Formation of Two-Way Shape Memory Effect in NiTi Alloy Using Pulsed Laser Irradiation

Shape memory alloys (SMAs) are a unique class of smart materials and they were employed in various applications in engineering, biomedical, and aerospace technologies. Here, we report an advanced, efficient, and low-cost direct imprinting method with low environmental impact to create thermally controllable surface patterns. Patterned microindents were generated on Ni50Ti50 (at. %) SMAs using an Nd:YAG laser with 1064 nm wavelength at 10 Hz. Laser pulses at selected fluences were focused on the NiTi surface and generated pressure pulses of up to a few GPa. Optical microscope images showed that surface patterns with tailorable sizes can be obtained. The depth of the patterns increases with laser power and irradiation time. Upon heating, the depth profile of SMA surfaces changed where the maximum depth recovery ratio of 30 % was observed. Recovery ratio decreased and saturated at about 15 % when the amount of time and thus the indent depth was increased. Laser-induced shock wave propagation inside the material was simulated and showed a good agreement with the experimental results. The stress wave closely followed the rise time of the laser pulse to its peak value and initial decay. Rapid attenuation and dispersion of the stress wave were observed

Vitamin C in plasma is inversely related to blood pressure and change in blood pressure during the previous year in young Black and White women

BackgroundThe prevalence of hypertension and its contribution to cardiovascular disease risk makes it imperative to identify factors that may help prevent this disorder. Extensive biological and biochemical data suggest that plasma ascorbic acid may be such a factor. In this study we examined the association between plasma ascorbic acid concentration and blood pressure (BP) in young-adult women.MethodsParticipants were 242 Black and White women aged 18-21 yr from the Richmond, CA, cohort of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Growth and Health Study. We examined the associations of plasma ascorbic acid with BP at follow-up year 10, and with change in BP during the previous year.ResultsIn cross-sectional analysis, plasma ascorbic acid at year 10 was inversely associated with systolic BP and diastolic BP after adjusting for race, body mass index, education, and dietary intake of fat and sodium. Persons in the highest one-fourth of the plasma ascorbic acid distribution had 4.66 mmHg lower systolic BP (95% CI 1.10 to 8.22 mmHg, p = 0.005) and 6.04 mmHg lower diastolic BP (95% CI 2.70 to 9.38 mmHg, p = 0.0002) than those in the lowest one-fourth of the distribution. In analysis of the change in BP, plasma ascorbic acid was also inversely associated with change in systolic BP and diastolic BP during the previous year. While diastolic blood pressure among persons in the lowest quartile of plasma ascorbic acid increased by 5.97 mmHg (95% CI 3.82 to 8.13 mmHg) from year 9 to year 10, those in the highest quartile of plasma vitamin C increased by only 0.23 mmHg (95% CI -1.90 to +2.36 mmHg) (test for linear trend: p < 0.0001). A similar effect was seen for change in systolic BP, p = 0.005.ConclusionPlasma ascorbic acid was found to be inversely associated with BP and change in BP during the prior year. The findings suggest the possibility that vitamin C may influence BP in healthy young adults. Since lower BP in young adulthood may lead to lower BP and decreased incidence of age-associated vascular events in older adults, further investigation of treatment effects of vitamin C on BP regulation in young adults is warranted

International comparisons of laboratory values from the 4CE collaborative to predict COVID-19 mortality

Given the growing number of prediction algorithms developed to predict COVID-19 mortality, we evaluated the transportability of a mortality prediction algorithm using a multi-national network of healthcare systems. We predicted COVID-19 mortality using baseline commonly measured laboratory values and standard demographic and clinical covariates across healthcare systems, countries, and continents. Specifically, we trained a Cox regression model with nine measured laboratory test values, standard demographics at admission, and comorbidity burden pre-admission. These models were compared at site, country, and continent level. Of the 39,969 hospitalized patients with COVID-19 (68.6% male), 5717 (14.3%) died. In the Cox model, age, albumin, AST, creatine, CRP, and white blood cell count are most predictive of mortality. The baseline covariates are more predictive of mortality during the early days of COVID-19 hospitalization. Models trained at healthcare systems with larger cohort size largely retain good transportability performance when porting to different sites. The combination of routine laboratory test values at admission along with basic demographic features can predict mortality in patients hospitalized with COVID-19. Importantly, this potentially deployable model differs from prior work by demonstrating not only consistent performance but also reliable transportability across healthcare systems in the US and Europe, highlighting the generalizability of this model and the overall approach

Traumatic aneurysms of the carotid arteries

Doudle, Mark W. ; Raptis, Sper