75 research outputs found
Pullout characteristics of percutaneous pedicle screws with different cement augmentation methods in elderly spines: An in vitro biomechanical study
AbstractBackgroundVertebroplasty prefilling or fenestrated pedicle screw augmentation can be used to enhance pullout resistance in elderly patients. It is not clear which method offers the most reliable fixation strength if axial pullout and a bending moment is applied. The purpose of this study is to validate a new in vitro model aimed to reproduce a cut out mechanism of lumbar pedicle screws, to compare fixation strength in elderly spines with different cement augmentation techniques and to analyze factors that might influence the failure pattern.Materials and methodsSix human specimens (82–100 years) were instrumented percutaneously at L2, L3 and L4 by non-augmented screws, vertebroplasty augmentation and fenestrated screws. Cement distribution (2ml PMMA) was analyzed on CT. Vertebral endplates and the rod were oriented at 45° to the horizontal plane. The vertebral body was held by resin in a cylinder, linked to an unconstrained pivot, on which traction (10N/s) was applied until rupture. Load-displacement curves were compared to simultaneous video recordings.ResultsMedian pullout forces were 488.5N (195–500) for non-augmented screws, 643.5N (270–1050) for vertebroplasty augmentation and 943.5N (750–1084) for fenestrated screws. Cement augmentation through fenestrated screws led to significantly higher rupture forces compared to non-augmented screws (P=0.0039). The pullout force after vertebroplasty was variable and linked to cement distribution. A cement bolus around the distal screw tip led to pullout forces similar to non-augmented screws. A proximal cement bolus, as it was observed in fenestrated screws, led to higher pullout resistance. This cement distribution led to vertebral body fractures prior to screw pullout.ConclusionThe experimental setup tended to reproduce a pullout mechanism observed on radiographs, combining axial pullout and a bending moment. Cement augmentation with fenestrated screws increased pullout resistance significantly, whereas the fixation strength with the vertebroplasty prefilling method was linked to the cement distribution
A search for the decay
We search for the rare flavor-changing neutral-current decay in a data sample of 82 fb collected with the {\sl BABAR}
detector at the PEP-II B-factory. Signal events are selected by examining the
properties of the system recoiling against either a reconstructed hadronic or
semileptonic charged-B decay. Using these two independent samples we obtain a
combined limit of
at the 90% confidence level. In addition, by selecting for pions rather than
kaons, we obtain a limit of using only the hadronic B reconstruction method.Comment: 7 pages, 8 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
High-reflectivity broadband distributed Bragg reflector lattice matched to ZnTe
We report on the realization of a high quality distributed Bragg reflector
with both high and low refractive index layers lattice matched to ZnTe. Our
structure is grown by molecular beam epitaxy and is based on binary compounds
only. The high refractive index layer is made of ZnTe, while the low index
material is made of a short period triple superlattice containing MgSe, MgTe,
and ZnTe. The high refractive index step of Delta_n=0.5 in the structure
results in a broad stopband and the reflectivity coefficient exceeding 99% for
only 15 Bragg pairs.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
EuFeAs under high pressure: an antiferromagnetic bulk superconductor
We report the ac magnetic susceptibility and resistivity
measurements of EuFeAs under high pressure . By observing nearly
100% superconducting shielding and zero resistivity at = 28 kbar, we
establish that -induced superconductivity occurs at ~30 K in
EuFeAs. shows an anomalous nearly linear temperature dependence
from room temperature down to at the same . indicates that
an antiferromagnetic order of Eu moments with ~20 K persists
in the superconducting phase. The temperature dependence of the upper critical
field is also determined.Comment: To appear in J. Phys. Soc. Jpn., Vol. 78 No.
Improved measurement of CP asymmetries in B-0 ->(c(c)over-bar)K0((*)) decays
We present results on time-dependent CP asymmetries in neutral B decays to several CP eigenstates. The measurements use a data sample of about 227x10(6) Upsilon(4S)-> B (B) over bar decays collected by the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy B Factory at SLAC. The amplitude of the CPasymmetry, sin2 beta in the standard model, is derived from decay-time distributions from events in which one neutral B meson is fully reconstructed in a final state containing a charmonium meson and the other B meson is determined to be either a B-0 or (0) from its decay products. We measure sin2 beta=0.722 +/- 0.040(stat)+/- 0.023(syst) in agreement with the standard model expectation
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