Surface and buildup region dose measurements with Markus parallel-plate ionization chamber, Gafchromic EBT3 film and MOSFET detector for high energy photon beams

The aim of the study was to investigate surface and buildup region doses for 6MV and 15MV photon beams using a Markus parallel-plate ionization chamber, GafChromic EBT3 film, and MOSFET detector for different field sizes and beam angles. The measurements were made in a water equivalent solid phantom at the surface and in the buildup region of the 6MV and 15MV photon beams at 100 cm source-detector distance for 5 x 5, 10 x 10, and 20 x 20 cm2 field sizes and 0, 30, 60, and 80 beam angles. The surface doses using 6MVphoton beams for 10 x 10 cm2 field size were found to be 20.3%, 18.8%, and 25.5% for Markus chamber, EBT3 film, and MOSFET detector, respectively. The surface doses using 15MV photon beams for 10 x 10 cm2 field size were found to be 14.9%, 13.4%, and 16.4% for Markus chamber, EBT3 film, and MOSFET detector, respectively. The surface dose increased with field size for all dosimeters. As the angle of the incident radiation beam became more oblique, the surface dose increased. The effective measurement depths of dosimeters vary; thus, the results of the measurements could be different. This issue can lead to mistakes at surface and buildup dosimetry and must be taken into account

Evaluation of Development in the Children of Seasonal Agricultural Workers

Children of seasonal agricultural workers, are a group of migrants in Turkey where agricultural production is intense, having a significant part of the year in unhealthy habitats in agricultural areas and having access to services [1,2]. In this group, many temporary or permanent health problems may arise due to the conditions of accommodation and malnutrition [3]. Our aim is to assess the growth and development of children of seasonal agricultural workers. The study is a cross-sectional field study in the agricultural regions of Eski?ehir city and districts starting from 1 July 2017. In our study, children of 119 seasonal agricultural workers under the age of 18 were included. In the study, 11 different agricultural regions were visited and the height, weight, body mass index and head circumference of the children were measured and the percentile values were calculated. In the study group ; children of seasonal agricultural workers were 53 (44.5%) male and 66 (55.5%) female. Their ages ranged from 0 to 16 years with a mean of 7.37 ± 3.58 years. 29.4% of the children of seasonal agricultural workers had both height and weight measurements of 5P or less. Growth and development retardation is one of the important diseases among the children of seasonal agricultural workers

Utility of 'dual phase' cone beam computed tomography during radioembolisation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma : what is really changing in flow dynamics before and after 90Y delivery?

Purpose: The aims of the study were: 1) to compare two phases of dual-phase cone beam computed tomography (DPCBCT) achieved before and after Yttrium-90 (90Y) administration and to evaluate additional benefits during radioembolisation (RE) procedures; and 2) to compare DP-CBCT with pre-procedure contrast enhanced cross-sectional images in terms of tumour detection. Material and methods: Twenty-three hepatocellular carcinoma patients undergoing RE treatment were scanned with DPCBCT consisting of early arterial (EA) and late arterial (LA) phases before and after 90Y administration. The CT-like datasets were compared according to embolisation effect, enhancement patterns, lesion detectability, image quality, and artifacts by two interventional radiologists blinded to each other. The compatibility of the two radiologists was evaluated with kappa statistical analysis, and the difference between EA and LA phases was evaluated with marginal homogeneity test. Also, DP-CBCT images were compared with preprocedural cross-sectional images (CT/MRI). Results: For 23 patients 92 data were acquired. Thirteen patients showed a decrease on post-embolisation images both visually and on Hounsfield unit (HU) measurements. No statistical difference was found for tumour detection between EA and LA phases (p = 1.0). Tumour enhancement was visually superior at LA phases whereas EA phases were better for arterial mapping for selective catheterisation. DP-CBCT images were not inferior to preprocedural cross-sectional imaging findings. Conclusions: DP-CBCT is a promising tool for predicting tumour response to therapy and is not inferior to preprocedural cross-sectional imaging in terms of tumour detection. It allows better assessment during RE procedures because early phases provide good mapping for superselective catheterisation whereas late phases are better for visualisation of tumour enhancement

Investigation of conformal and intensity-modulated radiation therapy techniques to determine the absorbed fetal dose in pregnant patients with breast cancer

