Tissue multifractality and Born approximation in analysis of light scattering: a novel approach for precancers detection

Multifractal, a special class of complex self-affine processes, are under recent intensive investigations because of their fundamental nature and potential applications in diverse physical systems. Here, we report on a novel light scattering-based inverse method for extraction/quantification of multifractality in the spatial distribution of refractive index of biological tissues. The method is based on Fourier domain pre-processing via the Born approximation, followed by the Multifractal Detrended Fluctuation Analysis. The approach is experimentally validated in synthetic multifractal scattering phantoms, and tested on biopsy tissue slices. The derived multifractal properties appear sensitive in detecting cervical precancerous alterations through an increase of multifractality with pathology progression, demonstrating the potential of the developed methodology for novel precancer biomarker identification and tissue diagnostic tool. The novel ability to delineate the multifractal optical properties from light scattering signals may also prove useful for characterizing a wide variety of complex scattering media of non-biological origin

Correction to: Two years later: Is the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic still having an impact on emergency surgery? An international cross-sectional survey among WSES members

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is still ongoing and a major challenge for health care services worldwide. In the first WSES COVID-19 emergency surgery survey, a strong negative impact on emergency surgery (ES) had been described already early in the pandemic situation. However, the knowledge is limited about current effects of the pandemic on patient flow through emergency rooms, daily routine and decision making in ES as well as their changes over time during the last two pandemic years. This second WSES COVID-19 emergency surgery survey investigates the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on ES during the course of the pandemic. Methods: A web survey had been distributed to medical specialists in ES during a four-week period from January 2022, investigating the impact of the pandemic on patients and septic diseases both requiring ES, structural problems due to the pandemic and time-to-intervention in ES routine. Results: 367 collaborators from 59 countries responded to the survey. The majority indicated that the pandemic still significantly impacts on treatment and outcome of surgical emergency patients (83.1% and 78.5%, respectively). As reasons, the collaborators reported decreased case load in ES (44.7%), but patients presenting with more prolonged and severe diseases, especially concerning perforated appendicitis (62.1%) and diverticulitis (57.5%). Otherwise, approximately 50% of the participants still observe a delay in time-to-intervention in ES compared with the situation before the pandemic. Relevant causes leading to enlarged time-to-intervention in ES during the pandemic are persistent problems with in-hospital logistics, lacks in medical staff as well as operating room and intensive care capacities during the pandemic. This leads not only to the need for triage or transferring of ES patients to other hospitals, reported by 64.0% and 48.8% of the collaborators, respectively, but also to paradigm shifts in treatment modalities to non-operative approaches reported by 67.3% of the participants, especially in uncomplicated appendicitis, cholecystitis and multiple-recurrent diverticulitis. Conclusions: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic still significantly impacts on care and outcome of patients in ES. Well-known problems with in-hospital logistics are not sufficiently resolved by now; however, medical staff shortages and reduced capacities have been dramatically aggravated over last two pandemic years

Techniques for Handling Multilayered Media in the FDTD Method

We introduce supplemental methods for the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) analysis of planar multilayered media. The invariance is allowed to be disturbed by any imperfection, provided that these imperfections are local and therefore can be contained within an FDTD simulation grid. We specifically investigate two FDTD methods that were not previously developed for general multilayered media: the near-field-to-far-field transform (NFFFT) and the total-field/scattered-field (TF/SF) boundary (or the plane-wave injector). The NFFFT uses the FDTD output on a virtual surface surrounding the local imperfections and calculates the radiated field. The plane wave injector builds an incident plane wave inside a certain boundary (TF/SF boundary) while allowing any scattered fields created by the imperfections inside the boundary to exit the boundary with complete transparency. The NFFFT is applicable for any lossless multilayered medium, while the plane-wave injector is applicable for any lossy multilayered medium. After developing the respective theories and giving simple examples, we apply the NFFFT and the plane-wave injector to a series of problems. These problems are divided into two main groups. In the first group, we consider plane-wave scattering problems involving perfectly-conducting objects buried in multilayered media. In the second group, we consider problems that involve radiating structures in multilayered media. Specifically, we investigate the reciprocity of antennas radiating in the presence of an ungrounded dielectric slab using the methods developed in this study. Finally, we present our previous work on an entirely different subject, namely, the theoretical analysis of the input admittance of a prolate-spheroidal monopole fed by a coaxial line through a ground plane.Ph.D.Committee Chair: Glenn S. Smith; Committee Member: Andrew F. Peterson; Committee Member: Gregory D. Durgin; Committee Member: Levent Degertekin; Committee Member: Waymond R. Scott, Jr

Media 1: Computation of tightly-focused laser beams in the FDTD method

Originally published in Optics Express on 14 January 2013 (oe-21-1-87

Media 2: Computation of tightly-focused laser beams in the FDTD method

Originally published in Optics Express on 14 January 2013 (oe-21-1-87