Electrical Properties of Atomic Layer Deposited Aluminum Oxide on Gallium Nitride

We report on our investigation of the electrical properties of metal/Al2O3/GaN metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) capacitors. We determined the conduction band offset and interface charge density of the alumina/GaN interface by analyzing capacitance-voltage characteristics of atomic layer deposited Al2O3 films on GaN substrates. The conduction band offset at the Al2O3/GaN interface was calculated to be 2.13 eV, in agreement with theoretical predications. A non-zero field of 0.93 MV/cm in the oxide under flat-band conditions in the GaN was inferred, which we attribute to a fixed net positive charge density of magnitude 4.60x1012 cm-2 at the Al2O3/GaN interface. We provide hypotheses to explain the origin of this charge by analyzing the energy band line-up.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, Applied Physics Letter

Role of CT enterography in evaluation of small bowel disorders

Background: Small bowel pathologies are an enigma for clinicians and difficult to assess and evaluate for clinicians. In order to establish the efficacy of MDCT Enterography in diagnostic characterisation of small bowel lesions, the current study was undertaken.Methods: A prospective observational cross-sectional study was carried out in a tertiary care hospital. 30 patients with clinically suspected small bowel disease underwent CT enterography using iso-osmotic mannitol as neutral enteral contrast. CT enterography diagnoses were compared with clinical, surgical and histopathological results.Results: CT enterography showed a sensitivity (95.83%), specificity (100%), positive predictive value (100%), negative predictive value (85.71%), accuracy (96.66%) in diagnosis of small bowel diseases.Conclusions: CTE is a non-invasive well tolerated and reliable imaging modality for the depiction of small-bowel diseases. It provides excellent visualization of luminal, mural and extraintestinal findings

An open toss problem

We discuss some particular cases of the following problem. Each of m persons tosses a coin. Those who get heads stay for the next round. Those who get tails are eliminated; however, if all persons get tails in a round, they move to the next round (as if each of them had got a head). The problem is to find the possibility that exactly one person is left after r rounds. All coins are considered identical but not necessarily fair

Evaluation of the clinical, functional and radiological outcomes in patients with distal tibia fractures with simple intra-articular extension treated with intramedullary multidirectional locking nail: a prospective study

Background: Distal tibia fractures with extension into the ankle joint (AO/OTA type 43C) poses challenge for an orthopedic surgeon, due to its subcutaneous nature and precarious blood supply. Literature has described various treatment modalities; most commonly used being locking compression pates, external fixators and intramedullary multidirectional locking nails. Methods: This prospective study included 60 patients with distal tibia fracture AO type 43C1 and 43C2, managed with intramedullary multidirectional locking nails in a close manner, with intra-articular fragment fixation preceding the nail insertion. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical, functional and radiological outcomes as well as the complications in these patients. Results: Patients’ mean age was 48.7±16.6 years; most had type 43C1 fractures (51 patients). The mean surgery time was 88.4±17.5 minutes, performed within 5.6±2.01 days post-injury. The 30 patients had fibula fracture with syndesmotic injury which was fixed with TENS nail. The functional assessment with Johner and Wruh’s criteria; 45 patients (75%) had excellent, 12 patients (20%) had good and 3 patients (5%) had fair outcomes. The fracture union averaged 16.7±1.63 weeks (14-20 weeks). 6 patients had superficial wound complication, while 3 patients had valgus malalignment; all managed without further surgery. Conclusions: Intramedullary nailing following specific surgical technique, and potential percutaneous screws; is a safe, effective and successful treatment option for AO/OTA types 43C1 and 43C2 fractures with high fracture union rates, high functional results, and low complication rates

Innovative Technique of Vascular Repair in Intra-Operative IVC Rupture During Lumbar Microdiscectomy: A Case Report

Background: Major vascular injury during a spinal surgery is a rare but most dreaded complication. Case Presentation: A 39 years old female undergoing microscopic lumbar discectomy suddenly developed severe hypotension on table. The procedure was abandoned and the patient turned supine. It was diagnosed to be a major vessel tear and the patient was taken up for immediate successful vascular repair. To best of our knowledge such a repair procedure has not been described in literature. Conclusions: Majority of such vascular injuries are dealt with primary repair of the defect by a vascular surgeon; however in our case the rent was big and placed on the undersurface making it very difficult for the vascular surgeon to approach or repair it primarily

Esthetics with prosthetics in case of maxillary canine transposition: A clinical report

Transposition is a dental anomaly manifested by a positional interchange of two permanent teeth. The maxillary permanent canine usually transposes with the first premolar and occasionally with the lateral incisor. These are mainly genetically governed and are treated orthodontically if complete segment of tooth is present; in case of missing teeth, participation of cosmetic dentist is must. The present case report describes a situation where left canine to lateral incisor complete transposition was present along with a missing left central incisor. Esthetic rehabilitation of the “smile zone” was the major concern. Scrupulous treatment planning to esthetically contour transposed teeth according to their normal positions, i.e., transposed left canine to lateral incisor and transposed left lateral incisor to canine with replacement of missing tooth, was a challenge. Keywords: Canine transposition, composite veneers, smile designNigerian Journal of Clinical Practice •Jan-Mar 2012 • Vol 15 • Issue

Assessment of clinical and functional outcomes after single dose injection of autologous platelet rich plasma in patients with chronic lateral epicondylitis: a prospective and brief follow up study

Background: Lateral epicondylitis is a chronic, painful, and debilitating elbow condition. The introduction of platelet-rich plasma as an adjunct to the conservative and operative treatment has revolutionized the research in this topic. PRP is considered to be the ideal autologous biological blood-derived product which helps in regenerating the degenerated tissue rather than just repairing it and helps in relieving pain and improving function. Methods: This is a prospective study where 40 patients diagnosed with tennis elbow, failing other conservative treatment modalities were enrolled; and treated with single dose injection of autologous PRP; and were evaluated for clinical and functional outcomes using the visual analogue scale and disabilities of arm, shoulder, and hand scores on the follow-ups. Results: Out of the 40 patients enrolled, there were 15 males and 25 females. The mean age of the population was 45.88±8.87 years. All the patients had improved statistically significant differences in mean VAS and DASH scores (p value<0.001) on each follow-up as compared to the baseline score with VAS score and DASH score improvement being more than 77% and 65% respectively at final follow up. Conclusion: Our study concludes that a single local injection of autologous PRP appears to be the promising and safe modality of treatment in lateral epicondylitis, helping to improve the pain as well as the clinical and functional outcomes