nocturnal melatonin rise was observed regardless of the time of exposure. This phenomenon was characteristic for all the subjects, although the percent of inhibition of melatonin secretion varied among the studied individuals.     

Electronic and magnetic stability in correlated transportations of rare-earth nickelate perovskites

Although the thermistor and metal to insulator transition bi-functionalities were discovered for rareearth nickelates(RENiO3),the electronic stability in their correlated transports under impulse voltage or magnetic field remain as open questions.Herein,we demonstrate the thermistor transportations of the electron correlated rare-earth nickelates under impulse direct current voltage and in magnetic environment.The insulating phase of RENiO3 shows zero crossing linear I-V characters,indicating their stable electronic resistance is independent of the imparted voltage up to 10 V and pulse width down to1 us,in spite of their sensitive electronic structures to polarizations.In addition,the high electronic stability associated with the thermistor transportation of RENiO3 is also demonstrated in magnetic fields up to 9 T(i.e.,MR<0.2%).The high electronic stability further paves the way to applying RENiO3 as a broad temperature range thermistor in temperature sensing or circuit protections for correlated electronics.     

Alcoholism and drug abuse in three groups--bipolar I, unipolars and their acquaintances

OBJECTIVE: Previous work has shown that manic-depressive illness and alcohol abuse are linked. This study further explores the relationship of alcohol and drug abuse in bipolar I patients and unipolar depressives and a comparison group obtained through the acquaintance method. METHOD: Diagnosis was accomplished according to Research Diagnostic Criteria (RDC): controls = 469; bipolars = 277; unipolar depressives = 678. Systematic data were gathered using the SADS on lifetime and current drug abuse and alcoholism. Both patients and comparison subjects were then followed prospectively for 10 years. First degree family members were interviewed using the RDC family history method. RESULTS: The group of bipolar patients and the group of unipolar patients had higher rates of drug and alcohol abuse than the comparison group when primary and secondary affective disorder patients were combined. However, primary unipolar patients did not have higher rates of alcohol or drug abuse than the comparison group. In contrast, primary bipolar patients had higher rates of alcoholism, stimulant abuse, and ever having abused a drug than the primary unipolar group and the control group. In an evaluation of the bipolar patients, drug abusers were significantly younger at intake and had a significantly younger age of onset of bipolar disorder. There was a significant increase in family history of mania or schizoaffective mania in the drug-abusing bipolar patients as compared to the non-abusing bipolar patients. LIMITATION: As in all adult samples of patients with affective illness, the chronology of alcohol and substance problems vis-à-vis the onset of illness was determined retrospectively. CONCLUSIONS: (1) Alcoholism and drug abuse are more frequent in bipolar than unipolar patients. (2) The drug abuse of bipolar patients tends toward the abuse of stimulant drugs. (3) In a bipolar patient, familial diathesis for mania is significantly associated with the abuse of alcohol and drugs. (4) More provocatively, these findings suggest the hypothesis of a common familial-genetic diathesis for a subtype of bipolar I, alcohol and stimulant abuse. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: The present analyses, coupled with two previous ones from the CDS, suggest that drug abuse may precipitate an earlier onset of bipolar I disorder in those who already have a familial predisposition for mania. Furthermore, in dually diagnosed patients with manic-depressive and alcohol/stimulant abuse history, mood stabilization of the bipolar disorder represents a rational approach to control concurrent alcohol and drug problems, and should be studied in systematic controlled trials.     

Validity of rapid cycling as a course specifier for bipolar disorder

OBJECTIVE: This study's aim was to test the validity of rapid cycling, defined by criteria consistent with those proposed in the DSM-IV draft, as a course specifier for bipolar disorder. METHOD: The study was conducted at a university center for affective disorders on patients fulfilling Research Diagnostic Criteria for bipolar disorder. Thirty-seven rapid-cycling patients, i.e., patients with at least four affective episodes during the previous year, were compared with 74 nonrapid-cycling patients on several demographic and clinical variables. All patients were then followed up prospectively for 2-5 years by monthly personal interviews. RESULTS: The rapid-cycling group was significantly older and had a significantly longer illness duration than the nonrapid-cycling group but did not have a significantly higher percentage of women or frequency of current hypothyroidism. During each year of follow-up, the mean number of affective episodes and the percentage of patients with at least four affective episodes were significantly higher among rapid-cycling patients. Rapid-cycling patients with a pole-switching pattern during the year preceding intake were significantly more likely than other rapid-cycling patients to have at least four affective episodes during each of the first 4 years of follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: These findings support the practical usefulness of rapid cycling as a course modifier for bipolar disorder, since it identifies a patient subgroup with a high recurrence rate. The predictive value of the modifier may be enhanced by the requirement of a pole-switching pattern. Since no external (i.e., unrelated to course) validator was found, the idea that rapid cycling represents one extreme of a continuum of episode frequency in bipolar disorder remains viable.     

