An extrusion method of tube with spiral inner fins by utilizing generation of spiral outer fins/grooves

This paper presents a new extrusion method for fabrication of a tube with spiral inner fins. The spiral fins are formed by utilizing the generation of spiral outer fins or grooves, which drive the metal to circumferentially move with twist deformation. The effect of the outer fins/grooves is examined for realizing the circumferential metal flow. The position of the mandrel has an ability to flexibly control the spiral angle. This method would drastically enhance the productivity and reduce the manufacturing cost, as the tube would be manufactured directly from a billet through only one process

Cases of primary malignant melanoma and melanocytosis of the esophagus observed by magnifying endoscopy : Application to differential diagnosis : case series

Rationale: Primary malignant melanoma of the esophagus (PMME) is a rare disease with an extremely poor prognosis. In contrast, melanocytosis is a benign condition defined as melanocytic proliferation with melanin deposition. PMME is often accompanied by melanocytosis, but differentiating between them is difficult because of their similar appearance. Patient concerns: Here, we reported 3 PMME cases, 2 with melanocytosis. Diagnoses: Magnifying endoscopy revealed characteristic non-uniform pigmented spots along deformed intrapapillary capillary loops (IPCLs) in PMME, while melanocytosis showed fine granule-like or linearly arranged spots and intact IPCLs. Interventions: The patients underwent endoscopic or surgical resection of each lesion. Outcomes: Histologically, magnified images reflected melanocyte growth. For cases 1 and 2, the patients remained disease-free for 61 and 15 months after endoscopic resection, respectively. In case 3, liver metastases developed two months after surgery, and the patient died from liver failure after six months. Lessons: This is the first report describing differences in magnified views of the 2 diseases, which aids a differential diagnosis

Visualizing Shooting Spots using Geo-tagged Photographs from Social Media Sites

Hotspots, at which many photographs have been taken, might be interesting places for many people to do sightseeing. Visualization of hotspots reveals user interests, which is important for industries such as tourism and marketing research. Although several social-based techniques for extracting hotspots independently have been proposed, a hotspot has a relation to other hotspots in some cases. To organize those hotspots, we propose a method to detect and visualize relations among hotspots. Our proposed method detects and assesses relations of shooting spots and photographic subjects. Our approach extracts the relations using sub-hotspots, which are split from a hotspot that includes photographs of different types. We demonstrate our approach by discovering relations using photographic metadata such as tags, photograph orientation, and photograph locations from Flickr.Meilleur Article Applicatif d\u27EGC\u27201

Two-stage sinus floor augmentation using carbonate apatite

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to elucidate the efficacy and safety of carbonate apatite (CO3Ap) granules in 2-stage sinus floor augmentation through the radiographic and histomorphometric assessment of bone biopsy specimens. Methods: Two-stage sinus floor augmentation was performed on 13 patients with a total of 17 implants. Radiographic assessment using panoramic radiographs was performed immediately after augmentation and was also performed 2 additional times, at 7±2 months and 18±2 months post-augmentation, respectively. Bone biopsy specimens taken from planned implant placement sites underwent micro-computed tomography, after which histological sections were prepared. Results: Postoperative healing of the sinus floor augmentation was uneventful in all cases. The mean preoperative residual bone height was 3.5±1.3 mm, and this was increased to 13.3±1.7 mm by augmentation with the CO3Ap granules. The mean height of the augmented site had decreased to 10.7±1.9 mm by 7±2 months after augmentation; however, implants with lengths in the range of 6.5 to 11.5 mm could still be placed. The mean height of the augmented site had decreased to 9.6±1.4 mm by 18±2 months post-augmentation. No implant failure or complications were observed. Few inflammatory cells or foreign body giant cells were observed in the bone biopsy specimens. Although there were individual differences in the amount of new bone detected, new bone was observed to be in direct contact with the CO3Ap granules in all cases, without an intermediate layer of fibrous tissue. The amounts of bone and residual CO3Ap were 33.8%±15.1% and 15.3%±11.9%, respectively. Conclusions: In this first demonstration, low-crystalline CO3Ap granules showed excellent biocompatibility, and bone biopsy showed them to be replaced with bone in humans. CO3Ap granules are a useful and safe bone substitute for two-stage sinus floor augmentation

