Application of omni-purpose electric devices to electrophysiological student practices at the Department of Orthoptics and Visual Sciences, Niigata University of Health and Welfare

Electrophysiological examinations, such as electroencephalogram (EEG) and electrooculogram (EOG), are important for objective assessments of human visual functions. Therefore, students training in orthoptics must understand the principles of electrophysiological recordings, which comprise differential amplification and time-locked averaging. However, clinical-use EEG apparatuses are expensive and much encapsulated. We believed that a simpler, cost-effective electrophysiological recording system would be useful for undergraduate education in our department. Today, monolithic instrumentation amplifiers are commercially available at low prices. They have the common mode rejection ratios>120 dB, high (≧10 10 Ω) input impedances, and very low noise levels. For time-precise visual stimulation, an Arduino-compatible microcontroller with an on-board three-color light-emitting diode was employed. Using these omni-purpose devices, we developed a simple undergraduate practice system for electrophysiological recordings. With the system, even inexperienced students can record visually evoked potentials (VEPs) in a common, non-shield room. The signal quality of recorded VEPs was high enough to demonstrate P2 and N2 peaks in student practices. The system is also applicable to EOG recording. Thus our practice system can help students gain the essential knowledge and experiences of electrophysiological examinations in orthoptics

Utility of Contrast-Enhanced FDG-PET/CT in the Clinical Management of Pancreatic Cancer Impact on Diagnosis, Staging, Evaluation of Treatment Response, and Detection of Recurrence

Objectives: Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography/contrast-enhanced computed tomography (PET/CE-CT) involving whole-body scanning first by non-CE-CT and FDG-PET followed by CE-CT has been used for detailed examination of pancreatic lesions. We evaluated PET/CE-CT images with regard to differential diagnosis, staging, treatment response, and postoperative recurrence in pancreatic cancer. Methods: Positron emission tomography/CE-CT was conducted in 108 patients with pancreatic cancer and in 41 patients with other pancreatic tumor diseases. Results: The maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) overlapped in benign and malignant cases, suggesting that differential diagnosis of pancreatic tumors based on the SUVmax is difficult. In the evaluation of staging in 31 resectable pancreatic cancer by PET/CE-CT, the diagnostic accuracy rate was more than 80% for most factors concerning local invasion and 94% for distant metastasis but only 42% for lymph node metastasis. Significant positive correlations were found between the SUVmax and tumor size/markers, suggesting that SUVmax may be a useful indicator for the treatment response. Regarding the diagnosis of the postoperative recurrence, PET/CE-CT correctly detected local recurrence in all the 11 cases of recurrence, whereas abdominal CE-CT detected only 7 of 11 cases, suggesting that PET/CE-CT is superior in this context. Conclusions: Positron emission tomography/CE-CT is useful for the clinical management of pancreatic cancer

Analysis on the cryogenic stability and mechanical properties of the LHD helical coils

Transient normal-transitions have been observed in the superconducting helical coils of LHD. Propagation of a normal-zone is analyzed with a numerical simulation code that deals with the magnetic diffusion process in a pure aluminum stabilizer. During excitation tests, a number of spike signals are observed in the balance voltage of the helical coils, which seem to be caused by mechanical disturbances. The spike signals are analyzed by applying pulse height analysis and the mechanical properties of the coil windings are investigated

Voxel-based structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study of patients with early onset schizophrenia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Investigation into the whole brain morphology of early onset schizophrenia (EOS) to date has been sparse. We studied the regional brain volumes in EOS patients, and the correlations between regional volume measures and symptom severity.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A total of 18 EOS patients (onset under 16 years) and 18 controls matched for age, gender, parental socioeconomic status, and height were examined. Voxel-based morphometric analysis using the Brain Analysis Morphological Mapping (BAMM) software package was employed to explore alterations of the regional grey (GM) and white matter (WM) volumes in EOS patients. Symptoms were assessed using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>EOS patients had significantly reduced GM volume in the left parahippocampal, inferior frontal, and superior temporal gyri, compared with the controls. They also had less WM volume in the left posterior limb of the internal capsule and the left inferior longitudinal fasciculus. The positive symptom score of PANSS (higher values corresponding to more severe symptoms) was negatively related to GM volume in the bilateral posterior cingulate gyrus. The negative symptom score was positively correlated with GM volume in the right thalamus. As for the association with WM volume, the positive symptom score of PANSS was positively related to cerebellar WM (vermis region), and negatively correlated with WM in the brain stem (pons) and in the bilateral cerebellum (hemisphere region).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings of regional volume alterations of GM and WM in EOS patients coincide with those of previous studies of adult onset schizophrenia patients. However, in brain regions that had no overall structural differences between EOS patients and controls (that is, the bilateral posterior cingulate gyrus, the right thalamus, the cerebellum, and the pons), within-subject analysis of EOS patients alone revealed that there were significant associations of the volume in these areas and the symptom severity. These findings suggest that at an early stage of the illness, especially for those with onset before brain maturation, a wide range of disturbed neural circuits, including these brain regions that show no apparent morphological changes, may contribute to the formation of the symptomatology.</p

First Cool-Down Performance of the LHD

The first cool-down test of the Large Helical Device (LHD) and the performance of the LHD cryogenic system during the first cycle operation are described. The first cool-down started on Feb. 23, 1998 and finished on Mar. 22. After the cool-down, the excitation tests of the SC coils up to 1.5 T and the first cycle operations for plasma physics experiments were conducted until May 18. The first cycle operation was successfully completed after the warm-up process to room temperature from May 19 to Jun. 15. The cooling characteristics of the LHD, such as temperature distribution during cool-down, heat loads under steady state condition, reliability during long-term operation, are reporte