MR Imaging of Shaken Baby Syndrome Manifested as Chronic Subdural Hematoma

Shaken baby syndrome (SBS) is a form of child abuse that can cause significant head injuries, of which subdural hematoma (SDH) is the most common manifestation. We report the MRI findings of chronic SDH in three cases of SBS, involving two-, three- and eight-month-old babies. The SDH signal was mostly low on T1-weighted images and high on T2-weighted images, suggesting chronic SDH. In chronic SDH, a focal high signal on T1-weighted images was also noted, suggesting rebleeding. Contrast-enhanced MRI revealed diffuse dural enhancement

Bronchus-Associated Lymphoid Tissue (BALT) Lymphoma of the Lung Showing Mosaic Pattern of Inhomogeneous Attenuation on Thin-section CT: A Case Report

The authors present a case of histologically proven bronchus-associated lymphoid tissue (BALT) lymphoma of the lung in a patient with primary Sjögren's syndrome that manifested on thin-section CT scan as a mosaic pattern of inhomogeneous attenuation due to mixed small airway and infiltrative abnormalitie

Relationships between non-acoustic factors and subjective reactions to floor impact noise in apartment buildings

The aim of this study was to provide an understanding of how residents in apartment buildings perceive and react to impact sounds coming from the upstairs neighbours' dwellings. Based on existing theoretical and empirical studies on environmental noise, a conceptual model was developed to explain relationships among noise annoyance and non-acoustic factors. The model was then tested using structural equation modelling with survey data from residents living in apartment buildings (N = 487). The findings showed that the conceptual model was consistent with other models developed for environmental noises. The results indicated that annoyance induced by floor impact noise was associated with perceived disturbance, coping, and self-reported health complaints. Noise sensitivity had a direct impact on perceived disturbance and an indirect impact on annoyance, and moderating variables affected the non-acoustic factors. Exposure to footstep noises increased the impact size of noise sensitivity to disturbance. Predictability, marital status, and house ownership were found to influence the relationship between attitudes towards authorities and coping. In addition, a negative attitude towards neighbours (i.e., the noise source) moderated the positive relationship between annoyance and coping

A Case of Malignant Pericardial Mesothelioma With Constrictive Pericarditis Physiology Misdiagnosed as Pericardial Metastatic Cancer

Malignant pericardial mesothelioma is a rare and progressive cardiac tumor. There is no established standard treatment and the prognosis is poor. Most patients were retrospectively diagnosed from surgery or autopsy due to absence of specific clinical manifestation. Most patients with pericardial mesothelioma have demonstrated constrictive physiology on echocardiography or cardiac catheterization. Therefore, pericardial mesothelioma was often misdiagnosed as other causes of constrictive pericarditis. We report a case of primary pericardial mesothelioma misdiagnosed as pericardial metastasis of unknown origin

Complete Atrioventricular Block Secondary to Bortezomib Use in Multiple Myeloma

Bortezomib is an inhibitor of 26S proteasome, which is an effective treatment for multiple myeloma. The common adverse effects of bortezomib are asthenic conditions, gastrointestinal disturbances, and peripheral neuropathy. Here we describe a patient with dyspnea and general weakness because of complete atrioventricular block while receiving bortezomib. We immediately stopped bortezomib, and after inserting a permanent VDD pacemaker, the patients' symptoms disappeared

A Case of Variant Angina Developing Transient Collateral Circulation During Vasospasm

Variant angina is characterized by spontaneous episodes of angina, usually occurring in the morning and having ST segment elevation on the electrocardiogram. However, in the case presented here, vasospasm and angina was shown by ergonovine without ST elevation. The patient was a 60-year-old man who presented with a 2-year history of frequent chest pain. There were no abnormalities in coronary angiography. When ergonovine (100 µg) was injected, total occlusion of the proximal right coronary artery was seen, without ST elevation at the electrocardiogram. The cause was collateral from left anterior descending artery to distal right coronary artery at the left coronary angiography. Therefore, in a patient with variant angina without ST elevation, a transient collateral circulation during vasospasm should be considered

Studies on the decay and recovery of higher-order solitons, initiated by localized channel perturbations

