The utility of aminoterminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide for the detection of preclinical systolic and diastolic dysfunction in the community

Background: There is scant data regarding methods to identify subjects in the community with preclinical left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic dysfunction. Methods: A population-based sample of 1229 older adults underwent examination with transthoracic echocardiography and measurement of circulating aminoterminal pro-Btype natriuretic peptide (N-BNP) levels. Heart failure status was ascertained according to past history and clinical examination. The ability of N-BNP to detect preclinical LV ejection fraction (EF)

Investigation of the Effect of Array Geometry on the Performance of Free-Space Optical Interconnects

The effect of transmitter and receiver array configurations on the stray-light and diffraction-caused crosstalk in free-space optical interconnects was investigated. The optical system simulation software (Code V) is used to simulate both the stray-light and diffraction-caused crosstalk. Experimentally measured, spectrally-resolved, near-field images of VCSEL higher order modes were used as extended sources in our simulation model. In addition, we have included the electrical and optical noise in our analysis to give more accurate overall performance of the FSOI system. Our results show that by changing the square lattice geometry to a hexagonal configuration, we obtain an overall signal-to-noise ratio improvement of 3 dB. Furthermore, system density is increased by up to 4 channels/mm2.

Novel array geometries for free-space optical interconnects with improved signal-to-noise ratio

We investigate the effect of transmitter and receiver array configurations on the stray-light and diffraction-caused crosstalk in free-space optical interconnects. The optical system simulation software (Code V) is used to simulate both the stray-light and diffraction-caused crosstalk. Experimentally measured, spectrally-resolved, near-field images of VCSEL higher order modes were used as extended sources in our simulation model. Our results show that by changing the square lattice geometry to a hexagonal configuration, we obtain the reduction in the stray-light crosstalk of up to 9 dB and an overall signal-to-noise ratio improvement of 3 dB.