Reduction of NBTI-Induced Degradation on Ring Oscillators in FPGA

Ring Oscillators are used for variety of purposes to enhance reliability on LSIs or FPGAs. This paper introduces an aging-tolerant design structure of ring oscillators that are used in FPGAs. The structure is able to reduce NBTI-induced degradation in a ring oscillator\u27s frequency by setting PMOS transistors of look-up tables in an off-state when the oscillator is not working. The evaluation of a variety of ring oscillators using Altera Cyclone IV device (60nm technology) shows that the proposed structure is capable of controlling degradation level as well as reducing more than 37% performance degradation compared to the conventional oscillators.The 20th IEEE Pacific Rim International Symposium on Dependable Computing (PRDC 2014), Nov 19-21, 2014, Singapor

Novel bronchofiberscopic catheter spray device allows effective anesthetic spray and sputum suctioning

AbstractStudy objectives: To evaluate how serum lidocaine concentrations (SLC) rise when lidocaine is administered by a Bronchofiberscopic Catheter Spray Device (BCSD), and to demonstrate the effect on the aspiration speed of a substitute for sputum when a catheter spray remains in the channel of the bronchofiberscope (BF).Methods: This is a prospective randomized clinical study. After lidocaine ultrasonic nebulizer, the BF was inserted orally. During the procedure patients received 4% lidocaine by two methods. In Group 1, 11 patients received lidocaine by bronchofiberscopic (BF) injection. In Group 2, 15 patients received lidocaine by spraying from the ∅1.06mm catheter through the BF channel. SLC were measured at 40min from onset of nebulization. Separately, we examined how effectively sputum was aspirated through the BF channel with a catheter.Results: Total lidocaine dose (TLD) is the total dose used for nebulization and for the BF injection or spray. The TLD for Groups 1 and 2 were 698.2±162.1mg (mean±sd) and 498.7±103.8mg, respectively (P=0.03). The SLC for Groups 1 and 2 were 1.28±0.72 and 1.48±0.70mg/l, respectively (P=0.49).Conclusions: Using BCSD allows easier in administration of lidocaine and is not associated with a significant increase in SLC in comparison with BF injection. Although sputum aspiration using the BF inserted with our catheter was somewhat slow, we did not feel inconvenient so much. Compared to the conventional method, using BCSD may be preferable for patients and bronchoscopists

Effectiveness and safety of nivolumab in patients with head and neck cancer in Japanese real-world clinical practice : a multicenter retrospective clinical study

Background To fill the data gap between clinical trials and real-world settings, this study assessed the overall effectiveness and safety of nivolumab in patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) during Japanese real-world clinical practice. Methods This was a multicenter, retrospective study in Japanese patients with recurrent or metastatic HNC who received nivolumab for the first time between July and December 2017. Data on the clinical use, effectiveness, and safety of nivolumab were extracted from patient medical records. Results Overall, 256 patients were enrolled in this study. The median duration of nivolumab treatment was 72.5 days, with patients receiving a median of 6.0 (range 1-27) doses. Median overall survival (OS) was 9.5 (95% confidence interval [CI] 8.2-12.0) months and the estimated 12-month OS rate was 43.2%. The objective response rate (ORR) was 15.7% overall and 21.1%, 7.1%, and 13.6% in patients with primary nasopharynx, maxillary sinus, and salivary gland tumors, respectively, who had been excluded from CheckMate 141. Grade >= 3 immune-related adverse events occurred in 5.9% of patients. No new safety signals were identified compared with adverse events noted in CheckMate 141. Conclusions The effectiveness and safety of nivolumab in real-world clinical practice are consistent with data from the CheckMate 141 clinical trial. Therapeutic response was also observed in the groups of patients excluded from CheckMate 141

Effectiveness of nivolumab affected by prior cetuximab use and neck dissection in Japanese patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck cancer: results from a retrospective observational study in a real-world setting

Background To examine the effect of prior use of cetuximab and neck dissection on the effectiveness of nivolumab, we conducted a large-scale subgroup analysis in Japanese patients with recurrent/metastatic head and neck cancer. Methods Data on the effectiveness of nivolumab were extracted from patient medical records. All patients were analyzed for effectiveness by prior cetuximab use. In the analyses for prior neck dissection, only patients with locally advanced disease were included. Results Of 256 patients analyzed, 155 had received prior cetuximab. Nineteen of 50 patients with local recurrence underwent neck dissection. The objective response rate was 14.7 vs 17.2% (p = 0.6116), median progression-free survival was 2.0 vs 3.1 months (p = 0.0261), and median overall survival was 8.4 vs 12 months (p = 0.0548) with vs without prior cetuximab use, respectively. The objective response rate was 23.1 vs 25.9% (p = 0.8455), median progression-free survival was 1.8 vs 3.0 months (p = 0.6650), and median overall survival was 9.1 vs 9.9 months (p = 0.5289) with vs without neck dissection, respectively. Conclusions These findings support the use of nivolumab for patients with recurrent/metastatic head and neck cancer regardless of prior cetuximab use or neck dissection history