177 research outputs found
Measuring radon in soil gas and groundwaters: a review
Instruments for the measurements of radon and its decay products in earthquake research are based mostly on
the detection of alpha particles. The devices and methods used depend on whether the techniques measure radon
or radon decay products, and the duration of the measurements, of which there are three types: i) grab or instantaneous,
ii) integrating and iii) continuous. Other criteria used in the design of these instruments are field measurements
applicability, portability, convenience and reliability. With the recent increased demand for radon and
radon decay products measurements, instruments development has focused on the design of appropriate devices
for short-term measurements, as well as on more complex and sophisticated instruments for long-term measurements
used in radon research for geophysical, geochemical and hydrological studies
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Enhancing clinical communication in dermatologists: a personalized educational intervention
OBJECTIVES: Effective communication is a vital component of patient-centered consultations with favorable treatment outcomes. This study aimed in testing the effectiveness of a personalized, communication training program for dermatologists in their practices.
METHODS: Fifteen dermatologists were offered the educational intervention NO.TE.S. (Non-Technical Skills). Depending on the dermatologists' needs, seven to nine sessions with a 60-min duration were performed, focusing on: patient-centered care, principles of Neurolinguistic Programming, a guide to the medical interview, principles of motivational interviewing and self-care. After the program's completion, participants completed anonymously an 18-item evaluation questionnaire.
RESULTS: All 14 participants would suggest NO.TE.S to a colleague. According to the main themes identified, their participation led to (i) re-consideration of the physician-patient relationship, (ii) more conscious application of the patient-centered model, (iii) improvement in communication skills, (iv) awareness of medical interview guides, (v) increase in self-confidence, and (vi) techniques of self-care. Eleven physicians (78.6%) declared improvement in patients' satisfaction, 14 (100%) in their own satisfaction, seven (50%) in adherence to therapeutic plan and seven (50%) in treatment outcomes.
CONCLUSION: The one-to-one coaching is a convenient and well-received personalized means of enhancing clinical communication in dermatologists, leading to more patient-centered medical encounters with better treatment outcomes
Multimodality Imaging Of Torpedo Maculopathy With Swept-Source, En Face Optical Coherence Tomography And Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography.
PURPOSE: Multimodality image analysis of two cases of torpedo maculopathy. METHODS: Imaging with fundus photography, autofluorescence (AF), swept-source optical coherence tomography (OCT), en face OCT, and OCT angiography. RESULTS: The basal diameter of the torpedo lesions was 1 mm Ă— 2 mm. One case had a satellite lesion. Autofluorescence indicated variable loss of signal. Swept-source OCT and en face OCT demonstrated fundus excavation, attenuation of nuclear layers and disruption of the outer plexiform layer, loss of photoreceptors and a subretinal cleft. In one case, Sattler layer appeared extended at the cleft. Optical coherence tomography angiography indicated loss of flow in deep retinal vessels and increased flow in choroidal vessels surrounding the cleft. CONCLUSION: Multimodal imaging findings of torpedo maculopathy include disruption of the deep retinal capillary network, expansion of Sattler layer, and increased signal around the subretinal cleft
Deep stratosphere-to-troposphere transport (STT) over SE Europe: a complex case study captured by enhanced <sup>7</sup>Be concentrations at the surface of a low topography region
International audienceIn this study we present a complex case study of a Stratosphere-to-Troposphere Transport (STT) event down to the surface of a low topography region in Northern Greece, during the second fortnight of March 2000. During this event our surface station at Livadi (23°15 E/40°32 N, 850 m a.s.l.), was influenced by very different synoptic systems developing over Eastern Europe, N. America and the N. Atlantic, the last one evolving to a cut-off low over France/Spain. This is the first study, to our knowledge, that presents a down to the surface STT event in the eastern Mediterranean. The intrusion is primarily captured with the use of the cosmogenic radionuclide 7Be, which increased to 9.07 mBq m-3 and 9.37 mBq m-3 on 30 and 31 March 2000, respectively. A 7Be concentration of around 8 mBq m-3 recorded during parallel measurements at Thessaloniki (20 m a.s.l.) gives strong evidence that air of stratospheric origins has even gone down to sea level. A rapid increase of 10?15 ppb is also observed in the surface ozone concentration on 31 March 2000. The relative increase of both tracers is consistent with a volume fraction of stratospheric air at the surface of about 5%, but the substantial increase in 7Be flags more clearly the event. Trajectory analyses, in conjunction with the evolution of the synoptic situation described by potential vorticity maps, are used for the exact identification of the different intrusions and the attribution of each intruding parcel of stratospheric air to a certain filament of high PV. Finally, the persistency of the stratospheric layers in the troposphere is another interesting point of this case study. The vast majority of the trajectories spent 7?10 days in the troposphere before reaching the surface at Livadi station
