4,620 research outputs found
Hemifacial Spasm and Neurovascular Compression
Hemifacial spasm (HFS) is characterized by involuntary unilateral contractions of the muscles innervated by the ipsilateral facial nerve, usually starting around the eyes before progressing inferiorly to the cheek, mouth, and neck. Its prevalence is 9.8 per 100,000 persons with an average age of onset of 44 years. The accepted pathophysiology of HFS suggests that it is a disease process of the nerve root entry zone of the facial nerve. HFS can be divided into two types: primary and secondary. Primary HFS is triggered by vascular compression whereas secondary HFS comprises all other causes of facial nerve damage. Clinical examination and imaging modalities such as electromyography (EMG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are useful to differentiate HFS from other facial movement disorders and for intraoperative planning. The standard medical management for HFS is botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) injections, which provides low-risk but limited symptomatic relief. The only curative treatment for HFS is microvascular decompression (MVD), a surgical intervention that provides lasting symptomatic relief by reducing compression of the facial nerve root. With a low rate of complications such as hearing loss, MVD remains the treatment of choice for HFS patients as intraoperative technique and monitoring continue to improve
Brainstem Auditory Evoked Potentials' Diagnostic Accuracy for Hearing Loss: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Background: Microvascular decompression (MVD) utilizes brainstem auditory evoked potential (BAEP) intraoperative monitoring to reduce the risk of iatrogenic hearing loss. Studies report varying efficacy and hearing loss rates during MVD with intraoperative monitoring. Objectives: This study aims to perform a comprehensive review and study of diagnostic accuracy of BAEPs during MVD to predict hearing loss in studies published from January 1984 to December 2013. Methods: The PubMed/MEDLINE and World Science databases were searched. Studies performed MVD for trigeminal neuralgia, hemifacial spasm, glossopharyngeal neuralgia or geniculate neuralgia and monitored intraoperative BAEPs to prevent hearing loss. Retrospectively, BAEP parameters were compared with postoperative hearing. The diagnostic accuracy of significant change in BAEPs, which includes loss of response, was tested using summary receiver operative curve and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR). Results: A total of 13 studies were included in the analysis with a total of 2,540 cases. Loss of response pooled sensitivity, specificity, and DOR with 95% confidence interval being 74% (60–84%), 98% (88–100%), and 69.3 (18.2–263%), respectively. The similar significant change results were 88% (77–94%), 63% (40–81%), and 9.1 (3.9–21.6%). Conclusion: Patients with hearing loss after MVD are more likely to have shown loss of BAEP responses intraoperatively. Loss of responses has high specificity in evaluating hearing loss. Patients undergoing MVD should have BAEP monitoring to prevent hearing loss
Toward Improving Safety in Neurosurgery with an Active Handheld Instrument
Microsurgical procedures, such as petroclival meningioma resection, require careful surgical actions in order to remove tumor tissue, while avoiding brain and vessel damaging. Such procedures are currently performed under microscope magnification. Robotic tools are emerging in order to filter surgeons’ unintended movements and prevent tools from entering forbidden regions such as vascular structures. The present work investigates the use of a handheld robotic tool (Micron) to automate vessel avoidance in microsurgery. In particular, we focused on vessel segmentation, implementing a deep-learning-based segmentation strategy in microscopy images, and its integration with a feature-based passive 3D reconstruction algorithm to obtain accurate and robust vessel position. We then implemented a virtual-fixture-based strategy to control the handheld robotic tool and perform vessel avoidance. Clay vascular phantoms, lying on a background obtained from microscopy images recorded during petroclival meningioma surgery, were used for testing the segmentation and control algorithms. When testing the segmentation algorithm on 100 different phantom images, a median Dice similarity coefficient equal to 0.96 was achieved. A set of 25 Micron trials of 80 s in duration, each involving the interaction of Micron with a different vascular phantom, were recorded, with a safety distance equal to 2 mm, which was comparable to the median vessel diameter. Micron’s tip entered the forbidden region 24% of the time when the control algorithm was active. However, the median penetration depth was 16.9 μm, which was two orders of magnitude lower than median vessel diameter. Results suggest the system can assist surgeons in performing safe vessel avoidance during neurosurgical procedures
