Results of the method of transanal Haemorrhoid dearterialization for treatment

Purpose: Hemorrhoidal disease is a polyetiologic disorder at active age. Recently, the methods of hemorrhoidal artery ligation (HAL) and transanal hemorrhoid dearterialization (THD) were introduced. The aim of the present study was to analyze the initial results from THD treatment of hemorrhoidal disease.Material and methods: The study covered 26 patients, 14 males and 12 females, at a mean age of 46 years, with hemorrhoidal disease. Physical examinations, rectal examination and colonoscopy were preoperatively performed. THD was done of 6 arteries along with mucoplication of the distal rectalmucosa.Results: There were no early postoperative complications requiring surgery. Patients` complaints were dominated by low to medium pain not requiring any narcotic analgesics. One patient reported bleeding and pain necessitating re-hospitalization on the 11th day and conservative treatment without blood transfusion. Five patients reported mild pain complaints and 7 ones complained of discomfort in the anal area until the end of the second week. In two patients a residual mucous prolapse up to the 6th month without other symptoms was found out.Conclusion: THD is an effective and minimally invasive method after which application mild to moderate pain and good patient`s comfort are reported. The relative share of the intra- and postoperative complications is low

Proximal protective stoma by low anterior resection of the rectum - When? How? How long?

There is an evolution in the diagnostic algorithm of rectal cancer. In this condition preoperative investigations assist in deciding the optimal treatment. The relation of the tumor edge to the circumferential margin (CRM) is an important factor in deciding the need for neoadjuvant treatment and determines the prognosis. Those with threatened or involved margins are offered long course chemoradiation to enable R0 surgical resection. Endoanal ultrasound (EUS) is useful for tumor (T) staging; hence EUS is a useful imaging modality for early rectal cancer. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is useful for assessing the mesorectum and the mesorectalfascia which has useful prognostic significance and for early identification of local recurrence. Computerized tomography (CT) of the chest, abdomen and pelvis is used to rule out distant metastasis. Identification of the malignant nodes using EUS, CT and MRI is based on the size, morphology and internal characteristics but has drawbacks. Most of the common imaging techniques are suboptimal for imaging following chemoradiation as they struggle to differentiate fibrotic changes and tumor. In this situation, EUS and MRI may provide complementary information to decide further treatment. Functional imaging using positron emission tomography (PET) is useful, particularly PET/CT fusion scans to identify areas of the functionally hotspots. In the current state, imaging has enabled the multidisciplinary team of surgeons, oncologists, radiologists and pathologists to decide on the patient centered management of rectal cancer. Functional imaging may play an active role in identifying patients with lymph node metastasis and those with residual and recurrent disease following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in near future

Van der Waals interaction between microparticle and uniaxial crystal with application to hydrogen atoms and multiwall carbon nanotubes

The Lifshitz theory of the van der Waals force is extended for the case of an atom (molecule) interacting with a plane surface of an uniaxial crystal or with a long solid cylinder or cylindrical shell made of isotropic material or uniaxial crystal. For a microparticle near a semispace or flat plate made of an uniaxial crystal the exact expressions for the free energy of the van der Waals and Casimir-Polder interaction are presented. An approximate expression for the free energy of microparticle- cylinder interaction is obtained which becomes precise for microparticle-cylinder separations much smaller than cylinder radius. The obtained expressions are used to investigate the van der Waals interaction between hydrogen atoms (molecules) and graphite plates or multiwall carbon nanotubes. To accomplish this the behavior of graphite dielectric permittivities along the imaginary frequency axis is found using the optical data for the complex refractive index of graphite for the ordinary and extraordinary rays. It is shown that the position of hydrogen atoms inside multiwall carbon nanotubes is energetically preferable compared with outside.Comment: 23 pages, 8 figures, 2 tables. Minor corrections are made and new references added. Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Exact Casimir-Polder potential between a particle and an ideal metal cylindrical shell and the proximity force approximation

We derive the exact Casimir-Polder potential for a polarizable microparticle inside an ideal metal cylindrical shell using the Green function method. The exact Casimir-Polder potential for a particle outside a shell, obtained recently by using the Hamiltonian approach, is rederived and confirmed. The exact quantum field theoretical result is compared with that obtained using the proximity force approximation and a very good agreement is demonstrated at separations below 0.1$R$, where $R$ is the radius of the cylinder. The developed methods are applicable in the theory of topological defects.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, Accepted for publication in Eur. Phys. J.

