COMPUTER TOMOGRAPHY IN PATIENTS WITH TRANSITORY DISORDER OF BRAIN CIRCULATION (TDBC)

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Risk Factors for Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy in Full-Term Neonates

Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a clinically defined syndrome of disturbed neurological function in the earliest days of life in the term infants manifested by respiratory distress, subnormal level of consciousness, seizures and depression of tone and reflexes. The authors identified antepartum and intrapartum risk factors for HIE in full term newborns. Between January 1st, 2001 and December 31st, 2003, 54 term infants (gestational age >37 weeks) in NICU of the Clinic of Neonatology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Prof. Paraskev Stoyanov Medical University of Varna were retrospectively studied. All of them met the criteria for moderate or severe HIE (seizures, abnormal consciousness (stupor, coma), respiratory distress, difficulty feeding, abnormal tone and reflexes). Birth prevalence of moderate or severe neonatal HIE was 4,42% term live births. More important antepartum risk factors for HIE were infections, preeclampsia, bleeding in pregnancy, and postmaturity. HIE incidence in infants born after 42 weeks is by 2,5 fold higher. Significant intrapartum risk factors for HIE were intrapartum asphyxia (24% of cases with HIE - OR=6,91), operative vaginal delivery (OR=l,65) and emergency Caesarean section (OR=3,78). The study of the significant risk factors for HIE contributes to prevention of neonatal morbidity and mortality

The Role of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor and Antithrombin III In The Pathogenesis of the Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome

Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) is an iatrogenic complication of controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH). Its pathogenesis is not clarified yet. In the recent years a number of studies focused on the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and antihtrombin III (AT III) indicators. VEGF is homodimeric, heparin-binding glycoprotein, stimulating vascular permeability. Antithrombin III is protease inhibitor of activated clotting factors. This study aimed at examining the VEGF-A165 and AT III indicators with two OHSS patients. Two methods were used for the determination of the indicators of VEGF-A165 and AT III: ELISA for VEGF and chromogenic assay for ATT III. Kits of R/D Systems and American Diagnostica Inc. were used to estimate VEGF and AT III indicators in serum and plasma. There were higher indicators of VEGF-A165 (180pg/ml) and reduction of AT III indicators (48%) in the patient with a severe form of OHSS than in the control group while these indicators were normal in the patient with a moderate form of OHSS. Our results confirmed some published data concerning the importance of VEGF and AT III in the genesis of OHSS. This study should include a larger group of patients in order tofollow-up statistically and authentically the variations of the indicators of both factors and their importance for OHSS

HISTOLOGICAL, IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL, ТЕМ AND SEM INVESTIGATIONS IN THE VALVE-CUSP FREE BORDER OF GREAT VARICOSE SAPHENOUS VEIN

The authors studied venous valve cusps from surgically removed great saphenous vein with essential lower limb varicosis from 20 patients without data about previous thrombophlebitis. Venous valves without varicose alterations were used as controls. The histological, immunohistochemical, ТЕМ and SEM techniques were applied. In morphologically complete valve cusps from non-varicose great saphenous vein, a small marginal thickening was observed by routine histology. The cells visualised in these thickenings showed positive reaction against anti-vimentin but negative reaction against anti—smooth muscle actin antibody. In varicose vein valve cusps a marginal thickening with considerably larger diameter was histologically observed. In the fibrin-like material which was disposed around these thickenings, proliferation of fibroblasts as well as collagen fibres' depositions were seen. The SEM study showed partial "rollings" of the free cusp border. In the marginal thickening, the cells showed negative reaction not only to anti—smooth muscle actin but they also lost the reaction to anti-vimentin monoclonal antibody. The process mentioned above advanced, it occupied a new part at the valve cusp and so the cusp shortened. According to our hypothesis, this was one of the ways of initiating and advancing incompetence in primary varicosis

Design and implementation of a DMD based volumetric 3D display

A real image swept-volume volumetric display is developed. A piston type moving screen is used to obtain the desired volume. A commercially available DMD device is used to project 2D slices of a 3D frame. There is a varying magnification effect during the projection because of the optical design of the system; raw 3D video frames are processed by a software to generate the appropriate 2D slices by also correcting the magnification. Synchronization between the hardware and the software is achieved via a microcontroller. The overall system is capable of printing 12 3D frames per second where a 3D frame consists of 90 2D slices with a resolution varying from 512x512 to 450x450 (approx. 20M voxels per one 3D frame). Although some flickering effect is observed due to rather low 3D frame rate, results are visually satisfactory. ©2008 IEEE

A heuristic approach for new-item cold start problem in recommendation of micro open education resources

© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018. The recommendation of micro Open Education Resources (OERs) suffers from the new-item cold start problem because little is known about the continuously published micro OERs. This paper provides a heuristic approach to inserting newly published micro OERs into established learning paths, to enhance the possibilities of new items to be discovered and appear in the recommendation lists. It considers the accumulation and attenuation of user interests and conform with the demand of fast response in online computation. Performance of this approach has been proved by empirical studies

Ocean-bottom seismographs based on broadband MET sensors: architecture and deployment case study in the Arctic

The Arctic seas are now of particular interest due to their prospects in terms of hydrocarbon extraction, development of marine transport routes, etc. Thus, various geohazards, including those related to seismicity, require detailed studies, especially by instrumental methods. This paper is devoted to the ocean-bottom seismographs (OBS) based on broadband molecular–electronic transfer (MET) sensors and a deployment case study in the Laptev Sea. The purpose of the study is to introduce the architecture of several modifications of OBS and to demonstrate their applicability in solving different tasks in the framework of seismic hazard assessment for the Arctic seas. To do this, we used the first results of several pilot deployments of the OBS developed by Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IO RAS) and IP Ilyinskiy A.D. in the Laptev Sea that took place in 2018–2020. We highlighted various seismological applications of OBS based on broadband MET sensors CME-4311 (60 s) and CME-4111 (120 s), including the analysis of ambient seismic noise, registering the signals of large remote earthquakes and weak local microearthquakes, and the instrumental approach of the site response assessment. The main characteristics of the broadband MET sensors and OBS architectures turned out to be suitable for obtaining high-quality OBS records under the Arctic conditions to solve seismological problems. In addition, the obtained case study results showed the prospects in a broader context, such as the possible influence of the seismotectonic factor on the bottom-up thawing of subsea permafrost and massive methane release, probably from decaying hydrates and deep geological sources. The described OBS will be actively used in further Arctic expeditions