Quantitative and multicomponent analysis of prevalent urinary calculi using Raman spectroscopy

This study established a quantitative micro‐Raman spectroscopic (MRS) method for measuring multicomponents (binary and ternary compositions) of prevalent urine calculi extracted from the ureter after the ureteroscopic lithotripsy (URSL) procedure. The analysis used calibration curves of known mixtures of synthetically prepared calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM), hydroxyapatite (HAP), calcium oxalate dehydrate (COD), dicalcium phosphate dehydrate (DCPD), and uric acid. A variety of samples of binary and ternary mixtures including COM/HAP, COM/COD, COD/HAP, COM/uric acid, COD/uric acid, HAP/uric acid, HAP/DCPD, and COM/COD/HAP were prepared in various concentration ratios for use as the basis of the quantitative analysis. Intensities of the characteristic bands at 961 cm⁻¹ (I_HAP), 986 cm⁻¹ (I_DCPD), 1402 cm⁻¹ (I_UricAcid), 1462 cm⁻¹ (I_COM), and 1477 cm⁻¹ (I_COD) were used for the calculation. We derived a set of quantitative analysis equations for the ternary composition COD/COM/HAP group by combining two binary equations from the groups COM/COD and the HAP/COM. This study quantitatively measured 18 urine samples extracted from the 18 patients' ureters after the URSL procedure. Fifteen samples were binary mixtures, whereas three samples were ternary mixtures. This research successfully applied the quantitative MRS‐based analysis technique from bench to bedside. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Recent advances of variational model in medical imaging and applications to computer aided surgery

In this paper, we review some mathematical models in medical image processing. Due to the superiority in modeling and computation, variational methods have been proven to be powerful techniques, which have been extremely popular and dramatically improved in the past two decades. On one hand, many models have been proposed for nearly all kinds of applications. On the other hand, a lot of models can be globally optimized and also many computation tools have been introduced. Under the variational framework, we focus on two basic problems in medical imaging: image restoration and segmentation, which are core components for kinds of specific tasks. For image restoration, we discuss some models on both additive and multiplicative noises. For image segmentation, we review some models on both whole image segmentation and specific target delineation, with the later being a key step in computer aided surgery. Additionally, we present some models on liver delineation and give their applications to living donor liver transplantation.     

Twist decompositions of gluing homeomorphisms of planar Heegaard diagrams of genus two

We will give a very simple algorithm to decompose a gluing homeomorphism of a planar Heegaard diagram of genus two into Dehn twists associated with the canonical base.

     

Non‐invasive probing of pharmaceutical capsules using transmission Raman spectroscopy

We demonstrate how transmission Raman geometry can be effectively used for non‐invasive probing of the content of pharmaceutical capsules. This approach is particularly beneficial in situations where the conventional Raman backscattering method is hampered or fails because of excessive surface Raman or fluorescence signals emanating from the capsule shell material, which pollute the much weaker subsurface Raman signals with undesired noise. It is demonstrated that such interfering signals can be effectively suppressed by the transmission geometry. The ability to avoid surface fluorescence and Raman signals in conjunction with the superior, bulk‐probing properties of the transmission Raman geometry provides an analytical technique ideally suited for fast on‐line process control monitoring applications in pharmaceutical industry where rapid, chemically specific bulk analysis is required. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

近红外光谱方法在颌面外科皮瓣移植术后监测中的应用

近红外光谱技术作为一种无创组织氧监测手段,近年来在整形外科手术术后监测方面得到了越来越多的重视。文章利用一套近红外无损组织氧检测系统对6例手术成功病例的移植皮瓣侧和对照侧正常组织内的氧饱和度进行了长时间对比监测,发现两侧的组织氧饱和度之间存在显著性差异。还对一例血管吻合失败的病例下颌部的多个位置进行了检测,发现坏死部位的氧饱和度和正常组织相比处于很低的水平。实验结果表明,近红外光谱检测技术对于皮瓣内的血氧浓度动态变化具有很好的灵敏度,在移植皮瓣的术后监测方面具有良好的应用前景。     

高强聚焦超声(HIFU)无创外科─21世纪治疗肿瘤的新技术

本文从简要回顾超声治疗的发展历史开始,重要介绍了90年代初在国际上兴起的HIFU无创外科技术及我国在该领域中的成就。文章继而对HIFU“切除”肿瘤的机理,治疗质量及其发展前景做了讨论。     