Deficits in gray matter volume are present in schizophrenia but not bipolar disorder

Studies using magnetic resonance (MR) imaging have provided strong evidence that patients with schizophrenia as a group have structural brain abnormalities, including enlarged ventricles and sulci as well as smaller cortical gray matter volumes. This study was undertaken to investigate whether the brain abnormalities found in schizophrenia could be distinguished from those seen in bipolar disorder. The MR scans of 23 patients with schizophrenia were compared to those of 17 healthy community volunteers and 14 patients with bipolar disorder. Images were processed using computer-based image processing techniques to generate quantitative measures of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), gray matter and white matter volumes. Compared to the community volunteers, the schizophrenia group had larger total CSF volumes while the bipolar group had larger ventricles. Smaller cortical gray matter volumes were found in the schizophrenia group, but not in the bipolar group. The schizophrenia group had regional deficits in gray matter volumes in comparison with both the community volunteers and the bipolar group. These findings suggest that the brain tissue abnormalities found in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder may be distinguishable using MR imaging.     

垂直稳恒磁场下Fe-纳米Si颗粒复合电沉积

在垂直稳恒磁场中采用纳米复合电沉积法制备Fe-Si复合镀层.研究了磁场强度和电流密度对阴极电流效率和镀层Si颗粒含量的影响规律,并采用扫描电子显微镜和能谱对所得镀层进行分析.施加垂直磁场后,随着磁场强度增大,阴极电流效率呈现先上升后下降的趋势;镀层Si颗粒质量分数在0.2T达到最大值20.17%,比无磁场下提高了10.4%;镀层表面形貌也发生显著变化,多处形成"山脊","山脊"延伸方向与磁流体力学效应方向一致,分布数量和延伸长度与磁场强度成正比.由于磁流体力学效应,施加磁场还改变了镀层表面气孔形貌,促进氢气的析出.      

Effects of an impulse magnetic field on lipid peroxidation and the antioxidant system of the testes in animal experiments

The study covered influence of impulse magnetic field on lipid peroxidation and antioxidant defence in seminal tissue of rats. Monthly exposure to the impulse magnetic field (intensity of 30 kA/m; impulse frequency of 2.5 and 25 kHz) activated initial, intermediate and final stages of lipid peroxidation, increased non-enzymatic (ascorbic acid) defence systems and depressed the enzymatic (glutathione peroxidase, catalase) ones. The aftereffects included changes in the lipid peroxidation and in levels of antioxidant factors in the seminal tissue.     

Reactivity to a laboratory stressor among individuals with bipolar I disorder in full or partial remission.

Strong links have been documented between life events and the course of bipolar disorder. Laboratory studies of stress provide an opportunity to understand the mechanisms involved in reactivity to stressors, but few such studies have been done in the bipolar field. In the current study, 28 people with bipolar I disorder in full or partial remission and 40 people with no history of a mood disorder were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 conditions involving different levels of failure feedback on a concept formation task. Confidence, affective reactions, and performance on a subsequent anagram task were assessed. Results provide tentative support for reactivity to the stressor among the bipolar group, although reactivity was limited to impaired anagram performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reaction of melanocytes in vertebrate retina to the exposure to constant magnetic field

The influence of a constant magnetic field (strain 40 kA/m) on retina pigmentary cells of grass frog (Rana temporaria) and grey pigeon (Columba livia) eyes was investigated. Changes in the number and length of melanocytes appendixes were noticed accompanied by formation of thickenings in which melanosomes sized from 0.1 to 0.5 micron are moving. It is established that magnetic properties of eye retina pigmentary cells depend on the presence of Fe3+ in melanin. A theoretical model of paramagnetic receptor has been elaborated, according to which the induction of a magnetic field, formed by melanocyte, makes of the order 100 pT1. This value well compares with the size of magnetic field of a nervous impulse (120 pT1), extending throughout a nervous fibre of the frog sciatic nerve (Wikswo et al., 1980). This allows to suggest a possible unsynaptic way of transferring the information about the perceived magnetic field.     

Electroanesthesia and electrosleep.

