Quantification of Mitral Regurgitation with Multiple Jets: In Vitro Comparison of Two-dimensional PISA techniques

Purpose: Traditionally, the proximal isovelocity surface area (PISA) is based on the assumption of a single hemisphere (hemispheric PISA), but this technique has not been validated for the quantification of mitral regurgitation (MR) with multiple jets. Methods: The left heart simulator was actuated by a pulsatile pump at various stroke amplitudes. The regurgitant volume (Rvol) passing through the mitral valve phantoms with single and double regurgitant orifices of varying size and interspace was quantified by a flowmeter as reference technique. Color Doppler 3-D full-volumes were obtained, and Rvol were derived from 2-D PISA surfaces on the basis of hemispheric and hemicylindric assumption with one base (partial hemicylindric PISA) or 2 bases (total hemicylindric PISA). Results: 72 regurgitant volumes (Rvol range: 8 to 76 ml/beat) were obtained. Hemispheric PISA Rvol correlated well with reference Rvol by one orifice (R²=0.97; bias -2.7±3.2ml), but less by ≥ one orifice (R²=0.89). When a fusion of two PISAs occured, addition of two hemispheric PISA overestimated Rvol (bias 9.1±12.2ml, fig.1), and single hemispheric PISA underestimated Rvol (bias -12.4±4.9ml). If an integrated approach was used (hemispheric in single orifice, total hemicylindric in two non-fused PISAs and partial hemicylindric in two fused PISAs), the correlation was R²=0.95, bias -1.6±5.6ml (fig.2). In the ROC analysis, the cutoff to detect ≥ moderate-to-severe Rvol (≥45ml) was 42ml (AUC 0.99, sens. 100%, spec. 93%). Conclusions: In MR with two regurgitant jets, the 2-D hemicylindric assumption of the PISA offers a better quantification of Rvol than the hemispheric assumption. Quantification of MR using 2-D PISA requires an integrated approach that considers number of regurgitant orifices and fusion of the PISAs.

Influence of contact points on the performance of caries detection methods in approximal surfaces of primary molars: an in vivo study

This in vivo study aimed to evaluate the influence of contact points on the approximal caries detection in primary molars, by comparing the performance of the DIAGNOdent pen and visual-tactile examination after tooth separation to bitewing radiography (BW). A total of 112 children were examined and 33 children were selected. In three periods (a, b, and c), 209 approximal surfaces were examined: (a) examiner 1 performed visual-tactile examination using the Nyvad criteria (EX1); examiner 2 used DIAGNOdent pen (LF1) and took BW; (b) 1 week later, after tooth separation, examiner 1 performed the second visual-tactile examination (EX2) and examiner 2 used DIAGNOdent again (LF2); (c) after tooth exfoliation, surfaces were directly examined using DIAGNOdent (LF3). Teeth were examined by computed microtomography as a reference standard. Analyses were based on diagnostic thresholds: D1: D 0 = health, D 1 –D 4 = disease; D2: D 0 , D 1 = health, D 2 –D 4 = disease; D3: D 0 –D 2 = health, D 3 , D 4 = disease. At D1, the highest sensitivity/specificity were observed for EX1 (1.00)/LF3 (0.68), respectively. At D2, the highest sensitivity/ specificity were observed for LF3 (0.69)/BW (1.00), respectively. At D3, the highest sensitivity/specificity were observed for LF3 (0.78)/EX1, EX2 and BW (1.00). EX1 showed higher accuracy values than LF1, and EX2 showed similar values to LF2. We concluded that the visual-tactile examination showed better results in detecting sound surfaces and approximal caries lesions without tooth separation. However, the effectiveness of approximal caries lesion detection of both methods was increased by the absence of contact points. Therefore, regardless of the method of detection, orthodontic separating elastics should be used as a complementary tool for the diagnosis of approximal noncavitated lesions in primary molars.