The decay of higher order solitons in optical fiber, initiated by localized channel perturbations such as a step change in dispersion, a localized loss element, or a bandpass filter, is explored theoretically and experimentally as a means of generating pairs of pulses having wavelengths that are up and down-shifted from the input wavelength. The achievable wavelength separation between the two sub pulses increases with increasing the amount of perturbations. Pulse parameter requirements for achieving useful wavelength shifts while avoiding unwanted nonlinear effects are presented. Experimental studies for N=2 solitons having 1 ps initial width are performed to demonstrate tunable wavelength conversion using a step change in dispersion and using a loss element. Wavelength shifts are tunable by varying the magnitude of a dispersion step or loss element that is used to disrupt the soliton cycle. Competing nonlinear effects, such as cubic dispersion, self-steepening, and stimulated Raman scattering, can be minimized by using input pulsewidths of one picosecond or greater. The separated pulses at two wavelengths can in principle be amplified to form separate higher order solitons. The process repeated to produce multiple wavelength replicas of an input data stream, and may thus be of possible use in multi-casting applications in fiber communication systems. The possibility of soliton recovery is also studied. For soliton recovery, conditions are stringent, in that the precise temporal overlap and phase relationship between sub-pulses that occurred at the point of separation is in principle needed at the reverse perturbation location. Experimental studies on soliton recovery for an N=2 soliton is performed by using a dispersion-compensated intermediate link, and reversing the dispersion step. Detrimental effects on soliton recovery are studied.Ph.D.Committee Chair: John A. Buck; Committee Member: Gee-Kung Chang; Committee Member: Glenn S. Smith; Committee Member: Rick Trebino; Committee Member: Stephen E. Ralp

Physical Modeling and Analysis for Performance Enhancement of Terahertz Wave Detector based on Silicon Field-Effect Transistor

We report the nonresonant plasmonic terahertz (THz) wave detector based on the silicon (Si) field effect transistor (FET) with a technology computer-aided design (TCAD) platform. The plasma wave behavior has been modeled by a quasi-plasma electron box as a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in the channel of the FET. The incoming alternating current (AC) signal as the THz wave radiation can induce the direct-current (DC) voltage difference between the source and drain, which is called the photoresponse. For accurate analysis of the modulation and propagation of the channel electron density as the plasma wave, we have characterized the quasi-plasma 2DEG model with two key parameters, such as quasi-plasma 2DEG length (lQP) and density (NQP). By using our normalization method, lQP and NQP is defined exactly as extracting the average point of the electron density. We also investigate the performance enhancement of the plasmonic terahertz wave detector based on Si FET by scaling down the gate oxide thickness (tox), which is a significant parameter of FET-based plasmonic terahertz detector for the channel electron density modulation. According to scaling down tox, the responsivity (Rv) and noise equivalent power (NEP), which are the important performance metrics of the THz wave detector, have been enhanced. The proposed methodologies will provide the advanced physical analysis and structural design platform for developing the plasmonic terahertz detectors operating in nonresonant regime

Accurate Analysis and Characterization of Silicon Field Effect Transistor-Based Terahertz Wave Detector with Quasi-Plasma Two-Dimensional Electron Gas

We report the nonresonant plasmonic terahertz (THz) wave detector based on the silicon (Si) field effect transistor (FET) with a technology computer-aided design (TCAD) platform. The plasma wave behavior has been modeled by a quasi-plasma electron box as a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in the channel of the FET. The incoming alternating current (AC) signal as the THz wave radiation can induce the direct-current (DC) voltage difference between the source and drain, which is called the photoresponse. For accurate analysis of the modulation and propagation of the channel electron density as the plasma wave, we have characterized the quasi-plasma 2DEG model with two key parameters, such as quasi-plasma 2DEG length (l QP) and density (N QP). By using our normalization method, l QP and N QP is defined exactly as extracting the average point of the electron density. We also investigate the performance enhancement of the plasmonic terahertz wave detector based on Si FET by scaling down the gate oxide thickness (t ox), which is a significant parameter of FET-based plasmonic terahertz detector for the channel electron density modulation. According to scaling down t ox, the responsivity (Rv ) and noise equivalent power (NEP), which are the important performance metrics of the THz wave detector, have been enhanced. The proposed methodologies will provide the advanced physical analysis and structural design platform for developing the plasmonic terahertz detectors operating in nonresonant regime.clos