Microfabrication and surface functionalization of soda lime glass through direct laser interference patterning

All-purpose glasses are common in many established and emerging industries, such as microelectronics, photovoltaics, optical components, and biomedical devices due to their outstanding combination of mechanical, optical, thermal, and chemical properties. Surface functionalization through nano/micropatterning can further enhance glasses’ surface properties, expanding their applicability into new fields. Although laser structuring methods have been successfully employed on many absorbing materials, the processability of transparent materials with visible laser radiation has not been intensively studied, especially for producing structures smaller than 10 µm. Here, interference-based optical setups are used to directly pattern soda lime substrates through non-lineal absorption with ps-pulsed laser radiation in the visible spectrum. Line-and dot-like patterns are fabricated with spatial periods between 2.3 and 9.0 µm and aspect ratios up to 0.29. Furthermore, laserinduced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) with a feature size of approximately 300 nm are visible within these microstructures. The textured surfaces show significantly modified properties. Namely, the treated surfaces have an increased hydrophilic behavior, even reaching a super-hydrophilic state for some cases. In addition, the micropatterns act as relief diffraction gratings, which split incident light into diffraction modes. The process parameters were optimized to produce high-quality textures with super-hydrophilic properties and diffraction efficiencies above 30%.Fil: Soldera, Marcos Maximiliano. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ingeniería de Procesos, Biotecnología y Energías Alternativas. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ingeniería de Procesos, Biotecnología y Energías Alternativas; ArgentinaFil: Alamri, Sabri. Fraunhofer Institute For Material And Beam Technology Iws; AlemaniaFil: Sürmann, Paul Alexander. Fraunhofer Institute For Material And Beam Technology Iws; AlemaniaFil: Kunze, Tim. Fraunhofer Institute For Material And Beam Technology Iws; AlemaniaFil: Lasagni, Andrés Fabián. Technische Universität Dresden; Alemani

Improving Neurosurgery Education Using Social Media Case-Based Discussions: A Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND: The increasing shift toward a more generalized medical undergraduate curriculum has led to limited exposure to subspecialties, including neurosurgery. The lack of standardized teaching may result in insufficient coverage of core learning outcomes. Social media (SoMe) in medical education are becoming an increasingly accepted and popular way for students to meet learning objectives outside formal medical school teaching. We delivered a series of case-based discussions (CbDs) over SoMe to attempt to meet core learning needs in neurosurgery and determine whether SoMe-based CbDs were an acceptable method of education. METHODS: Twitter was used as a medium to host 9 CbDs pertaining to common neurosurgical conditions in practice. A sequence of informative and interactive tweets were formulated before live CbDs and tweeted in progressive order. Demographic data and participant feedback were collected. RESULTS: A total of 277 participants were recorded across 9 CbDs, with 654,584 impressions generated. Feedback responses were received from 135 participants (48.7%). Participants indicated an increase of 77% in their level of knowledge after participating. Of participants, 57% (n = 77) had previous CbD experience as part of traditional medical education, with 62% (n = 84) receiving a form of medical education previously through SoMe. All participants believed that the CbDs objectives were met and would attend future sessions. Of participants, 99% (n = 134) indicated that their expectations were met. CONCLUSIONS: SoMe has been shown to be a favorable and feasible medium to host live, text-based interactive CbDs. SoMe is a useful tool for teaching undergraduate neurosurgery and is easily translatable to all domains of medicine and surgery

The IDEAL framework in neurosurgery: a bibliometric analysis

Funder: University of CambridgeAbstract: Background: The Idea, Development, Exploration, Assessment and Long-term study (IDEAL) framework was created to provide a structured way for assessing and evaluating novel surgical techniques and devices. Objectives: The aim of this paper was to investigate the utilization of the IDEAL framework within neurosurgery, and to identify factors influencing implementation. Methods: A bibliometric analysis of the 7 key IDEAL papers on Scopus, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases (2009–2019) was performed. A second journal-specific search then identified additional papers citing the IDEAL framework. Publications identified were screened by two independent reviewers to select neurosurgery-specific articles. Results: The citation search identified 1336 articles. The journal search identified another 16 articles. Following deduplication and review, 51 relevant articles remained; 14 primary papers (27%) and 37 secondary papers (73%). Of the primary papers, 5 (36%) papers applied the IDEAL framework to their research correctly; two were aligned to the pre-IDEAL stage, one to the Idea and Development stages, and two to the Exploration stage. Of the secondary papers, 21 (57%) explicitly discussed the IDEAL framework. Eighteen (86%) of these were supportive of implementing the framework, while one was not, and two were neutral. Conclusion: The adoption of the IDEAL framework in neurosurgery has been slow, particularly for early-stage neurosurgical techniques and inventions. However, the largely positive reviews in secondary literature suggest potential for increased use that may be achieved with education and publicity