The aim of this research was to investigate the fetal doses of pregnant patients undergoing conformal radiotherapy or intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for breast cancers. An Alderson Rando phantom was chosen to simulate a pregnant patient with breast cancer who is receiving radiation therapy. This phantom was irradiated using the Varian Clinac DBX 600 system (Varian Medical System, Palo Alto, CA) linear accelerator, according to the standard treatment plans of both three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3-D CRT) and IMRT techniques. Thermoluminescent dosimeters were used to measure the irradiated phantom's virtually designated uterus area. Thermoluminescent dosimeter measurements (in the phantom) revealed that the mean cumulative fetal dose for 3-D CRT is 1.39 cGy and for IMRT it is 8.48 cGy, for a pregnant breast cancer woman who received radiation treatment of 50 Gy. The fetal dose was confirmed to increase by 70% for 3-D CRT and 40% for IMRT, if it is closer to the irradiated field by 5 cm. The mean fetal dose from 3-D CRT is 1.39 cGy and IMRT is 8.48 cGy, consistent with theoretic calculations. The IMRT technique causes the fetal dose to be 5 times more than that of 3-D CRT. Theoretic knowledge concerning the increase in the peripheral doses as the measurements approached the beam was also practically proven. (C) 2016 American Association of Medical Dosimetrists

Surface and Buildup Region Dose Measurements with Markus Parallel-Plate Ionization Chamber, GafChromic EBT3 Film, and MOSFET Detector for High-Energy Photon Beams

The aim of the study was to investigate surface and buildup region doses for 6MV and 15MV photon beams using a Markus parallel-plate ionization chamber, GafChromic EBT3 film, and MOSFET detector for different field sizes and beam angles. The measurements were made in a water equivalent solid phantom at the surface and in the buildup region of the 6MV and 15MV photon beams at 100 cm source-detector distance for 5 x 5, 10 x 10, and 20 x 20 cm(2) field sizes and 0 degrees, 30 degrees, 60 degrees, and 80 degrees beam angles. Thesurface doses using 6 MVphoton beams for 10 x 10 cm(2) field sizewere found to be 20.3%, 18.8%, and 25.5% for Markus chamber, EBT3 film, and MOSFET detector, respectively. The surface doses using 15MV photon beams for 10 x 10 cm(2) field size were found to be 14.9%, 13.4%, and 16.4% for Markus chamber, EBT3 film, and MOSFET detector, respectively. The surface dose increased with field size for all dosimeters. As the angle of the incident radiation beam became more oblique, the surface dose increased. The effective measurement depths of dosimeters vary; thus, the results of the measurements could be different. This issue can lead to mistakes at surface and buildup dosimetry and must be taken into account

A workflow with R: Phylogenetic analyses and visualizations using mitochondrial cytochrome b gene sequences.

Phylogenetic analyses can provide a wealth of information about the past demography of a population and the level of genetic diversity within and between species. By using special computer programs developed in recent years, large amounts of data have been produced in the molecular genetics area. To analyze these data, powerful new methods based on large computations have been applied in various software packages and programs. But these programs have their own specific input and output formats, and users need to create different input formats for almost every program. R is an open source software environment, and it supports open contribution and modification to its libraries. Furthermore, it is also possible to perform several analyses using a single input file format. In this article, by using the multiple sequences FASTA format file (.fas extension) we demonstrate and share a workflow of how to extract haplotypes and perform phylogenetic analyses and visualizations in R. As an example dataset, we used 120 Bombus terrestris dalmatinus mitochondrial cytochrome b gene (cyt b) sequences (373 bp) collected from eight different beehives in Antalya. This article presents a short guide on how to perform phylogenetic analyses using R and RStudio

Upper extremities function in patients undergoing hemodialysis treatment

Objective: To determine the effects of hemodialysis treatment on upper extremities functional ability.Methods: This study was carried out from June 2003 to March 2004 at Pamukkale University School of Physical Therapy, Denizli, Turkey. One hundred patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) undergoing hemodialysis treatment for at least 2 months participated in the study, and were compared with a control group (N=40 healthy subjects). The 100 patients were divided into 4 groups according to the length of hemodialysis duration: 19 patients dialyzing for less than one year (Group 1); 42 patients dialyzing for 1-4 years (Group 2); 21 patients dialyzing for 4.1-8 years (Group 3); 18 patients dialyzing for 8.1 or more years (Group 4). All participants were evaluated for range of motion by goniometry, muscle strength by manual muscle testing, sensation disturbances by Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments, static grip strength by hand dynamometer, and functional status of upper limbs by the Disabilities Arm Shoulder Hand Questionnaire (DASH-T).Results: The results showed that the patients with CRF had significantly more functional problems associated with CRF and hemodialysis treatment than the healthy controls. In addition to these results, the scores of the DASH-T also showed that the most independent group was the control group with a mean score of 0.72 +/- 0.86, whereas, the most dependent group was the 3rd group of the hemodialysis groups (mean score of 2.70 +/- 1.77).Conclusion: Musculoskeletal or functional, problems decreasing functional ability of the upper limbs are a common complaint in hemodialysis patients