A New Route to Fluorescent SWNT/Silica Nanocomposites: Balancing Fluorescence Intensity and Environmental Sensitivity

We investigate the relationship between photoluminescence (PL) intensity and environmental sensitivity of surfactant-wrapped single walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). SWNTs were studied under a variety of conditions in suspension as well as encapsulated in silica nanocomposites, which were prepared by an efficient chemical vapor into liquids (CViL) sol-gel process. The dramatically improved silica encapsulation process described here has several advantages, including fast preparation and high SWNT loading concentration, over other encapsulation methods used to prepare fluorescent SWNT/silica nanocomposites. Further, addition of glycerol to SWNT suspensions prior to performing the CViL sol-gel process allows for the preparation of freestanding fluorescent silica xerogels, which to the best of our knowledge is the first report of such nanocomposites. Our spectroscopic data on SWNTs suspended in aqueous surfactants or encapsulated in silica show that achieving maximum PL intensity results in decreased sensitivity of SWNT emission response to changes imparted by the local environment. In addition, silica encapsulation can be used to "lock-in" a surfactant micelle structure surrounding SWNTs to minimize interactions between SWNTs and ions/small molecules. Ultimately, our work demonstrates that one should consider a balance between maximum PL intensity and the ability to sense environmental changes when designing new SWNT systems for future sensing applications

Dermatology on Pinterest

Background: Pinterest is a social media internet service utilized by individuals, organizations, and businesses to collect and share ideas related to projects or interests.Objective: The literature related to dermatology-related content on Pinterest is scarce. This study aims to investigate the presence of dermatology related content available on Pinterest.Methods: Investigators searched five terms related to dermatology in the "pins" and "boards" search categories of pinterest. The first 20 results were evaluated for content and assigned to a content group of "advocacy," "informative," or "home remedies." Boards were also categorized as being posted by an MD or professional society versus others. The top ten dermatology journals were also searched for under the boards category.Results: Informative pins were the most common (49%) followed by advocacy (37%) and home remedies (14%). Informative boards were the most common (53%) followed by home remedies (31%) and advocacy (16%).We identified that only 24% of boards were created by either M.D.s or advocacy organizations. The top ten dermatology journals identified by prior studies had little presence, with only one board posted by JAMA Dermatology.Conclusions: Our study contributes to a growing body of data that dermatology organizations are relatively absent from new social media sites, and Pinterest represents a potential outlet for targeted intervention in high-risk groups for skin disease

Comparing burden of dermatologic disease to search interest on google trends

Google Trends is a publicly available resource for comparing Internet search query frequency and trends interest in queries over time. The tool provides country, region, and city-specific data for term search volume on Google Search. Our study sought to compare the relative search interest to the burden of disease for the fifteen skin conditions studied by the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2010 project. Searches on Google Trends were conducted by using the most inclusive terms and true ICD code definitions as possible for the skin conditions studied. We report that relative interest on Google Trends did largely correlate to burden of disease reported by the GBD 2010 study, though some conditions were either underrepresented or overrepresented. Acne and herpes were the most Googled skin disease terms. This study provides further insight into what may be the most burdensome skin diseases because those with more burdensome diseases likely sought out information on their condition

Managing Influenza in Primary Care. A praticl Guide to clinical Diagnosis

Influenza remains a significant cause of worldwide morbidity and mortality. With the availability of new effective antivirals for the treatment of influenza, early diagnosis of the disease will become increasingly important for effective disease management. Although investigators are generally in broad agreement about the symptoms of influenza, there are currently no agreed guidelines for the clinical diagnosis of influenza during annual outbreaks. This paper outlines the recommendations of a Working Party (comprising virologists and family practitioners) who met to construct criteria that could be used by primary healthcare professionals to aid early clinical diagnosis of influenza, i.e. before the development of any complications. A virologically confirmable diagnosis of influenza is likely when an otherwise healthy adult presents, during a known local influenza outbreak, with rapid onset of the symptom complex of fever, feverishness or chills plus myalgia, cough or malaise. Guidelines for the diagnosis of influenza in children, in patients with chronic diseases and in the elderly require further refinement