The Reasons for the Resettlement of the Bulgarians in Bessarabia

To leave their homeland for the Bulgarians was not easy. Therefore, this article discusses the causes of resettlement of peasants into the territory of Bessarabia as an escape from Turkish slavery, the many wars and raids of local bandits, as well as the desire to work peacefully, the promised benefits to immigrants

Theoretical Aspects of the Artistic Cognition of Nature Ukrainian Danube Region

The article considered theoretical aspects of the artistic cognition of nature UkrainianDanube Region as a mechanism of creative activity of teacher in the process fine arts activity

The Problem of the Peasants of the Southern Regions of Ukraine – Survive (1946-1947 Years)

After the war, the Soviet village in the southern regions of Ukraine was in crisis. The main problem of the peasants was the struggle for survival. This horror is impossible to forget

Interactive Ways of Becoming a Specialist Fine Art of the Ukrainian Danube Region

In modern conditions the method of education is especially effective if it is built on the intensification of mental activity and is aimed at developing a creative personality. The study presents a system of interactive ways of becoming a specialist in Izmail State Liberal Arts University.&nbsp

The Paradigm of the Formation of Art and Ecological Culture of the Teacher

The article considered theoretical aspects of the artistic cognition of nature as a mechanismof creative activity of teacher in the process of representational activity

The Paradigm of the Formation of Art and Ecological Culture of the Teacher

The article considered theoretical aspects of the artistic cognition of nature as a mechanism of creative activity of teacher in the process of representational activity

Noninvasive patient fixation for extracranial stereotactic radiotherapy

Purpose: To evaluate the setup accuracy that can be achieved with a novel noninvasive patient fixation technique based on a body cast attached to a recently developed stereotactic body frame during fractionated extracranial stereotactic radiotherapy. Methods and Materials: Thirty-one CT studies (greater than or equal to 20 slices, thickness: 3 mm) from 5 patients who were immobilized in a body cast attached to a stereotactic body frame for treatment of paramedullary tumors in the thoracic or lumbar spine were evaluated with respect to setup accuracy. The immobilization device consisted of a custom-made wrap-around body cast that extended from the neck to the thighs and a separate head mask, both made from Scotchcast. Each CT study was performed immediately before or after every second or third actual treatment fraction without repositioning the patient between CT and treatment. The stereotactic localization system was mounted and the isocenter as initially located stereotactically was marked with fiducials for each CT study. Deviation of the treated isocenter as compared to the planned position was measured in all three dimensions. Results: The immobilization device can be easily handled, attached to and removed from the stereotactic frame and thus enables treatment of multiple patients with the same stereotactic frame each day. Mean patient movements of 1.6 mm +/- 1.2 mm (laterolateral [LL]), 1.4 mm +/- 1.0 mm (anterior-posterior [AP]), 2.3 mm +/- 1.3 mm (transversal vectorial error [VE]) and < slice thickness = 3 mm (craniocaudal [CC]) were recorded for the targets in the thoracic spine and 1.4 mm +/- 1.0 mm (LL), 1.2 mm +/- 0.7 mm (AP), 1.8 mm +/- 1.2 mm (VE), and < 3 mm (CC) for the lumbar spine. The worst case deviation was 3.9 mm for the first patient with the target in the thoracic spine tin the LL direction). Combining those numbers (mean transversal VE for both locations and maximum CC error of 3 mm), the mean three-dimensional vectorial patient movement and thus the mean overall accuracy can be safely estimated to be less than or equal to 3.6 mm. Conclusion: The presented combination of a body cast and head mask system in a rigid stereotactic body frame ensures reliable noninvasive patient fixation for fractionated extracranial stereotactic radiotherapy and may enable dose escalation for less radioresponsive tumors that are near the spinal cord or otherwise critically located while minimizing the risk of late sequelae. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Inc

First experiences with a noninvasive patient set-up system for radiation therapy of the prostate

Purpose: Highly conformal radiotherapy techniques require precise patient positioning. We report our first experience with a new cast system for fixation of the pelvis during stereotactically guided intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) of the prostate with respect to positioning accuracy of the prostate. Material and Methods: The immobilization device consists of a custom-made wrap-around body cast that extends from the abdomen to the thighs and a separate head mask, both made from Scotchcast(R), and attaches to a frame for extracranial stereotaxy. Sixteen CT-studies (greater than or equal to 25 slices, thickness: 3 mm) of 2 patients who were immobilized for IMRT of prostate tumors were evaluated with respect to set-up accuracy of bony structures and the prostate itself. CT-studies were performed immediately before or after a treatment fraction. Deviations of bony landmarks and anatomical landmarks inside the planning target volume were measured in all 3 dimensions. Results: Mean patient movements of 0.15 +/- 0.3 mm (latero-lateral), 0.9 +/- 1 mm (anterior-posterior), 1 +/- 1 mm (transversal vectorial error) and < 3 mm slice thickness (craniocaudal) were recorded using bony landmarks and 0.9 +/- 0.9 mm (latero-lateral), 1.8 +/- 1.5 mm (anterior-postserior), 2.2 +/- 1.5 mm (transversal vectorial error) and < 3 mm (craniocaudal) using the confines of, or landmarks within the prostate. Standard deviations of absolute positioning, error as an often used metric for positioning accuracy ranged between 0.3 and 1.7 mm in the transversal plane. The worst case transversal vectorial deviation for the prostate was 4.4 mm. Figure 3 summarizes the set-up, accuracy of bony landmarks and the prostate. Conclusion: The presented combination of a body cast and head mask system in a rigid stereotactic body frame ensures reliable noninvasive patient fixation for fractionated extracranial stereotactic radiotherapy. It provides precise and reliable positioning of the prostate and meets the requirements for highly conformal radiotherapy such as IMRT. No further improvement of repositioning can be achieved with external immobilization devices since the positioning error of the target relative to the skeleton exceeds the accuracy of the positioning of the skeleton itself