A Novel Gelatin-Based Sustained-Release Molluscicide for Control of the Invasive Agricultural Pest and Disease Vector Pomacea canaliculata

Pomacea canaliculata, one of the 100 most destructive invasive species in the world, and it is an important intermediate host of Angiostrongylus cantonensis. The molluscicides in current use are an effective method for controlling snails. However, most molluscicides have no slow-release effect and are toxic to nontarget organisms. Thus, these molluscicides cannot be used on a large scale to effectively act on snails. In this study, gelatin, a safe and nontoxic substance, was combined with sustained-release molluscicide and was found to reduce the toxicity of niclosamide to nontarget organisms. We assessed the effects of gelatin and molluscicide in controlling P. canaliculata snails and eggs. The results demonstrated that the niclosamide retention time with 1.0% and 1.5% gelatin sustained-release agents reached 20 days. Additionally, the mortality rate of P. canaliculata and their eggs increased as the concentration of the niclosamide sustained-release agents increased. The adult mortality rate of P. canaliculata reached 50% after the snails were exposed to gelatin with 0.1 mg/L niclosamide for 48 h. The hatching rate of P. canaliculata was only 28.5% of the normal group after the treatment was applied. The sustained-release molluscicide at this concentration was less toxic to zebrafish, which means that this molluscicide can increase the safety of niclosamide to control P. canaliculata in aquatic environments. In this study, we explored the safety of using niclosamide sustained-release agents with gelatin against P. canaliculata. The results suggest that gelatin is an ideal sustained-release agent that can provide a foundation for subsequent improvements in control of P. canaliculata.     

血液-血管耦合特性与脉搏波传播特性的关系

脉搏波既不可简单地理解为可压缩血液流体中的压力纵波,也不可简单地理解为沿固体血管传播的涨缩位移横波,而是超乎普通想象的流-固耦合和纵波-横波耦合的复杂波。从分析耦合本构关系的新途径出发,本文中提出了一个流-固耦合/纵波-横波耦合的串联模型,可为解读“位数形势”中医脉诊提供更丰富的信息。结果表明,脉搏波耦合系统的等效体积压缩模量K_s以及相应的耦合系统脉搏波传播速度c_s主要依赖于两个无量纲参数：血液-血管模量比K_b(p)/E(p)和薄壁血管径厚比D(p)/h₀,它们因人而异、因人的不同脉搏位置而异。文中定量分析了它们对c_s的影响,显示人体的K_b/E值在10³数量级,从而c_s值在10⁰～10¹ m/s数量级,以适应人体生理生化反应。由临床有创测量,证实脉搏体积横波与脉搏压力纵波是相耦合地以相同速度传播;还显示脉搏波是在其波阵面上具有氧合生化反应的“生物波”。此外,还讨论了“脉压放大”现象与非线性本构关系和与血管分叉处加载增强反射之间的关系,并讨论了Lewis关于重搏波形成的假设。

     

Electrophysiologic monitoring of the recurrent laryngeal nerves may not predict bilateral vocal fold immobility after thyroid surgery

Two cases of bilateral vocal fold immobility (VFI) after identification and preservation of the recurrent laryngeal nerves (RLNs) required tracheotomy until vocal fold recovery. The first patient underwent thyroid surgery without preoperative or postoperative evaluation of the vocal folds, administration of postoperative intravenous steroids, or electrophysiologic monitoring of the RLNs, whereas the second patient underwent a thyroid procedure in which all of the aforementioned were executed. Preoperative and postoperative clinical evaluation of the RLNs is strongly suggested in patients undergoing thyroid surgery, especially revision surgery. Patients potentially undergoing total thyroidectomy should be counseled about the remote chance of airway obstruction and should be properly selected for this operation. Subclinical stretching of the RLNs or ischemia from the endotracheal tube cuff can result in unilateral VFI, and rarely bilateral VFI, requiring reintubation, tracheotomy, or vocal fold lateralization. Electrophysiologic monitoring may not always predict bilateral VFI.     

Foliated control theory, II

The main result is a control theorem for the structure space of E with control near the leaves F in M, where : E M is a fiber bundle over the Riemannian manifold M having a compact closed manifold for fiber and F is a smooth foliation of M, each leaf of which inherits a flat Riemannian geometry from M. A similar result has been proved by the authors under the assumption that each leaf of F is one-dimensional and the fiber of : E M is homotopy stable.Both authors were supported in part by the National Science Foundations.