Oxygen Production and Carbon Sequestration in an Upwelling Coastal Margin

We examined high-resolution cross-shelf distributions of particulate organic carbon (POC) and dissolved O(2) during the upwelling season off the Oregon coast. Oxygen concentrations were supersaturated in surface waters, and hypoxic in near-bottom waters, with greatly expanded hypoxic conditions late in the season. Simplified time-dependent mass balances on cross-shelf integrated concentrations of these two parameters, found the following: ( 1) The average net rate of photosynthesis generated 2.1 mmol O(2) m(-3) d(-1) and ( 2) essentially none of the corresponding net carbon fixation of 1.4 mmol m(-3) d(-1) could be accounted for in the observed standing stocks of POC. After examining other possible sinks for carbon, we conclude that most of the net production is being exported to the adjacent deep ocean. A simplified POC budget suggests that about a quarter of the export is via alongshore advection, and the remainder is due to some other process. We propose a simplistic conceptual model of across-shelf transport in which POC sinks to the bottom boundary layer where it comes into contact with mineral ballast material but is kept in suspension by high turbulence. When upwelling conditions ease, the BBL waters move seaward, carrying the suspended, ballasted POC with it where it sinks rapidly into the deep ocean at the shelf break. This suggests a mechanism whereby the duration and frequency of upwelling events and relaxations can determine the extent to which new carbon produced by photosynthesis in the coastal ocean is exported to depth rather than being respired on the shelf.

Die Erleichterungen der Schammaiten und die Erschwerungen der Hilleliten : ein Beitrag zur Entwicklungsgeschichte der Halachah ; ausgeg. am 15. Oct. 1893, dem Eröffnungstage der Isr.-Theol. Lehranstalt in Wien

von Adolf Schwarz

Flavius Josephus und die Halacha

Marcus Olitzki

Die Controversen der Schammaiten und Hilleliten

Adolf Schwarz

Development of a SPECT -based three-dimensional treatment planner for radionuclide therapy with iodine -131

Accurate calculation of absorbed dose to target tumors and normal tissues in the body is an important requirement for establishing fundamental dose-response relationships for radioimmunotherapy. Two major obstacles have been the difficulty in obtaining an accurate patient-specific 3-D activity map in-vivo and calculating the resulting absorbed dose. This study investigated a methodology for 3-D internal dosimetry, which integrates the 3-D biodistribution of the radionuclide acquired from SPECT with a dose-point kernel convolution technique to provide the 3-D distribution of absorbed dose. Accurate SPECT images were reconstructed with appropriate methods for noise filtering, attenuation correction, and Compton scatter correction. The SPECT images were converted into activity maps using a calibration phantom. The activity map was convolved with an $\sp{131}$I dose-point kernel using a 3-D fast Fourier transform to yield a 3-D distribution of absorbed dose. The 3-D absorbed dose map was then processed to provide the absorbed dose distribution in regions of interest. This methodology can provide heterogeneous distributions of absorbed dose in volumes of any size and shape with nonuniform distributions of activity. Comparison of the activities quantitated by our SPECT methodology to true activities in an Alderson abdominal phantom (with spleen, liver, and spherical tumor) yielded errors of $-$16.3% to 4.4%. Volume quantitation errors ranged from $-$4.0 to 5.9% for volumes greater than 88 ml. The percentage differences of the average absorbed dose rates calculated by this methodology and the MIRD S-values were 9.1% for liver, 13.7% for spleen, and 0.9% for the tumor. Good agreement (percent differences were less than 8%) was found between the absorbed dose due to penetrating radiation calculated from this methodology and TLD measurement. More accurate estimates of the 3-D distribution of absorbed dose can be used as a guide in specifying the minimum activity to be administered to patients to deliver a prescribed absorbed dose to tumor without exceeding the toxicity limits of normal tissues. ^

Snow and ice surfaces on King George Island (Antarctic Peninsula) with high-resolution TerraSAR-X time series, with links to shapfiles and GeoTIFFs