MRI Findings in Patients with a History of Failed Prior Microvascular Decompression for Hemifacial Spasm: How to Image and Where to Look
ABSTRACT BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: A minority of patients who undergo microvascular decompression for hemifacial spasm do not improve after the first operation. We sought to determine the most common locations of unaddressed neurovascular contact in patients with persistent or recurrent hemifacial spasm despite prior microvascular decompression
Measurement of ISR-FSR interference in the processes e+ e- --> mu+ mu- gamma and e+ e- --> pi+ pi- gamma
Charge asymmetry in processes e+ e- --> mu+ mu- gamma and e+ e- --> pi+ pi-
gamma is measured using 232 fb-1 of data collected with the BABAR detector at
center-of-mass energies near 10.58 GeV. An observable is introduced and shown
to be very robust against detector asymmetries while keeping a large
sensitivity to the physical charge asymmetry that results from the interference
between initial and final state radiation. The asymmetry is determined as
afunction of the invariant mass of the final-state tracks from production
threshold to a few GeV/c2. It is compared to the expectation from QED for e+ e-
--> mu+ mu- gamma and from theoretical models for e+ e- --> pi+ pi- gamma. A
clear interference pattern is observed in e+ e- --> pi+ pi- gamma, particularly
in the vicinity of the f_2(1270) resonance. The inferred rate of lowest order
FSR production is consistent with the QED expectation for e+ e- --> mu+ mu-
gamma, and is negligibly small for e+ e- --> pi+ pi- gamma.Comment: 32 pages,29 figures, to be submitted to Phys. Rev.
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Measurement of B(B-->X_s {\gamma}), the B-->X_s {\gamma} photon energy spectrum, and the direct CP asymmetry in B-->X_{s+d} {\gamma} decays
The photon spectrum in B --> X_s {\gamma} decay, where X_s is any strange
hadronic state, is studied using a data sample of (382.8\pm 4.2) \times 10^6
e^+ e^- --> \Upsilon(4S) --> BBbar events collected by the BABAR experiment at
the PEP-II collider. The spectrum is used to measure the branching fraction B(B
--> X_s \gamma) = (3.21 \pm 0.15 \pm 0.29 \pm 0.08)\times 10^{-4} and the
first, second, and third moments = 2.267 \pm 0.019 \pm 0.032 \pm
0.003 GeV,, )^2> = 0.0484 \pm 0.0053 \pm 0.0077 \pm
0.0005 GeV^2, and )^3> = -0.0048 \pm 0.0011 \pm 0.0011
\pm 0.0004 GeV^3, for the range E_\gamma > 1.8 GeV, where E_{\gamma} is the
photon energy in the B-meson rest frame. Results are also presented for
narrower E_{\gamma} ranges. In addition, the direct CP asymmetry A_{CP}(B -->
X_{s+d} \gamma) is measured to be 0.057 \pm 0.063. The spectrum itself is also
unfolded to the B-meson rest frame; that is the frame in which theoretical
predictions for its shape are made.Comment: 37 pages, 19 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. D. No
analysis or results have changed from previous version. Some changes to
improve clarity based on interactions with Phys. Rev. D referees, including
one new Figure (Fig. 13), and some minor wording/punctuation/spelling
mistakes fixe
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Measurement of the Time-Dependent CP Asymmetry of Partially Reconstructed B0->D*+D*- Decays
We present a new measurement of the time-dependent CP asymmetry of B0->D*+D*-
decays using (471+-5) million BBbar pairs collected with the BaBar detector at
the PEP-II B Factory at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. Using the
technique of partial reconstruction, we measure the time-dependent CP asymmetry
parameters S=-0.34+-0.12+-0.05$ and C=+0.15+-0.09+-0.04. Using the value for
the CP-odd fraction R_perp=0.158+-0.028+-0.006, previously measured by BaBar
