Macro/micro observational studies of fibres maintaining the biceps brachii tendon in the bicipital groove: application to surgery, pathology and kinesiology

Background: There is controversy over the nature of tissues covering the bicipital groove protecting the biceps brachii tendon from dislocation/subluxation causing shoulder pain. Recent researches on cadaveric dissection and histological studies have changed the old concept of the transverse humeral ligament covering the bicipital groove to tendinous fibres of the subscapularis or interdigitating fibres of the subscapularis and supraspinatus. The change has not been incorporated into standard text books of anatomy. Therefore, the aim of the study is to support the new or old concept. Materials and methods: Eighteen embalmed shoulders were dissected to determine the nature of the tissues over the bicipital groove. Tissues from 4 shoulders were processed and 16 histological slides were examined for fibre types. Theoretical analysis of ligament and tendon has also been carried out. Results: The dissection study revealed that the tissues over the bicipital groove were tendinous fibres of subscapularis/interdigitating fibres of the subscapularis and supraspinatus and fibrous expansions from the posterior lamina of the pectoralis major. This was supported by the histological slides which showed the signatures of collagen fibres with the characteristics of tendinous fibres. Conclusions: No separate anatomical entity such as the transverse humeral ligament was detected in this study. Thus present study supports the view that the tissues covering the bicipital groove were formed by tendinous rather than ligamentous fibres

Ectopic arachnoid granulation involving a rare intracranial venous sinus variant

Arachnoid granulations are hypertrophied arachnoid villi, which extend from the subarachnoid space into the venous system and aid in the passive filtration and reabsorption of cerebrospinal fluid. These macroscopic structures have been described in various locations, with the transverse and sigmoid sinuses seen as normal variants on imaging. Here we present the occurrence of an enlarged arachnoid granulation at the foramen rotundum where a variant intracranial venous sinus was identified during routine dissection. Variations, such as the one described herein, should be recognised by those who operate or interpret images of the skull base

Fat herniation through the canal of Schwalbe

The authors report a case of fat herniation through the canal of Schwalbe noted in a female cadaver during abdominopelvic dissection. Perineal hernias are rare hernias, and herniations through the hiatus of Schwalbe represent a rare posterior lateral perineal hernia. While these hernias are extremely rare, anatomists and surgeons should be aware of them, and the clinical significance and manifestations which may occur with these hernias

A previously undescribed variant of the confluence of sinuses

An 8-year-old female with a history of chronic headaches and uncertain papilloedema was found to have a variant of the posterior intracranial dural venous sinuses on magnetic resonance imaging assessment of the brain. Magnetic resonance venography included in the imaging revealed a circular formation of the confluence of sinuses and absent right-sided transverse sinus. The confluence of sinuses is a highly variable structure; however, to the authors’ knowledge, a circular confluence of sinuses variant has not been reported in the literature

Mu and Tau Neutrino Thermalization and Production in Supernovae: Processes and Timescales

We investigate the rates of production and thermalization of $\nu_\mu$ and $\nu_\tau$ neutrinos at temperatures and densities relevant to core-collapse supernovae and protoneutron stars. Included are contributions from electron scattering, electron-positron annihilation, nucleon-nucleon bremsstrahlung, and nucleon scattering. For the scattering processes, in order to incorporate the full scattering kinematics at arbitrary degeneracy, the structure function formalism developed by Reddy et al. (1998) and Burrows and Sawyer (1998) is employed. Furthermore, we derive formulae for the total and differential rates of nucleon-nucleon bremsstrahlung for arbitrary nucleon degeneracy in asymmetric matter. We find that electron scattering dominates nucleon scattering as a thermalization process at low neutrino energies ($\epsilon_\nu\lesssim 10$ MeV), but that nucleon scattering is always faster than or comparable to electron scattering above $\epsilon_\nu\simeq10$ MeV. In addition, for $\rho\gtrsim 10^{13}$ g cm$^{-3}$, $T\lesssim14$ MeV, and neutrino energies $\lesssim60$ MeV, nucleon-nucleon bremsstrahlung always dominates electron-positron annihilation as a production mechanism for $\nu_\mu$ and $\nu_\tau$ neutrinos.Comment: 29 pages, LaTeX (RevTeX), 13 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. C. Also to be found at anonymous ftp site http://www.astrophysics.arizona.edu; cd to pub/thompso

ESPRI data-reduction strategy and error budget for PRIMA

The Exoplanet Search with PRIma (ESPRI) will use the PRIMA dual-feed astrometric capability on the Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) to perform astrometric detections of extra-solar planets. We present an overview of our data-reduction strategy for achieving 10-μarcsecond accuracy narrow-angle astrometry using the PRIMA instrument. We discuss the error budget for astrometric measurements, and those aspects of our strategy which are designed to minimise the astrometric measurement error

Sex determination from partial segments and maximum femur lengths in Koreans using computed tomography

Background: The aim of this study was to establish standards for determining sex from fragmentary and complete femurs in a Korean population.Materials and methods: The statistical analysis of 12 variables (6 about breadth and 6 about length) based on 100 Korean femurs (from 50 males and 50 females) showed that all variables have significant sex differences.Results: The most accurate discriminant variable was the condylar breadth parallel with epicondylar breadth (87.6% accuracy). In contrast, the transverse shaft diameter was not a discriminant variable for sex determination (67.0% accuracy). Breadth-related variables were generally more accurate than length-related variables. Three variables (vertical diameter of the neck [VDN], medial epicondylarlength [MCL], and condylar breadth [CB]) were selected from stepwise analysis fordiscriminating sex (93.5% accuracy). The discriminating equation was as follows: 0.171 × VDN + 0.172 × MCL + 0.128 × CB2 – 21.471.Conclusions: The results of this study are helpful for determining sex, even if a femur is found in a fragmented condition in the field

Nucleon Spin Fluctuations and the Supernova Emission of Neutrinos and Axions

In the hot and dense medium of a supernova (SN) core, the nucleon spins fluctuate so fast that the axial-vector neutrino opacity and the axion emissivity are expected to be significantly modified. Axions with m_a\alt10^{-2}\,{\rm eV} are not excluded by SN~1987A. A substantial transfer of energy in neutrino-nucleon ($\nu N$) collisions is enabled which may alter the spectra of SN neutrinos relative to calculations where energy-conserving $\nu N$ collisions had been assumed near the neutrinosphere.Comment: 8 pages. REVTeX. 2 postscript figures, can be included with epsf. Small modifications of the text, a new "Note Added", and three new references. To be published in Phys. Rev. Let

The astrometric data reduction software (ADRS) and error budget for PRIMA

The Astrometric Data-Reduction Software (ADRS) processes fringe, delay, environmental, and calibration data for PRIMA narrow-angle astrometry. It is automated software designed to provide fully-calibrated differential delays and separation angles. The ADRS is divided into on-line and off-line processing. The former deals with calibration and data compression, while the latter applies corrections and calculates science quantities. PRIMA is the first VLTI instrument that may require removal of long-term environmental trends. The trend identification and fitting routines are not part of the distributed on-line and off-line processing software. Instead, files containing fit parameters will be updated regularly. Coding is presently underway. The PRIMA error budget summarizes the principal sources of error in PRIMA astrometric observation