Thermal correction to the Casimir force, radiative heat transfer, and an experiment

The low-temperature asymptotic expressions for the Casimir interaction between two real metals described by Leontovich surface impedance are obtained in the framework of thermal quantum field theory. It is shown that the Casimir entropy computed using the impedance of infrared optics vanishes in the limit of zero temperature. By contrast, the Casimir entropy computed using the impedance of the Drude model attains at zero temperature a positive value which depends on the parameters of a system, i.e., the Nernst heat theorem is violated. Thus, the impedance of infrared optics withstands the thermodynamic test, whereas the impedance of the Drude model does not. We also perform a phenomenological analysis of the thermal Casimir force and of the radiative heat transfer through a vacuum gap between real metal plates. The characterization of a metal by means of the Leontovich impedance of the Drude model is shown to be inconsistent with experiment at separations of a few hundred nanometers. A modification of the impedance of infrared optics is suggested taking into account relaxation processes. The power of radiative heat transfer predicted from this impedance is several times less than previous predictions due to different contributions from the transverse electric evanescent waves. The physical meaning of low frequencies in the Lifshitz formula is discussed. It is concluded that new measurements of radiative heat transfer are required to find out the adequate description of a metal in the theory of electromagnetic fluctuations.Comment: 19 pages, 4 figures. svjour.cls is used, to appear in Eur. Phys. J.

Van der Waals and Casimir interactions between atoms and carbon nanotubes

The van der Waals and Casimir interactions of a hydrogen atom (molecule) with a single-walled and a multiwalled carbon nanotubes are compared. It is shown that the macroscopic concept of graphite dielectric permittivity is already applicable for nanotubes with only two or three walls. The absorption of hydrogen atoms by a nanotube at separations below one nanometer is considered. The lateral force due to exchange repulsion moves the atom to a position above the cell center, where it is absorbed by the nanotube because the repulsive force cannot balance the van der Waals attraction.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures, Proceedings of QFEXT07, to appear in J. Phys.

Relative luminosity measurement of the LHC with the ATLAS forward calorimeter

In this paper it is shown that a measurement of the relative luminosity changes at the LHC may be obtained by analysing the currents drawn from the high voltage power supplies of the electromagnetic section of the forward calorimeter of the ATLAS detector. The method was verified with a reproduction of a small section of the ATLAS forward calorimeter using proton beams of known beam energies and variable intensities at the U-70 accelerator at IHEP in Protvino, Russia. The experimental setup and the data taking during a test beam run in April 2008 are described in detail. A comparison of the measured high voltage currents with reference measurements from beam intensity monitors shows a linear dependence on the beam intensity. The non-linearities are measured to be less than 0.5 % combining statistical and systematic uncertainties.Comment: 16 page

The Triarchic Psychopathy Measure (TriPM): alternative to the PCL-R?

Psychopathic personality disorder is the subject of many research papers and in particular in the context of forensic settings, where its link to risk of future violence has been established. This topic is well examined but there is still considerable debate about the nature of the construct and how psychopathy is measured. Contemporary models such as the triarchic theory (Patrick, Fowles & Krueger, 2009) have been put forward yet the research into psychopathy tends to rely on one assessment tool, the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R; Hare, 2003) that is argued not to capture elements of psychopathy such as boldness. The Triarchic Psychopathy Measure (TriPM; Patrick, 2010) is a measure that is based on the triarchic theory, and it places an equal focus on boldness when measuring psychopathy. It is however a self-report instrument, and this approach has many limitations. This paper aims to review the scientific support for the TriPM and to discuss its potential application to clinical practice. It concludes that the TriPM may not yet be a contender for the PCL-R throne as the sole tool of choice for psychopathy measurement, but the research into the application of the TriPM is expanding our understanding of psychopathy as a construct

Shared Negative Experiences Lead to Identity Fusion via Personal Reflection

Across three studies, we examined the role of shared negative experiences in the formation of strong social bonds--identity fusion--previously associated with individuals' willingness to self-sacrifice for the sake of their groups. Studies 1 and 2 were correlational studies conducted on two different populations. In Study 1, we found that the extent to which Northern Irish Republicans and Unionists experienced shared negative experiences was associated with levels of identity fusion, and that this relationship was mediated by their reflection on these experiences. In Study 2, we replicated this finding among Bostonians, looking at their experiences of the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings. These correlational studies provide initial evidence for the plausibility of our causal model; however, an experiment was required for a more direct test. Thus, in Study 3, we experimentally manipulated the salience of the Boston Marathon Bombings, and found that this increased state levels of identity fusion among those who experienced it negatively. Taken together, these three studies provide evidence that shared negative experience leads to identity fusion, and that this process involves personal reflection