with fully reconstructed B0->D*+D*- events, we extract the CP-even components
S+=-0.49+-0.18+-0.07+-0.04 and C+=+0.15+-0.09+-0.04. In each case, the first
uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic; the third uncertainty
on S+ is the contribution from the uncertainty on R_perp. The measured value of
the CP-even component S+ is consistent with the value of sin(2Beta) measured in
b->(ccbar)s transitions, and with the Standard Model expectation of small
penguin contributions.Comment: 17 pages, 7 figures, submitted to Physical Review
Branching fraction and form-factor shape measurements of exclusive charmless semileptonic B decays, and determination of |V_{ub}|
We report the results of a study of the exclusive charmless semileptonic
decays, B^0 --> pi^- l^+ nu, B^+ --> pi^0 l^+ nu, B^+ --> omega l^+ nu, B^+ -->
eta l^+ nu and B^+ --> eta^' l^+ nu, (l = e or mu) undertaken with
approximately 462x10^6 B\bar{B} pairs collected at the Upsilon(4S) resonance
with the BABAR detector. The analysis uses events in which the signal B decays
are reconstructed with a loose neutrino reconstruction technique. We obtain
partial branching fractions in several bins of q^2, the square of the momentum
transferred to the lepton-neutrino pair, for B^0 --> pi^- l^+ nu, B^+ --> pi^0
l^+ nu, B^+ --> omega l^+ nu and B^+ --> eta l^+ nu. From these distributions,
we extract the form-factor shapes f_+(q^2) and the total branching fractions
BF(B^0 --> pi^- l^+ nu) = (1.45 +/- 0.04_{stat} +/- 0.06_{syst})x10^-4
(combined pi^- and pi^0 decay channels assuming isospin symmetry), BF(B^+ -->
omega l^+ nu) = (1.19 +/- 0.16_{stat} +/- 0.09_{syst})x10^-4 and BF(B^+ --> eta
l^+ nu) = (0.38 +/- 0.05_{stat} +/- 0.05_{syst})x10^-4. We also measure BF(B^+
--> eta^' l^+ nu) = (0.24 +/- 0.08_{stat} +/- 0.03_{syst})x10^-4. We obtain
values for the magnitude of the CKM matrix element V_{ub} by direct comparison
with three different QCD calculations in restricted q^2 ranges of B --> pi l^+
nu decays. From a simultaneous fit to the experimental data over the full q^2
range and the FNAL/MILC lattice QCD predictions, we obtain |V_{ub}| = (3.25 +/-
0.31)x10^-3, where the error is the combined experimental and theoretical
uncertainty.Comment: 35 pages, 14 figures, submitted to PR
Observation of time-reversal violation in the B0 meson system
The individually named authors work collectively as The BABAR Collaboration. Copyright @ 2012 American Physical Society.Although CP violation in the B meson system has been well established by the B factories, there has been no direct observation of time-reversal violation. The decays of entangled neutral B mesons into definite flavor states (B0 or B¯¯¯0), and J/ψK0L or cc¯K0S final states (referred to as B+ or B−), allow comparisons between the probabilities of four pairs of T-conjugated transitions, for example, B¯¯¯0→B− and B−→B¯¯¯0, as a function of the time difference between the two B decays. Using 468×106 BB¯¯¯ pairs produced in Υ(4S) decays collected by the BABAR detector at SLAC, we measure T-violating parameters in the time evolution of neutral B mesons, yielding ΔS+T=−1.37±0.14(stat)±0.06(syst) and ΔS−T=1.17±0.18(stat)±0.11(syst). These nonzero results represent the first direct observation of T violation through the exchange of initial and final states in transitions that can only be connected by a T-symmetry transformation.DOE and NSF (USA), NSERC (Canada), CEA and CNRS-IN2P3 (France), BMBF and
DFG(Germany), INFN (Italy), FOM (The Netherlands),
NFR (Norway), MES (Russia), MINECO (Spain), STFC
(United Kingdom). Individuals have received support from
the Marie Curie EIF (European Union), the A. P. Sloan
Foundation (USA) and the Binational Science Foundation
(USA-Israel)
Search for lepton-number violating processes in B+ -> h- l+ l+ decays
We have searched for the lepton-number violating processes B+ -> h- l+ l+
with h- = K-/pi- and l+ = e+/mu+, using a sample of 471+/-3 million BBbar
events collected with the BaBar detector at the PEP-II e+e- collider at the
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. We find no evidence for these decays and
place 90% confidence level upper limits on their branching fractions Br(B+ ->
pi- e+ e+) K- e+ e+) pi-
mu+ mu+) K- mu+ mu+) < 6.7 x 10^{-8}.Comment: 8 pages, 4 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. D. R
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