Dorsal inlay buccal mucosal graft (Asopa) urethroplasty for anterior urethral stricture

Asopa described the inlay of a graft into Snodgrass\u27s longitudinal urethral plate incision using a ventral sagittal urethrotomy approach in 2001. He claimed that this technique was easier to perform and led to less tissue ischemia due to no need for mobilization of the urethra. This approach has subsequently been popularized among reconstructive urologists as the dorsal inlay urethroplasty or Asopa technique. Depending on the location of the stricture, either a subcoronal circumferential incision is made for penile strictures, or a midline perineal incision is made for bulbar strictures. Other approaches for penile urethral strictures include the non-circumferential penile incisional approach and a penoscrotal approach. We generally prefer the circumferential degloving approach for penile urethral strictures. The penis is de-gloved and the urethra is split ventrally to exposure the stricture. It is then deepened to include the full thickness of the dorsal urethra. The dorsal surface is made raw and grafts are fixed on the urethral surface. Quilting sutures are placed to further anchor the graft. A Foley catheter is placed and the urethra is retubularized in two layers with special attention to the staggering of suture lines. The skin incision is then closed in layers. We have found that it is best to perform an Asopa urethroplasty when the urethral plate is ≥1 cm in width. The key to when to use the dorsal inlay technique all depends on the width of the urethral plate once the urethrotomy is performed, stricture etiology, and stricture location (penile vs. bulb)

Validating Deployment Dynamics of the Canisterized Satellite Dispenser (CSD)

Planetary Systems Corporation (PSC) designed the CSD to be a more secure, predictable, and consistent CubeSat deployment system. Though the CSD has proven its safety and reliability on orbit and in other air-and ground-based tests, there was still not enough data needed to develop analytical profiles describing CSD deployment angular and linear velocities and accelerations. The goal of this research effort is to first tune a dynamics model using experimental data collected from three sources: (1) PSC’s microgravity deployment tests onboard a C-9 aircraft in 2014; (2) AFIT led lab bench experiments in 2016; and (3) AFRL-AFIT led tests at NASA Glenn Research Center’s (GRC’s) microgravity drop tower in 2017. The second part of this presented research is to evaluate the model prediction performance against various configurations followed by an evaluation of which experimental data sources yields the best tuned dynamics model

Reduced Electronic Spaces for Modeling Donor/Acceptor Interactions

Diabatic states for donor (D) and acceptor (A) interactions in electron transfer (ET) processes are formulated and evaluated, along with coupling elements (HDA) and effective D/A separation distances (rDA), for reduced electronic spaces of variable size, using the generalized Mulliken Hush model (GMH), applicable to an arbitrary state space and nuclear configuration, and encompassing Robin−Day class III and as well as class II situations. Once the electronic state space is selected (a set of n ≥ 2 adiabatic states approximated by an orbital space based on an effective 1-electron (1-e) Hamiltonian), the charge-localized GMH diabatic states are obtained as the eigenstates of the dipole moment operator, with rotations to yield locally adiabatic states for sites with multiple states. The 1-e states and energies are expressed in terms of Kohn−Sham orbitals and orbital energies. Addressing questions as to whether the estimate of HDA “improves” as one increases n, and in what sense the GMH approach “converges” with n, we carry out calculations for three mixed-valence binuclear Ru complexes, from which we conclude that the 2-state (2-st) model gives the most appropriate estimate of the effective coupling, similar (to within a rms deviation of ≤15%) to coupling elements obtained by superexchange correction of HDA values based on larger spaces (n = 3−6), and thus yielding a quasi-invariant value for HDA over the range explored in the calculations (n = 2−6). An analysis of the coupling and associated D and A states shows that the 2-st coupling involves crucial mixing with intervening bridge states (D and A “tails”), while increasingly larger state spaces for the same system yield increasingly more localized D and A states (and weaker coupling), with HDA tending to approach the limit of “bare” or “through space” coupling. These results help to reconcile seemingly contradictory assertions in the recent literature regarding the proper role of multistate frameworks in the formulation of coupling for both intra- and intermolecular ET systems.The present results are compared in detail with other reported results