Discusses the historical development, terminology, relative efficacy, instrumentation, physiological effects, and current clinical status of both electroanesthesia and electrosleep, (also termed "transcerebral electrotherapy"). (47 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Treatment of depression in bipolar disorder: new directions for research

The objective of the study was to review the clinical literature on the acute, somatic treatment of the depressed phase of bipolar disorder. We reviewed all available published studies of "standard" somatic treatments (lithium, antidepressant and anticonvulsant agents, and electroconvulsive therapy [ECT]) reporting three or more depressed bipolar patients who were not psychotic, rapid cycling, or previously treatment refractory. We also reviewed all studies of "nonstandard" pharmacologic treatments involving even a single case of a depressed bipolar patient. Data sources included the MEDLINE database and relevant references from articles obtained in this search and in major reviews. Five of seven studies comparing ECT with antidepressant agents find ECT more efficacious. Eight of nine controlled comparisons find lithium superior to placebo in depressed bipolar patients. Three controlled comparisons of lithium to tricyclic antidepressants suggest that lithium is equivalent to tricyclic drugs in such patients. Three double-blind, controlled studies indicate that carbamazepine is more effective than placebo. Limited data on other antidepressant classes suggest that monoamine oxidase inhibitors, bupropion, and serotonergic agents may offer some advantages over tricyclic antidepressants in this population. Some "nonstandard" treatments also show some potential in bipolar patients. The possibility of switching into a manic episode is an important consideration with many of the agents studied, although little remains known about spontaneous versus treatment-associated mood shifts. In contrast to the extensive literature on the acute treatment of the manic phase of bipolar disorder and on the prophylaxis of manic and depressive episodes, there are few studies of treatment of the depressed phase of bipolar disorder, and their results generally are limited or inconclusive. Lithium generated a revolution in psychiatric treatment, but the treatment of the depressed phase of bipolar disorder remains a relatively neglected corner of the field. Several study designs may help to augment knowledge in the treatment of bipolar depression.     

Electrical response of inner membrane structures of corynebacteria during electrotransformation

The efficiency of the electrotransformation of intact cells of corynebacteria by a solitary impulse with a complex shape amounted to 10(6) transformants/microgram of plasmid pNV1 DNA at an electric field strength of 14.2 kW/cm; the voltage-current curve of the cell samples was nonlinear. Under these conditions, the structure of the electric current impulse passing intact cells or protoplasts included oscillations characterized by increasing amplitude and a duration of 170 microseconds, which were not detected in the structure of the electric current impulses at field strengths insufficient for obtaining transformants. These changes in the impulse shape suggest the involvement of internal closed membrane structures in the electrical response of cells to the exogenous electric impulse. Most probably, under conditions of electrical treatment optimal for transformation, electropores are formed in the intracellular membranes of corynebacteria.     

Differential roles of p300 and PCAF acetyltransferases in muscle differentiation

To determine the possibility of discriminating multi-sources in the brain by 3D vector magnetic field measurement of a magnetoencephalogram (MEG), measurements were made of magnetic fields produced by two current dipoles implanted in a spherical head model. The 3D vector magnetic field measurements were made by using a 3D second-order gradiometer connected to three rf-SQUIDs, which can detect magnetic field components perpendicular to and tangential to the scalp. The MEG distribution measuring the magnetic field perpendicular to the scalp was not helpful in estimating the location and number of sources because of the lack of a dipole pattern. By referring to the MEG distribution measuring the magnetic field distribution tangential to the scalp, however, two current sources could be clearly discriminated in a spherical head model. It was found that this MEG distribution measuring tangential to the scalp could provide information on new constraint conditions for the calculation of inverse problems with multi-sources. These results were also confirmed by measurement of the mixed somatosensory evoked fields elicited by simultaneous electric stimulation to the median nerve and the thumb.     

Internal friction of duralumin in a DC magnetic field

As a result of an experimental study of the low-frequency (10 Hz) internal friction of D16 duralumin in dc magnetic fields with an induction 0 ≤ B ≤ 0.9 T at a temperature of 20°C, a maximum in the field dependence of the internal friction is detected in a field B ≈ 0.45 T. A numerical analysis of the experimental data is carried out using the Friedel amplitude dependence of the internal friction, which takes into account thermal displacements of dislocations in a crystal with impurities. The Friedel amplitude dependence is modified using the concept of the influence of a magnetic field on the probability of singlet-triplet electron transitions in the dislocation core-paramagnetic center (defect) system. Duralumin is used as an example to show that the modified Friedel dependence provides satisfactory agreement of the calculated data and the experimental data. It is concluded that the sensitivity of the low-frequency internal friction of D16 duralumin to a dc magnetic field measured at 20°C is due to the fact that mobile dislocations overcome impurity atoms of paramagnetic elements, in particular, titanium, because of thermal fluctuations. Internal friction can be used to determine the numerical values of the parameters characterizing the mechanical properties of metallic paramagnets in a dc magnetic field.     

Numerical modelling of fluid flows in square billet moulds,using a new nozzle orientation in the presence of an in-mould rotary electromagnetic stirrer

ABSTRACT

An electromagnetic field simulation along with a fluid flow analysis model were developed, to study the effect of the submerged entry nozzle’s (SEN) angle of rotation, together with a rotational electromagnetic field, on the turbulent liquid steel flow within a curved, square mould of a billet continuous caster. The Realisable-k-? turbulence model and the volume of fluid multiphase model were implemented, so as to simulate the effect of turbulent fluid flow on the shape of the top liquid steel meniscus. Similarly, the magnetic induction method was employed for simulating the effects of rotating magnetic fields on the flow patterns developed within the mould region. The predicted magnetic field and fluid flows were validated against previous experimental work. Predicted results demonstrated that fluid flows and the shape of the liquid steel meniscus could be significantly modified by changing the orientation of the SEN’s ports in the presence of a low-frequency rotating magnetic field.     