Encephaloduroateriosynangiosis (EDAS) in the management of Moyamoya syndrome in children with sickle cell disease

Background: Encephalo-duro-arterio-synangiosis (EDAS) in Moyamoya syndrome (MMS) treatment has been well described in the literature, however in MMS caused by sickle cell anaemia (SCA), EDAS use remains controversial with poor long-term follow-up. We present a case-series of SCA patients who have undergone EDAS for SCA-related MMS and describe their post-operative course as well as provide a literature review of the role of EDAS in the treatment of sickle cell anaemia. Methods: A retrospective review of all the paediatric EDAS procedures conducted in our institution for SCA from 2007 to 2015. Two patients underwent behavioural screening. Results: A total of eight patients with MMS secondary to SCA underwent EDAS. Unilateral EDAS was performed without complication in seven patients. One patient underwent bilateral EDAS but with a two-year gap in between procedures. Follow-up magnetic resonance angiography demonstrated no progression of Moyamoya collaterals or further ischaemic events with regression of collaterals clearly visible in one patient. All patients have demonstrated a return to normal school activities. Conclusions: EDAS is a well-tolerated revascularisation procedure for children with MMS. The prevention of further infarcts in our group with sickle cell disease has allowed these children to resume normal school activities

Could a Medication Help With Bleeding Between the Skull and the Brain?

Peer reviewed: TrueChronic subdural haematoma is the medical name for bleeding that occurs between the skull and the brain. It usually happens to older people, like grandparents. If it causes serious symptoms, brain surgeons will operate. However, even after surgery, chronic subdural haematomas can come back, and further operations may be needed. We tested whether a medication called dexamethasone could prevent chronic subdural haematomas from coming back by performing a study of 750 people, in which half received the medication and half did not. The results showed that dexamethasone was good at stopping brain bleeds from coming back, but it had other effects that caused patients to have a more difficult recovery than did those who did not take it. These results are really important to stop doctors from giving this medication—it shows that, at the moment, surgery alone is the best treatment.</jats:p

Improving Neurosurgery Education Using Social Media Case-Based Discussions: A Pilot Study

Background: The increasing shift toward a more generalized medical undergraduate curriculum has led to limited exposure to subspecialties, including neurosurgery. The lack of standardized teaching may result in insufficient coverage of core learning outcomes. Social media (SoMe) in medical education are becoming an increasingly accepted and popular way for students to meet learning objectives outside formal medical school teaching. We delivered a series of case-based discussions (CbDs) over SoMe to attempt to meet core learning needs in neurosurgery and determine whether SoMe-based CbDs were an acceptable method of education. Methods: Twitter was used as a medium to host 9 CbDs pertaining to common neurosurgical conditions in practice. A sequence of informative and interactive tweets were formulated before live CbDs and tweeted in progressive order. Demographic data and participant feedback were collected. Results: A total of 277 participants were recorded across 9 CbDs, with 654,584 impressions generated. Feedback responses were received from 135 participants (48.7%). Participants indicated an increase of 77% in their level of knowledge after participating. Of participants, 57% (n = 77) had previous CbD experience as part of traditional medical education, with 62% (n = 84) receiving a form of medical education previously through SoMe. All participants believed that the CbDs objectives were met and would attend future sessions. Of participants, 99% (n = 134) indicated that their expectations were met. Conclusions: SoMe has been shown to be a favorable and feasible medium to host live, text-based interactive CbDs. SoMe is a useful tool for teaching undergraduate neurosurgery and is easily translatable to all domains of medicine and surgery