Repeated Enterocutaneous Fistula in a Munchausen Syndrome Patient

Munchausen syndrome is a rare type of mental disorder in which the patient fakes illness to gain attention and sympathy. Patients may lie about symptoms, make themselves appear sick, or make themselves purposely unwell. We describe a case of repeated enterocutaneous fistula in Munchausen syndrome. A 53-year-old Japanese male was admitted to our hospital for the treatment of a high-flow enterocutaneous fistula. Surgery was performed two times, but the fistula recurred each time. Chopsticks with blood on them were coincidentally detected in the trash in the patient’s room. It was revealed that the enterocutaneous fistula was caused by self-mutilation. A psychiatrist was consulted, and the patient was diagnosed with Munchausen syndrome. The psychiatrist initiated treatment and the patient admitted the self-harm. His prolonged wound site was closed and he was able to be discharged. There has been no recurrence of the self-harm as of this writing, 3 years later. The treatment of Munchausen syndrome is difficult and early detection is important

Spectroscopic Investigation of Unoccupied States in Nano- and Macroscopic Scale: Naphthalene Overlayers on Highly Oriented Pyrolytic Graphite Studied by Combination of Scanning Tunneling Microscopy and Two-Photon Photoemission

We have clarified the correlation between geometric and electronic structures of naphthalene ultrathin films on graphite using a combination of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and two-photon photoemission (2PPE) spectroscopy. Depending on the geometrical superstructure, as characterized by STM, shifts in the first image potential states are observed by STM-based local spectroscopy on the nanometer scale, which is consistent with coverage-dependent 2PPE spectra measured on the macroscale. An adsorption-induced unoccupied feature, which is specific to the (2√3×2√3) R30° superstructure, is detected at submonolayer coverages and is assigned to the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) derived level. It is interesting that the LUMO feature disappears for multilayer films. These behaviors indicate that a drastic change in electronic states occurs at the organic/metal interface associated with the change in the geometric structure

Dispersive Electronic States of the π‑Orbitals Stacking in Single Molecular Lines on the Si(001)-(2×1)‑H Surface

One-dimensional (1D) molecular assemblies have been considered as one of the potential candidates for miniaturized electronic circuits in organic electronics. Here, we present the quantitative experimental measurements of the dispersive electronic feature of 1D benzophenone molecular assemblies on the Si(001)-(2×1)-H. The well-aligned molecular lines and their certain electronic state dispersion were observed by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and angle-resolved ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy (ARUPS), respectively. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reproduced not only the experimental STM image but also the dispersive features that originated from the stacking phenyl π-orbitals in the molecular assembly. We obtained the effective mass of 2.0<i>m</i>_e for the hole carrier along the dispersive electronic state, which was comparable to those of the single-crystal molecules widely used in organic electronic applications. These results ensure the one-dimensionally delocalized electronic states in the molecular lines, which is requisitely demanded for a charge-transport wire