First comparison of array-derived rotational ground motions with direct ring laser measurements

Recently, ring laser technology has provided the first consistent observations of rotational ground motions around a vertical axis induced by earthquakes. "Consistent," in this context, implies that the observed waveforms and amplitudes are compatible with collocated recordings of translational ground motions. In particular, transverse accelerations should be in phase with rotation rate and their ratio proportional to local horizontal phase velocity assuming plane-wave propagation. The ring laser installed at the Fundamental station Wettzell in the Bavarian Forest, Southeast Germany, is recording the rotation rate around a vertical axis, theoretically a linear combination of the space derivatives of the horizontal components of motion. This suggests that, in principle, rotation can be derived from seismic-array experiments by "finite differencing." This has been attempted previously in several studies; however, the accuracy of these observations could never be tested in the absence of direct measurements. We installed a double cross-shaped array of nine stations from December 2003 to March 2004 around the ring laser instrument and observed several large earthquakes on both the ring laser and the seismic array. Here we present for the first time a comparison of array-derived rotations with direct measurements of rotations for ground motions induced by the M 6.3 Al Hoceima, Morocco, earthquake of 24 February 2004. With complete 3D synthetic seismograms calculated for this event we show that even low levels of noise may considerably influence the accuracy of the array-derived rotations when the minimum number of required stations (three) is used. Nevertheless, when using all nine stations, the overall fit between direct and array-derived measurements is surprisingly good (maximum correlation coefficient of 0.94)

Función sexual femenina en fibromialgia: Factores asociados

El objetivo de nuestro trabajo fue, identificar y valorar las disfunciones sexuales, estableciendo la frecuencia de cada una de ellas, correlacionando las con la intensidad del dolor, recuento de tender points, calidad de vida, depresión y severidad de la fibromialgia. Materiales y métodos: Estudio observacional, transversal de casos y controles. Se incluyeron 104 pacientes divididos en dos grupos, grupo casos y grupo control. El grupo casos incluía mujeres mayores de 18 años con diagnóstico de SFM (ACR’90) y el grupo control mujeres mayores de 18 años sanas. Se excluyeron pacientes con enfermedad endocrina no tratada, oncológica/infecciosa activa y trastornos psicóticos. En ambos grupos se consignaron: datos socio-demográficos, índice de masa corporal, actividad laboral, presencia de menopausia y función sexual mediante el Índice de Función Sexual Femenina (IFSF: cuestionario autoadministrado de 6 dominios). En el grupo SFM se agregó: puntos dolorosos, tiempo de evolución, medicación, seguimiento por psicopatología; presencia de fatiga crónica (criterios Fukuda); severidad clínica (Cuestionario de Impacto de la Fibromialgia -FIQ español-); depresión (Escala de Ansiedad y Depresión -HADS-); y, antecedentes de violencia psicofísica (Cuestionario de Detección de Violencia de Género). Se utilizaron prueba de Chi2, t de Student y U de Mann-Whitney, según correspondiera; y correlaciones con CC de Spearman (significativo p≤0.05). Resultados: Se incluyeron 104 pacientes: 52 en grupo FM y 52 controles. Edad Media de 50 ± 9.2 y 47 ± 10 años, respectivamente. El grupo SFM presentó una mediana de tiempo de evolución de 60 meses (1-552), media puntos dolorosos: 15 ± 3, mediana FIQ: 67.8 (28-86). El 73.1% recibía medicación para SFM y el 44.2% se controlaba en psicopatología. También presentaron menor nivel educativo (p=0.001) y menor actividad laboral (p<0.001). El 75% presentó antecedentes de violencia psicofísica, el 56% fatiga crónica y el 35 % depresión. Se constató deterioro de la función sexual con respecto a los controles (mediana IFSF total: 17.2 (1.2-33.3) vs 29.4 (1.2-36), p<0.001). Lo mismo ocurrió al analizar cada dominio. También se observó una tendencia a valores inferiores en el FSFI ante la presencia de antecedentes traumáticos, (p=0.085). No se halló correlación entre valores del IFSF y el resto de las variables analizadas. Conclusion: Las participantes del estudio con diagnóstico de SFM presentaron deterioro de la función sexual con respecto a la población general. Se observó una tendencia a mayor disfunción sexual ante antecedentes de violencia

