Position-sensitive superheated-liquid-droplet neutron dosimeter

The one-dimensional (1D) position-sensitive superheated-liquid-droplet dosimeter (SLDD) has been fabricated and tested in the laboratory. The 1D SLDD is fabricated from a 9.525-mm OD, 6.35-mm ID, 20-cm long, Plexiglas-walled tube filled with a mixture of superheated-liquid Freon droplets and host medium glycerol. Washer-shaped piezoelectric acoustic transducers are positioned at both ends of the tube; they determine the number and positions of the acoustic events when the superheated-liquid droplets evaporate upon neutron irradiation. The SLDD is irradiated with the ¹³⁷Cs and ⁶⁰Co γ-sources, as well as ²⁵²Cf neutron source to test for its radiation response and spatial resolution. The SLDD based on the Freon-134a superheated-liquid droplets operating at 20°C and 1 atm is found to be ideal for measuring absorbed neutron dose. This study also proves that the positions of the radiation-induced nucleation acoustic events can be linearly determined from the differences in the transmission times received by the acoustic transducers on the 1D SLDD. The spatial resolution of the neutron depth-dose is 1 mm due the finite response time (1 μs) of the piezoelectric acoustic transducers.     

Recent Developments in Equipment and Application of Ion Beam Assisted Thin Film Deposition

Ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD) of thin films is still a new technology with respect to the number of applications. A broader industrial application depends on the availability and versatility of facilities which are able to process various kinds of workpieces under appropriate conditions. Recently, IBAD facilities of the second generation were described in literature and are partially commercially available. In the present report such IBAD machines with their special features such as number and kind of ion sources and evaporators are described. Particularly, the set-up of the ALLIGATOR, a versatile IBAD device for coating complex workpieces under ion bombardment with a broad range of ion energies, is described. As an application example, recent results on the treatment of medical implants are discussed. In -vivo tests of coated cardiovascular stents showed that the deposited noble metal films were effective in influencing the corrosivity and thromboresistance of the implant     

Importance of proximal femoral fractures in elderly patients. Results of a prospective study of 61 patients

In a prospective study we found good results concerning postoperative complications (21%), perioperative lethality (3.2%) and lethality during hospital stay (6.5%) after implantation of dynamic hip screws (DHS) in patients with per- and subtrochanteric fractures of the femur. The ability to walk, as well as housing and social care postoperatively and follow-up for at least six months after dismissal demonstrates the importance of these fractures for the elderly. One of three patients needs professional care, 21% at home, 13% in nursing homes. Six months after operation the lethality is nearly 20%, i.e. three times higher than in hospital. These are the essential data for all techniques of osteosynthesis used in patients with these fractures, which could only be documented in prospective studies.     

A multivariate mixed linear model for meta-analysis.

A multivariate mixed-effects approach for meta-analysis is presented. The approach (a) incorporates as outcomes multiple effect sizes per study; (b) allows different studies to have different subsets of effect sizes; and (c) treats each study's effect sizes as random realizations from a population of possible effect sizes. Application is illustrated via reanalysis of data from studies assessing the effects of coaching on verbal and mathematical subtests of the Scholastic Aptitude Test. Covariance components are estimated via restricted maximum likelihood (REML); inferences about regression coefficients and specific study effect sizes are based on their joint conditional distribution given the REML covariance component estimates. The approach can be implemented via now-standard software for unbalanced hierarchical data. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the Possibility of Observing Third Sound on 3He

This paper focuses on the hydrodynamics of third sound on a superfluid ³ He film. We solve the hydrodynamical equations in the limit of thick films with weak interaction with the substrate. The surface tension at the free interface is shown to have a large effect on the third sound velocity and on the attenuation for frequencies larger than 1Hz. In the case of a diffusely scattering substrate a ripplon-like dispersion relation is found for this frequency range.     

Clinical study in epidural injection with lappaconitine compound for post-operative analgesia

In this study, the effect and side-effect of epidural injection with lappaconitine compound for post-operative analgesia was observed. One hundred and twenty patients were randomly divided into 4 groups. Lappaconitine compound (LB) consisted of 12 mg of lappaconitine and 22.5 mg of bupivacaine, was given to group A (the group of observation), and lappaconitine 12 mg, bupivacaine 22.5 mg and morphine 2 mg to group B, C and D respectively for control. All were given by epidural injection with single blind method during post-operative pain of incision operation. Result showed that the initiating of analgesia was quicker in group A and C than that in group B and D, and the efficacy was group D > A > C > B. There was significant difference between group A and B in the above two parameters, P < 0.01 and P < 0.05. The analgisia maintenence time of single injection was D > A > B > C, that of group D was significantly longer than that of group A (P < 0.01). It indicated that the epidural injection with LB was more rapid and potent than that with lappaconitine alone in post-operative analgesia, and the former had no side-effect, it was safer than morphine.     

Decision by the Principle Board of the Polish Allergy Society

A review of isolates of Neisseria meningitidis and other laboratory evidence of meningococcal infection was carried out for the period 1990-1995. Thirty-three patients with evidence of meningococcal disease were identified over the six year period. Group B organisms were the most commonly identified, but an increase in Group C has occurred and is almost equal in number. Data from clinical, laboratory and public health sources should be centralized in a National Surveillance Centre.     

Blood pressure estimation and beliefs among normotensives and hypertensives.

14 medicated hypertensive, 15 nonmedicated mild hypertensive, 39 normotensive, and 13 hypotensive adults participated in a 1–2 hr laboratory experiment that assessed each S's symptoms, moods, and estimates of systolic blood pressure (SBP) relative to actual SBP levels. Several self-reports and autonomic measures were collected during and after each of 22 tasks. Within-S correlations indicated that all Ss could estimate SBP at levels greater than chance. Further, 68% of the Ss evidenced at least 1 significant symptom–SBP correlation. Although medicated hypertensives believed they could estimate their BP more accurately than other groups, they were actually no more accurate than the other Ss. They also evidenced far fewer empirically derived symptom–SBP and emotion–SBP correlations than any other group. Overall, blood pressure (BP) beliefs were largely inaccurate. If these erroneous beliefs can be eliminated, Ss may be able to estimate BP fluctuations more accurately. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)