Association between concussion and mental health in former collegiate athletes

BACKGROUND: The existing research on the association between concussion and mental health outcomes is largely limited to former professional athletes. This cross-sectional study estimated the association between recurrent concussion and depression, impulsivity, and aggression in former collegiate athletes. METHODS: Former collegiate athletes who played between 1987-2012 at a Division I university completed an online questionnaire. The main exposure, total number of self-recalled concussions (sport-related and non-sport-related), were categorized as: zero (referent), one, two, or three or more concussions. The main outcomes were the depression module of The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the Short Form of the Barratt Impulsiveness scale (BIS15); and the 12-item Short Form of the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ-SF). Depression was categorized into a binomial severity classification that differentiated between no or mild depression (PHQ-9 scores <10) and moderate to severe depression (PHQ-9 scores ≥10). Impulsivity and aggression were kept as continuous outcomes. Binomial regression estimated adjusted prevalence ratios (PR). Linear regression estimated adjusted mean differences (MD). RESULTS: Of the 797 respondents with complete data (21.9% completion rate), 38.8% reported at least one concussion. Controlling for alcohol dependence and family history of depression, the prevalence of moderate to severe depression among former collegiate athletes reporting three or more concussions in total was 2.4 times that of those reporting zero concussions [95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.0, 5.7]. Controlling for alcohol dependence, family history of anxiety, relationship status, obtaining a post-graduate degree, and playing primary college sport professionally, former collegiate athletes reporting two or more concussions in total had higher mean scores for impulsivity, compared to those reporting no concussions (2 concussions MD = 2.7; 95% CI: 1.2, 4.1; 3+ concussions MD = 1.9; 95% CI: 0.6, 3.2). Controlling for alcohol dependence, sex, and relationship status, former collegiate athletes reporting three or more concussions in total had a higher mean score for aggression, compared to those reporting no concussions (MD = 3.0; 95% CI: 1.4, 4.7). CONCLUSIONS: Our study found an association between former concussion and greater risk of severe depression and higher levels of impulsivity and aggression among former collegiate athletes. Additional prospective studies better addressing causality and ascertaining valid lifetime concussion histories and medical histories are needed

Effects of a Tailored Follow-Up Intervention on Health Behaviors, Beliefs, and Attitudes

Background: The high rates of relapse that tend to occur after short-term behavioral interventions indicate the need for maintenance programs that promote long-term adherence to new behavior patterns. Computer-tailored health messages that are mailed to participants or given in brief telephone calls offer an innovative and time-efficient alternative to ongoing face-to-face contact with healthcare providers. Methods: Following a 1-year behavior change program, 22 North Carolina health departments were randomly assigned to a follow-up intervention or control condition. Data were collected from 1999 to 2001 by telephone-administered surveys at preintervention and postintervention for 511 low-income, midlife adult women enrolled in the Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation (WISEWOMAN) program at local North Carolina health departments. During the year after the behavior change program, intervention participants were mailed six sets of computer-tailored health messages and received two computer-tailored telephone counseling sessions. Main outcomes of dietary and physical activity behaviors, beliefs, and attitudes were measured. Results: Intervention participants were more likely to move forward into more advanced stages of physical activity change (p = 0.02); control participants were more likely to increase their level of dietary social support at follow-up (p = 0.05). Both groups maintained low levels of reported saturated fat and cholesterol intake at follow-up. No changes were seen in physical activity in either group. Conclusions: Mailed computer-tailored health messages and telephone counseling calls favorably modified forward physical activity stage movement but did not appreciably affect any other psychosocial or behavioral outcomes

Head Impact Magnitude in American High School Football

OBJECTIVES: To describe determinants of head impact magnitudes between various play aspects in high school football. METHODS: Thirty-two high school American football players wore Head Impact Telemetry System instrumented helmets to capture head impact magnitude (linear acceleration, rotational acceleration, and Head Impact Technology severity profile [HITsp]). We captured and analyzed video from 13 games (n = 3888 viewable head impacts) to determine the following play aspects: quarter, impact cause, play type, closing distance, double head impact, player's stance, player's action, direction of gaze, athletic readiness, level of anticipation, player stationary, ball possession, receiving ball, and snapping ball. We conducted random intercepts general linear mixed models to assess the differences in head impact magnitude between play aspects (α = 0.05). RESULTS: The following aspects resulted in greater head impact magnitude: impacts during the second quarter (HITsp: P = .03); contact with another player (linear, rotational, HITsp: P < .001); initial head impact when the head is struck twice (linear, rotational, HITsp: P < .001); longer closing distances, especially when combined with a 3-point stance or when being struck in the head (linear: P = .03); the 2-point stance (linear, rotational, HITsp: P < .001); and offensive linemen not snapping the ball compared with those snapping the ball (rotational: P = .02, HITsp: P = .02). CONCLUSIONS: Preventing head impacts caused by contact with another player may reduce head impact magnitude in high school football. Rule or coaching changes that reduce collisions after long closing distances, especially when combined with the 3-point stance or when a player is being struck in the head, should be considered

Atmospheric phase correction using CARMA-PACS: high angular resolution observations of the FU Orionis star PP 13S*

We present 0".15 resolution observations of the 227 GHz continuum emission from the circumstellar disk around the FU Orionis star PP 13S*. The data were obtained with the Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy (CARMA) Paired Antenna Calibration System (C-PACS), which measures and corrects the atmospheric delay fluctuations on the longest baselines of the array in order to improve the sensitivity and angular resolution of the observations. A description of the C-PACS technique and the data reduction procedures are presented. C-PACS was applied to CARMA observations of PP 13S*, which led to a factor of 1.6 increase in the observed peak flux of the source, a 36% reduction in the noise of the image, and a 52% decrease in the measured size of the source major axis. The calibrated complex visibilities were fitted with a theoretical disk model to constrain the disk surface density. The total disk mass from the best-fit model corresponds to 0.06 M_⊙, which is larger than the median mass of a disk around a classical T Tauri star. The disk is optically thick at a wavelength of 1.3 mm for orbital radii less than 48 AU. At larger radii, the inferred surface density of the PP 13S* disk is an order of magnitude lower than that needed to develop a gravitational instability