In vivo accuracy of two radiographic systems in the detection of Bj?rk-Shiley convexo-concave heart valve outlet strut single leg separations

OBJECTIVE: Modified cineradiographic systems have been used clinically to detect partially broken outlet struts in normally functioning Bj?rk-Shiley convexo-concave heart valves. Almost all such valves were explanted, presuming that full failure would likely follow. Inasmuch as the clinical setting only rarely permits examination of normally rated valves, the accuracy of radiographic detection cannot be clinically defined. This study uses the clinical radiographic technique in sheep implanted with known-status convexo-concave valves, comparing its accuracy and that of a newly developed, geometric image magnification radiography system. METHODS: Twenty-one sheep with mitral convexo-concave valves were studied on both systems. Five were used for extensive training. When operators were expert with both systems, images of four intact valves and 12 valves with outlet strut single leg separations, along with a seventeenth single leg separation valve used for calibration, were integrated into 112 image sets organized into a balanced incomplete block design for evaluation by eight trained, blinded reviewers. RESULTS: Cineradiography sensitivity was 24% versus 31% for direct image magnification. The odds ratio for detection of single leg separation by direct image magnification versus cineradiography was 2.0 (95% confidence interval, 0.76 to 5.9; p = 0.13). Cineradiography specificity was 93% versus 90% for direct image magnification. Sensitivity and specificity varied markedly by reviewer, with sensitivity ranging from 8% to 55% and specificity from 51% to 100% for the combined technologies. CONCLUSIONS: The data support the need for more intensive training for convexo-concave valve imaging and further investigation of unconventional radiographic technologies. Clinical cineradiography of convexo-concave valves may detect as little as 25% of valves having a single leg separation, underestimating the prevalence of single leg separations and thereby implying more rapid progression to full fracture than is actually the case.     

The formation of 1-hydroxymethylnaphthalene and 6-hydroxymethylquinoline by both oxidative and reductive routes in Cunninghamella elegans

The cold-pressor test is a widely used pain-induction model in humans. This method has been shown to be a sensitive measure for detecting opioid analgesia. However, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have not produced consistent analgesic effects with use of this model. The analgesic effect of acetaminophen (INN, paracetamol) on cold pressor-induced pain has not been reported by other investigators. In this study, a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled design was used to evaluate the dose-related effects of oral acetaminophen on cold pressor-induced pain in 18 normal healthy human subjects. We observed dose-related analgesic activity of oral acetaminophen using the cold pressor-induced pain model in these subjects. There were statistically significant main effects of both dose and time (pain and bothersomeness ratings decreased with increasing drug dose and increased over time). In pairwise comparisons only the contrast between the highest dose of acetaminophen (1000 mg) and placebo reached statistical significance. Results from our study suggest that the cold-pressor method may have clinical value in evaluating nonopioid analgesic agents.     

Low-latency handover in a wireless ATM LAN

The micro- and picocellular architectures proposed for wireless ATM LANs lead to wireless terminals frequently changing their point of attachment to the network. Because ATM connections have quality of service (QoS) guarantees which must be maintained, handover must be as seamless as possible. We present a novel architecture and protocol which primarily aims to keep the interruption period due to handover low, rather than seeking to keep the process entirely lossless. We compare the tradeoffs made, with those in other schemes from the literature, and give quantitative results from an implementation of our scheme on a 10 Mbits/s^-1 prototype wireless ATM LAN     

SilentKnock: practical, provably undetectable authentication

Port knocking is a technique to prevent attackers from discovering and exploiting vulnerable network services, while allowing access for authenticated users. Unfortunately, most work in this area suffers from a lack of a clear threat model or motivation. To remedy this, we introduce a formal security model for port knocking, show how previous schemes fail to meet our definition, and give a provably secure scheme. We also present SilentKnock, an implementation of this protocol that is provably secure under the assumption that AES and a modified version of MD4 are pseudorandom functions, and integrates seamlessly with existing applications.     

Ceramic coatings for a corrosion-resistant nuclear waste container evaluated in simulated ground water at 90 °C

Ceramic materials provide an innovative opportunity for corrosion-resistant coatings for nuclear waste containers. Their suitability can be derived from the fully oxidized state for selected metal oxides. Ceramic coatings applied to plain carbon steel substrates by several thermal spray techniques have been exposed to 90 °C simulated ground water (at 10 times typical concentration) for nearly 6 years. Thermal spray processes examined in this work included plasma spray, high-velocity oxy fuel (HVOF), and detonation gun. Some thermal spray coatings have demonstrated superior corrosion protection for the plain carbon steel substrate. In particular, the HVOF and detonation gun thermal spray processes produced coatings with low connected porosity, which limited the growth rate of corrosion products. It was also demonstrated that these coatings resisted spallation of the coating even when an intentional flaw (which allowed for corrosion of the carbon steel substrate underneath the ceramic coating) was placed in the coating. An approach for a theoretical basis for prediction of the corrosion protection provided by ceramic coatings is also presented. The theoretical development includes the effect of the morphology and amount of the porosity within the thermal spray coating and provides a prediction of the exposure time needed to produce a crack in the ceramic coating. This article is based on a presentation made in the symposium “Effect of Processing on Materials Properties for Nuclear Waste Disposition,” November 10–11, 2003, at the TMS Fall meeting in Chicago, Illinois, under the joint auspices of the TMS Corrosion and Environmental Effects and Nuclear Materials Committees.     

An agent-based signaling architecture for supporting mobility in radio ATM networks

This paper presents a signaling architecture for supporting mobility in radio asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) networks. A new concept of mobile software agent, known as ‘representative’, is used for insulating fixed network entities from the effects of user mobility. It is shown that, depending on the physical locations of the mobile terminals, their representatives can be used for distributing the mobility management load within the fixed backbone network. This paper describes a location and a representative management scheme followed by a novel connection caching strategy which is used for implementing a family of low-latency and scalable ATM connection handovers. A prototype implementation of the proposed architecture and the associated experimental results are also presented to demonstrate the feasibility and performance of this agent-based signaling scheme. ©1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.