Changes of glaciers and snow cover in polar regions affect a wide range of physical and ecosystem processes on land and in the adjacent marine environment. In this study, we investigate the potential of 11-day repeat high-resolution satellite image time series from the TerraSAR-X mission to derive glaciological and hydrological parameters on King George Island, Antarctica during the period Oct/25/2010 to Apr/19/2011. The spatial pattern and temporal evolution of snow cover extent on ice-free areas can be monitored using multi-temporal coherence images. SAR coherence is used to map glacier extent of land terminating glaciers with an average accuracy of 25 m. Multi-temporal SAR color composites identify the position of the late summer snow line at about 220 m above sea level. Glacier surface velocities are obtained from intensity feature-tracking. Surface velocities near the calving front of Fourcade Glacier were up to 1.8 ± 0.01 m/d. Using an intercept theorem based on fundamental geometric principles together with differential GPS field measurements, the ice discharge of Fourcade Glacier was estimated to 20700 ± 5500 m**3/d (corresponding to ~19 ± 5 kt/d). The rapidly changing surface conditions on King George Island and the lack of high-resolution digital elevation models for the region remain restrictions for the applicability of SAR data and the precision of derived products.

Model-based changes in global annual mean surface temperature change (Delta T_g) and radiative forcing due to land ice albedo changes (Delta R_[LI]) over the last 5 Myr, supplementary material

It is still an open question how equilibrium warming in response to increasing radiative forcing - the specific equilibrium climate sensitivity S - depends on background climate. We here present palaeodata-based evidence on the state dependency of S, by using CO2 proxy data together with a 3-D ice-sheet-model-based reconstruction of land ice albedo over the last 5 million years (Myr). We find that the land ice albedo forcing depends non-linearly on the background climate, while any non-linearity of CO2 radiative forcing depends on the CO2 data set used. This non-linearity has not, so far, been accounted for in similar approaches due to previously more simplistic approximations, in which land ice albedo radiative forcing was a linear function of sea level change. The latitudinal dependency of ice-sheet area changes is important for the non-linearity between land ice albedo and sea level. In our set-up, in which the radiative forcing of CO2 and of the land ice albedo (LI) is combined, we find a state dependence in the calculated specific equilibrium climate sensitivity, S[CO2,LI], for most of the Pleistocene (last 2.1 Myr). During Pleistocene intermediate glaciated climates and interglacial periods, S[CO2,LI] is on average ~ 45 % larger than during Pleistocene full glacial conditions. In the Pliocene part of our analysis (2.6-5 Myr BP) the CO2 data uncertainties prevent a well-supported calculation for S[CO2,LI], but our analysis suggests that during times without a large land ice area in the Northern Hemisphere (e.g. before 2.82 Myr BP), the specific equilibrium climate sensitivity, S[CO2,LI], was smaller than during interglacials of the Pleistocene. We thus find support for a previously proposed state change in the climate system with the widespread appearance of northern hemispheric ice sheets. This study points for the first time to a so far overlooked non-linearity in the land ice albedo radiative forcing, which is important for similar palaeodata-based approaches to calculate climate sensitivity. However, the implications of this study for a suggested warming under CO2 doubling are not yet entirely clear since the details of necessary corrections for other slow feedbacks are not fully known and the uncertainties that exist in the ice-sheet simulations and global temperature reconstructions are large.

Micro-granulometry of sedimentary dykes, Kathmandu basin, Nepal

Soft-sediment deformation structures have been analyzed at six sites of the Kathmandu valley. Microgranulometric study (this Supplement and Fig. 3B of Mugnier et al., Tectonophysics, 2011) reveals that silty levels (60 to 80% silt) favor the development of soft-sediment deformation structures, while sandy levels (60 to 80% sand) are passively deformed. Nonetheless well sorted sand levels (more than 80% sand) generate over-fluid pressure during compaction if located beneath a silty cap, leading to fluidization and dike development. 3-D geometry of seismites indicates a very strong horizontal shearing during their development. Using a physical approach based on soil liquefaction during horizontal acceleration, we show that the fluidization zone progressively grows down-section during the shaking, but does not exactly begin at the surface. The comparison of bed-thickness and strength/depth evolution indicates three cases: i) no soft-sediment deformation occurs for thin (few centimeters) silty beds; ii) the thickness of soft-sediment deformation above sandy beds is controlled by the lithological contrast; iii) the thickness of soft-sediment deformation depends on the shaking intensity for very thick silty beds. These 3 cases are evidenced in the Kathmandu basin. We use the 30 cm-thick soft-sediment deformation level formed during the 1833 earthquake as a reference: the 1833 earthquake rupture zone extended very close to Kathmandu, inducing there MMI IX-X damages. A 90 cm-thick sediment deformation has therefore to be induced by an event greater than MMI X. From a compilation of paleo and historic seismology studies, it is found that the great (M ~ 8.1) historical earthquakes are not characteristic of the greatest earthquakes of Himalaya; hence earthquakes greater than M ~ 8.6 occurred. Kathmandu is located above one of the asperities that laterally limits the extent of mega-earthquake ruptures and two successive catastrophic events already affected Kathmandu, in 1255 located to the west of this asperity and in ~ 1100 to the east.