Variations in the intraoral electromotive force in the electrotherapy of the upper extremities]

We tested the intraoral microwaves under applied electrotherapy in cephalic neuralgia. The tests have been undertaken on 40 patients divided in 4 groups, according to the nature of the metallic components of the prosthetic appliances. There have been withdrawn practical conclusions regarding fixed prosthesis and the use of electrotherapy in the cephalic neuralgia.     

Effect of Electromagnetic Ruler Braking (EMBr) on Transient Turbulent Flow in Continuous Slab Casting using Large Eddy Simulations

Static electromagnetic braking (EMBr) fields affect greatly the turbulent flow pattern in steel continuous casting, which leads to potential benefits such as decreasing flow instability, surface defects, and inclusion entrapment if applied correctly. To gain a fundamental understanding of how EMBr affects transient turbulent flow, the current work applies large eddy simulations (LES) to investigate the effect of three EMBr ruler brake configurations on transient turbulent flow through the bifurcated nozzle and mold of a liquid-metal GaInSn model of a typical steel slab-casting process, but with deep nozzle submergence and insulated walls with no solidifying shell. The LES calculations are performed using an in-house graphic-processing-unit-based computational-fluid-dynamics code (LES-CU-FLOW) on a mesh of ~7?million brick cells. The LES model is validated first via ultrasonic velocimetry measurements in this system. It is then applied to quantify the mean and instantaneous flow structures, Reynolds stresses, turbulent kinetic energy and its budgets, and proper orthogonal modes of four cases. Positioning the strongest part of the ruler magnetic field over the nozzle bottom suppresses turbulence in this region, thus reducing nozzle well swirl and its alternation. This process leads to strong and focused jets entering the mold cavity making large-scale and low-frequency (<0.02?Hz) flow variations in the mold with detrimental surface velocity variations. Lowering the ruler below nozzle deflects the jets upward, leading to faster surface velocities than the other cases. The double-ruler and no-EMBr cases have the most stable flow. The magnetic field generates large-scale vortical structures tending toward two-dimensional (2-D) turbulence. To avoid detrimental large-scale, low-frequency flow variations, it is recommended to avoid strong magnetic fields across the nozzle well and port regions.     

Clinical characteristics of unipolar and bipolar depression

INTRODUCTION: In the last decades affective disorders were divided into unipolar and bipolar and this division has been generally accepted. The bipolar type is manifested by mania or by both mania and depression. On the other hand, unipolar affective disorders are manifested only by depression. In numerous investigations authors have noticed that there are very distinctive differences between these two types of depressive disorders such as: course of illness, personality disorders, sex, family history etc. Nevertheless, in practice it is often very difficult to make the right diagnosis. The bipolar type often starts with a few pure depressive episodes and sometimes mania occurs a few years later so only at that point the psychiatrist can make the right diagnosis and treat the patient correctly. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This investigation comprised 50 patients hospitalized at the Psychiatric Clinic in Novi Sad during 1992-1995. The experimental group consisted of 20 patients with a bipolar affective disorder (according to ICD-X), while the control group consisted of 30 patients with clinical diagnosis of unipolar depression (intensive, without psychiatric features). Both groups of patients were weekly evaluated by Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), whereas the initial score for all patients had to be higher than 16. RESULTS: Patients suffering from unipolar depression were older than patients with bipolar depression and there were more females in this group. There were no differences in demographic characteristics (level of education, migration, etc.), but the experimental group had a greater genetic loading for affective disorders. Unipolar depressive patients had more agitation and they were more anxious than patients with bipolar depression. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The fact that unipolar depressive patients were older than bipolar is similar to most of the results gained in this kind of investigation. On the other hand, we did not find statistical differences in the intensity of disorders, and in the literature these results are contraindicating. Numerous investigators report that bipolar depressives had a stronger genetic loading for affective disorders and our study confirms the same. All these results can help us to make the right diagnosis of unipolar and bipolar affective disorders.     

Cerebral electrotherapeutic treatment of depressions.

30 female and 10 male depressive inpatients at a state hospital participated in 2 studies comparing electrosleep (cerebral electrotherapy) and placebo treatments. In both studies, differences between self-rated improvement associated with cerebral electrotherapy and placebo were not significant. It is concluded that clinical use of cerebral electrotherapy with hospitalized depressives should be tempered by the finding of the present and other studies that cerebral-electrotherapy-related improvement appears to be due in large part to positive expectation or placebo effects. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)