Radon measurements along active faults in the Langadas Basin, northern Greece
A network of three radon stations has been established in the Langadas Basin, northern Greece for radon monitoring by various techniques in earthquake prediction studies. Specially made devices with plastic tubes including Alpha Tracketch Detectors (ATD) were installed for registering alpha particles from radon and radon decay products exhaled from the ground, every 2 weeks, by using LR-115, type II, non-strippable Kodak films, starting from December 1996. Simultaneous measurements started using Lucas cells alpha spectrometer for instantaneous radon measurements in soil gas, before and after setting ATDs at the radon stations. Continuous monitoring of radon gas exhaling from the ground started from the middle of August 1999 by using silicon diode detectors, which simultaneously register meteorological parameters, such as rainfall, temperature and barometric pressure. The obtained data were studied together with the data of seismic events, such as the magnitude, <i>M<sub>L</sub></i>, of earthquakes that occurred at the Langadas Basin during the period of measurements, as registered by the Laboratory of Geophysics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, in order to find out any association between them
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Aerodynamic Size Associations of Natural Radioactivity With Ambient Aerosols
The aerodynamic size of /sup 214/Pb, /sup 212/Pb, /sup 210/Pb, /sup 7/Be, /sup 32/P, /sup 35/S (as SO/sub 4//sup 2 -/), and stable SO/sub 4//sup 2 -/ was measured using cascade impactors. The activity distribution of /sup 212/Pb and /sup 214/Pb, measured by alpha spectroscopy, was largely associated with aerosols smaller than 0.52 ..mu..m. Based on 46 measurements, the activity median aerodynamic diameter of /sup 212/Pb averaged 0.13 ..mu..m (sigma/sub g/ = 2.97), while /sup 214/Pb averaged 0.16 ..mu..m (sigma/sub g/ = 2.86). The larger median size of /sup 214/Pb was attributed to ..cap alpha..-recoil depletion of smaller aerosols following decay of aerosol-associated /sup 218/Po. Subsequent /sup 214/Pb condensation on all aerosols effectively enriches larger aerosols. /sup 212/Pb does not undergo this recoil-driven redistribution. Low-pressure impactor measurements indicated that the mass median aerodynamic diameter of SO/sub 4//sup 2 -/ was about three times larger than the activity median diameter /sup 212/Pb, reflecting differences in atmospheric residence times as well as the differences in surface area and volume distributions of the atmospheric aerosol. Cosmogenic radionuclides, especially /sup 7/Be, were associated with smaller aerosols than SO/sub 4//sup 2 -/ regardless of season, while /sup 210/Pb distributions in summer measurements were similar to sulfate but smaller in winter measurements. Even considering recoil following /sup 214/Po ..cap alpha..-decay, the avervage /sup 210/Pb labeled aerosol grows by about a factor of two during its atmospheric lifetime. The presence of 5 to 10% of the /sup 7/Be on aerosols greater than 1 ..mu..m was indicative of post-condensation growth, probably either in the upper atmosphere or after mixing into the boundary layer
Radon measurements in association with earthquakes
A network of three radon stations has been established in the Langadas basin, North Greece. Newly made devices with plastic tubes are in operation with a-particle track detectors (ATDs) in registering a-particles from radon and radon decay products exhaled from the ground, every two weeks, starting from December 1996, by using LR-115, type II, nonstrippable Kodak films. Simultaneous measurements are made by using Lucas a-scintillation cells for
instantaneous measurements of radon in soil gas, before and after setting the ATDs at the radon stations. The new devices used have the advantage of not using heating systems nor electrical power in the nearby area of the stations. Radon flux registrations ranged between 507 and 85880 tr cm22 or 1.5 and 188.9 tr cm22 h21, in the period of measurement, while radon concentrations in soil gas ranged between 528 and 35095 Bq m23 at the same time
Radon measurements along active faults in the Langadas Basin, northern Greece
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