El concepto de Eunomía : ¿Odisea en Solón?

El contexto ideológico jónico ha sido considerado básico como sustento de la elegía solónica. El presente artículo explora la relación intertextual entre el fr.3 D., llamado Eunomía, de Solón y Odisea. A partir del lenguaje compartido por ambos textos, de la absorción de fórmulas épicas y de conceptos nuevamente definidos se propone explicar el papel admonitorio que Solón adquiere como la expresión de una acción heroica ejecutada en una dimensión política

El concepto de Eunomía : ¿Odisea en Solón?

El contexto ideológico jónico ha sido considerado básico como sustento de la elegía solónica. El presente artículo explora la relación intertextual entre el fr.3 D., llamado Eunomía, de Solón y Odisea. A partir del lenguaje compartido por ambos textos, de la absorción de fórmulas épicas y de conceptos nuevamente definidos se propone explicar el papel admonitorio que Solón adquiere como la expresión de una acción heroica ejecutada en una dimensión política

Dominance of facultative and obligate oligotrophic bacteria in surface waters above Gunnerus and Astrid Ridge, Antarctic Ocean

Facultative and obligate oligotrophs have been enumerated in March/April 1990 by the MPN-method with 14C-protein hydrolysate as tracer substrate. Obligate (10-3360 cells/ml) and facultative (110-9000 cells/ml) oligotrophs revealed to be the dominant population above Gunnerus Ridge (65°30'-68°S; 31-35°E) at a depth of 25 m compared with eutrophic bacteria (5 to 260 CFU/ml). Above Astrid Ridge (65-68°S; 8-18°E), obligate (0-1100 cells/ml) and facultative oligotrophs (300-9000 cells/ml) were also abundant but not always dominant. Bacterial biomass above Gunnerus Ridge was only between 7.3 and 43.6% of particulate biomass, but biomass of bacteria above Astrid Ridge amounted from 56.9 to >100% of particulate biomass; an exception was station no. PS16/552 with only 22.2% of bacterial biomass. Ratio of bacterial biomass to particulate biomass was negatively correlated with maximal primary production, complementing the view that phytoplankton was the dominant population above Gunnerus Ridge, whereas bacteria predominated above Astrid Ridge. Eutrophic bacteria were also more abundant above Astrid Ridge, with 3 to 6380 CFU/ml. Total bacteria by acridine orange direct counts amounted from 1 x 10**4 to 34.2 x 10**4 cells/ml. Bacterial biomass above Gunnerus Ridge was 1.8 to 10.7, and above Astrid Ridge 5.7 to 13.6 mg C/m*3. Maximal primary production above Gunnerus Ridge was 4.5 to 11.0, and above Astrid Ridge 2.3 to 3.5 mg C/m**3/d.

El concepto de Eunomía : ¿Odisea en Solón?

El contexto ideológico jónico ha sido considerado básico como sustento de la elegía solónica. El presente artículo explora la relación intertextual entre el fr.3 D., llamado Eunomía, de Solón y Odisea. A partir del lenguaje compartido por ambos textos, de la absorción de fórmulas épicas y de conceptos nuevamente definidos se propone explicar el papel admonitorio que Solón adquiere como la expresión de una acción heroica ejecutada en una dimensión política