Rotation, Strain, and Translation Sensors Performance Tests with Active Seismic Sources

Interest in measuring displacement gradients, such as rotation and strain, is growing in many areas of geophysical research. This results in an urgent demand for reliable and field-deployable instruments measuring these quantities. In order to further establish a high-quality standard for rotation and strain measurements in seismology, we organized a comparative sensor test experiment that took place in November 2019 at the Geophysical Observatory of the Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich in Fürstenfeldbruck, Germany. More than 24 different sensors, including three-component and single-component broadband rotational seismometers, six-component strong-motion sensors and Rotaphone systems, as well as the large ring laser gyroscopes ROMY and a Distributed Acoustic Sensing system, were involved in addition to 14 classical broadband seismometers and a 160 channel, 4.5 Hz geophone chain. The experiment consisted of two parts: during the first part, the sensors were co-located in a huddle test recording self-noise and signals from small, nearby explosions. In a second part, the sensors were distributed into the field in various array configurations recording seismic signals that were generated by small amounts of explosive and a Vibroseis truck. This paper presents details on the experimental setup and a first sensor performance comparison focusing on sensor self-noise, signal-to-noise ratios, and waveform similarities for the rotation rate sensors. Most of the sensors show a high level of coherency and waveform similarity within a narrow frequency range between 10 Hz and 20 Hz for recordings from a nearby explosion signal. Sensor as well as experiment design are critically accessed revealing the great need for reliable reference sensors.ISSN:1424-822

Partial pancreatoduodenectomy versus duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection in chronic pancreatitis: the multicentre, randomised, controlled, double-blind ChroPac trial

Background There is substantial uncertainty regarding the optimal surgical treatment for chronic pancreatitis. Short-term outcomes have been found to be better after duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection (DPPHR) than after partial pancreatoduodenectomy. Therefore, we designed the multicentre ChroPac trial to investigate the long-term outcomes of patients with chronic pancreatitis within 24 months after surgery. Methods This randomised, controlled, double-blind, parallel-group, superiority trial was done in 18 hospitals across Europe. Patients with chronic pancreatitis who were planned for elective surgical treatment were randomly assigned to DPPHR or partial pancreatoduodenectomy with a central web-based randomisation tool. The primary endpoint was mean quality of life within 24 months after surgery, measured with the physical functioning scale of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer QLQ-C30 questionnaire. Primary analysis included all patients who underwent one of the assigned procedures; safety analysis included all patients who underwent surgical intervention (categorised into groups as treated). Patients and outcome assessors were masked to group assignment. The trial was registered, ISRCTN38973832. Recruitment was completed on Sept 3, 2013. Findings Between Sept 10, 2009, and Sept 3, 2013, 250 patients were randomly assigned to DPPHR (n=125) or partial pancreatoduodenectomy (n=125), of whom 226 patients (115 in the DPPHR group and 111 in the partial pancreatoduodenectomy group) were analysed. No difference in quality of life was seen between the groups within 24 months after surgery (75.3 [SD 16.4] for partial pancreatoduodenectomy vs 73.0 [16.4] for DPPHR; mean difference -2.3, 95% CI -6.6 to 2.0; p=0.284). The incidence and severity of serious adverse events did not differ between the groups. 70 (64%) of 109 patients in the DPPHR group and 61 (52%) of 117 patients in the partial pancreatoduodenectomy group had at least one serious adverse event, with the most common being reoperations (for reasons other than chronic pancreatitis), gastrointestinal problems, and other surgical morbidity. Interpretation No differences in quality of life after surgery for chronic pancreatitis were seen between the interventions. Results from single-centre trials showing superiority for DPPHR were not confirmed in the multicentre setting