Percolation induced gel-gel phase separation in a dilute polymer network

Cosmic large-scale structures, animal flocks, and living tissues are non-equilibrium organized systems created by dissipative processes. Despite the uniqueness, the realization of dissipative structures is still difficult. Herein, we report that a network formation process in a dilute system is a dissipative process, leading to percolation induced gel-gel phase separation (GGPS) in a prominent miscible polymer-water system. The dilute system, which forms a monophase structure at the percolation threshold, eventually separates into two gel phases in a longer time scale as the network formation progresses. The dilute hydrogel with GGPS exhibits an unexpected mesoscale co-continuous structure and induces adipose growth in subcutaneous. The formation mechanism of GGPS and a cosmic large-scale structure is analogous, in terms of attractive interactions in a diluted system driving phase separation. This unique phenomenon unveils the possibility of dissipative structures enabling advanced functionalities and will stimulate research fields related to dissipative structures.Comment: 23+5 pages, 4+4 figure

Lymphocyte to C-reactive protein ratio predicts long-term outcomes for patients with lower rectal cancer

Backgrounds: The lymphocyte to C-reactive protein (CRP) ratio (LCR) is an indicator of systemic inflammation and host–tumor cell interactions. The aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic significance of LCR in lower rectal cancer patients who received preoperative chemo-radiotherapy (CRT). Methods: Forty-eight patients with lower rectal cancer who underwent CRT followed by curative surgery were enrolled in this study. Routine blood examinations were performed before and after CRT were used to calculate pre-CRT LCR and post-CRT LCR. The median LCR was used to stratify patients into low and high LCR groups for analysis. The correlation between pre- and post-CRT LCR and clinical outcomes was retrospectively investigated. Results: The pre-CRT LCR was significantly higher than the post-CRT LCR (11,765 and 6780, respectively, P < 0.05). The 5-year overall survival rate was significantly higher for patients with high post-CRT LCR compared with low post-CRT LCR (90.6% and 65.5%, respectively, P < 0.05). In univariate analysis, post-CRT LCR, post-CRT neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, and fStage were significant prognostic factors for overall survival. In multivariate analysis, post-CRT LCR, but not other clinicopathological factors or prognostic indexes, was a significant prognostic factor for overall survival (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Post-CRT LCR could be a prognostic biomarker for patients with lower rectal cancer

Clinical characteristics and visual outcomes of work-related open globe injuries in Japanese patients

Purpose: To investigate the clinical characteristics and visual outcomes of patients with work-related open globe injuries (OGIs) and compare them with patients with non-work-related OGIs. Design: Retrospective, observational, multicentre, case-control study. Methods: A total of 374 patients with work-related OGIs and 170 patients with non-work-related OGIs who presented to hospitals that belong to the Japan-Clinical Research of Study group from 2005 to 2015 were included in this study. Clinical data including age, sex, initial and final visual acuity, type of open globe injury, lens status, zone of injury, wound length, and presence of proliferative vitreoretinopathy, retinal detachment, expulsive haemorrhage, and endophthalmitis were recorded. Main Outcome Measures: Visual acuity. Results Work-related OGIs were associated with younger age, male sex, better initial and final visual acuity, more laceration, smaller wounds, presence of retinal detachment, and expulsive haemorrhage, compared with non-work-related OGIs. Multiple regression analysis revealed that final visual acuity is significantly associated with initial visual acuity, wound length, and the presence of proliferative vitreoretinopathy in work-related OGIs. Conclusions: Work-related OGIs showed better visual outcomes than other OGIs. Initial visual acuity, wound length, and the presence of proliferative vitreoretinopathy are predictors of visual outcomes in patients with work-related OGIs