159 research outputs found
Self-expandable metal stents in the treatment of acute esophageal variceal bleeding
Acute variceal bleeding (AVB) is a life-threatening complication in patients with cirrhosis. Hemostatic therapy of AVB includes early administration of vasoactive drugs that should be combined with endoscopic therapy, preferably banding ligation. However, failure to control bleeding or early rebleed within 5 days still occurs in 15-20% of patients with AVB. In these cases, a second endoscopic therapy may be attempted (mild bleeding in a hemodynamically stable patient) or we can use a balloon tamponade as a bridge to definitive derivative treatment (i.e., a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt). Esophageal balloon tamponade provides initial control in up to 80% of AVB, but it carries a high risk of major complications, especially in cases of long duration of tamponade (>24 h) and when tubes are inserted by inexperienced staff. Preliminary reports suggest that self-expandable covered esophageal metallic stents effectively control refractory AVB (i.e., ongoing bleeding despite pharmacological and endoscopic therapy or massive bleeding precluding endoscopic therapy) with a low incidence of complications. Thus, covered self-expanding metal stents may represent an alternative to the Sengstaken-Blakemore balloon for the temporary control of bleeding in treatment failures. Further studies are required to determine the role of this new device in AVB
On the athermal character of structural phase transitions
The significance of thermal fluctuations on nucleation in structural
first-order phase transitions has been examined. The prototype case of
martensitic transitions has been experimentally investigated by means of
acoustic emission techniques. We propose a model based on the mean
first-passage time to account for the experimental observations. Our study
provides a unified framework to establish the conditions for isothermal and
athermal transitions to be observed.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, accepted in Phys. Rev. Let
Phase diagram of Fe-doped Ni-Mn-Ga ferromagnetic shape-memory alloys
We have studied the effect of Fe addition on the structural and magnetic
transitions in the magnetic shape memory alloy Ni-Mn-Ga by substituting
systematically each atomic species by Fe. Calorimetric and AC susceptibility
measurements have been carried out in order to study the magnetic and
structural transformation properties. We find that the addition of Fe modifies
the structural and magnetic transformation temperatures. Magnetic transition
temperatures are displaced to higher values when Fe is substituted into
Ni-Mn-Ga, while martensitic and premartensitic transformation temperatures
shift to lower values. Moreover, it has been found that the electron per atom
concentration essentially governs the phase stability in the quaternary system.
However, the observed scaling of transition temperatures with differs
from that reported in the related ternary system Ni-Mn-Ga.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figures. Accepted for publication in the Physical Review
Martensitic transition and magnetoresistance in a Cu-Al-Mn shape memory alloy. Influence of aging
We have studied the effect of ageing within the miscibility gap on the
electric, magnetic and thermodynamic properties of a non-stoichiometric Heusler
Cu-Al-Mn shape-memory alloy, which undergoes a martensitic transition from a
-based (-phase) towards a close-packed structure (-phase).
Negative magnetoresistance which shows an almost linear dependence on the
square of magnetization with different slopes in the - and -phases,
was observed. This magnetoresistive effect has been associated with the
existence of Mn-rich clusters with the CuAlMn-structure. The effect of an
applied magnetic field on the martensitic transition has also been studied. The
entropy change between the - and -phases shows negligible dependence
on the magnetic field but it decreases significantly with annealing time within
the miscibility gap. Such a decrease is due to the increasing amount of
CuMnAl-rich domains that do not transform martensitically.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in PR
Global periodicity conditions for maps and recurrences via Normal Forms
We face the problem of characterizing the periodic cases in parametric
families of (real or complex) rational diffeomorphisms having a fixed point.
Our approach relies on the Normal Form Theory, to obtain necessary conditions
for the existence of a formal linearization of the map, and on the introduction
of a suitable rational parametrization of the parameters of the family. Using
these tools we can find a finite set of values p for which the map can be
p-periodic, reducing the problem of finding the parameters for which the
periodic cases appear to simple computations. We apply our results to several
two and three dimensional classes of polynomial or rational maps. In particular
we find the global periodic cases for several Lyness type recurrences.Comment: 25 page
Diet composition of a declining steppe bird the little bustard (Tetrax tetrax) in relation to farming practices
Foraging strategies and diet selection play an essential role in individual survival and reproductive success. The study of feeding ecology becomes crucial when it concerns endangered species such as the Little Bustard (Tetrax tetrax), whose populations are suffering strong declines as a consequence of agricultural intensification. Despite the fact that several populations are overwintering in areas affected by agricultural transformation, nothing is known about how feeding behavior responds to these changes. We studied for the first time the winter diet composition of the Little Bustard in Spain and compared it between areas with two different farming systems: dry and irrigated farmland. Diet was studied through the micro-histological analysis of 357 droppings collected in 16 locations across the wintering range of the Little Bustard in Spain. Up to 62 plant species were identified. Most consumed species were cultivated legumes (46.7%) and dicotyledon weeds (45.6%), while monocotyledons were scarcely consumed (7.7%). Diet composition differed significantly between dry and irrigated farmland areas. In irrigated areas, diet was mainly composed of legumes, in particular alfalfa (Medicago sativa). In contrast, in dry farmland areas diet was more diverse, composed mainly of weeds (Compositae, Papaveraceae, and Cruciferae) and also cultivated legumes, particularly vetch (Vicia sativa). These results suggest that legume crops could be an effective measure to improve habitat quality in areas with scarce food resources. However, in the case of irrigated areas, the strong reliance on alfalfa could make the Little Bustard more vulnerable to changes in land use. This study is the first step to understand the winter trophic requirements of the endangered Little Bustard, but further research is necessary to understand the food requirements of this species during the entire annual cycle
Disorder induced critical phenomena in magnetically glassy Cu-Al-Mn alloys
Measurements of magnetic hysteresis loops in Cu-Al-Mn alloys of different Mn
content at low temperatures are presented. The loops are smooth and continuous
above a certain temperature, but exhibit a magnetization discontinuity below
that temperature. Scaling analysis suggest that this system displays a disorder
induced phase transition line. Measurements allow to determine the critical
exponents and in agreement
with those reported recently [Berger et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 85}, 4176
(2000)]Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
Los bebés prematuros y su desarrollo visual
Las autoras señalan la incidencia de la prematuridad en el desarrollo visual del recién nacido y la importancia de la detección precoz de las alteraciones visuales. Describen la intervención del Equipo de Atención Temprana del Centro de Recursos Educativos de la ONCE en Barcelona, en el marco del acuerdo suscrito entre esta entidad y cuatro hospitales barceloneses de referencia para la detección precoz en unidades de Cuidados Intensivos de Neonatología. Es fundamental que el niño sea valorado inmediatamente por un equipo multidisciplinar, y que este asesore a los padres para asegurar una adecuada intervención parental, basada en el conocimiento de la importancia de los vínculos afectivos. El Equipo de Atención Temprana de la ONCE lleva a cabo la valoración de la visión funcional del niño, que, una vez recibida el alta hospitalaria, es derivado al Centro de Recursos Educativos, donde se efectuará el seguimiento con arreglo al plan de intervención individualizado, de acuerdo con la situación del bebé y de su familia
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