Acoustic schwannoma of traumatic origin? A temporal bone study

A tumour of the singular nerve was found on examination of the temporal bones of a child who died 13 months after meningitis. The tumour consisted of a main mass with the appearance of an acoustic neuroma but close by and not connected were some nests of tumour cells inside the vestibule. This very unusual finding raises questions of the aetiology of this tumour which may have a bearing on the aetiology of other tumours of the VIIIth. nerv

Ohio Hazardous Material Transportation Act: An Overview

On June 24, 1988, in Miamisburg, Ohio, Governor Richard F. Celeste signed into law H.B. 428, (known as Ohio\u27s Hazardous Material Transportation Act, hereinafter referred to as the Act) a comprehensive legislative initiative regulating the transportation of hazardous materials. The signing of the Act was the culmination of a two year effort to solve a problem that Ohioians, and the nation as a whole, became aware of in July, 1986 in Miamisburg, Ohio. The new law provides for: a registration system with a graduated fee structure, pre-notification and route assessments for ultra-hazardous materials, and a civil forfeiture system with penalties of up to $10,000 for hazardous material and safety violations

Report of the ultraviolet and visible sensors panel

In order to meet the science objectives of the Astrotech 21 mission set the Ultraviolet (UV) and Visible Sensors Panel made a number of recommendations. In the UV wavelength range of 0.01 to 0.3 micro-m the focus is on the need for large format high quantum efficiency, radiation hard 'solar-blind' detectors. Options recommended for support include Si and non-Si charge coupled devices (CCDs) as well as photocathodes with improved microchannel plate readouts. For the 0.3 to 0.9 micro-m range, it was felt that Si CCDs offer the best option for high quantum efficiencies at these wavelengths. In the 0.9 to 2.5 micro-m the panel recommended support for the investigation of monolithic arrays. Finally, the panel noted that the implementation of very large arrays will require new data transmission, data recording, and data handling technologies

Ear, nose and throat manifestations of Lyme disease

The manifestations of Lyme disease as they may present to the ENT surgeon are discussed. The most important ENT symptom is facial palsy. Particularly when combined with other cranial palsies, systemic illness or signs of meningeal irritation, the diagnosis must be considered. Three case reports are used to illustrate the presentation and diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease. The characteristics of the disease are reviewed and the limitations of serological testing outlined. The literature has concentrated on bilateral or relapsing facial palsy. A review of palsies in Zurich that presented to the ENT clinic found only unilateral and partial palsies. The diagnosis should be considered in every case of facial palsy of unknown aetiology especially in childre

Using Stable Isotope Analyses to Assess the Trophic Ecology of Scleractinian Corals

Studies on the trophic ecology of scleractinian corals often include stable isotope analyses of tissue and symbiont carbon and nitrogen. These approaches have provided critical insights into the trophic sources and sinks that are essential to understanding larger-scale carbon and nitrogen budgets on coral reefs. While stable isotopes have identified most shallow water (\u3c30 m) corals as mixotrophic, with variable dependencies on autotrophic versus heterotrophic resources, corals in the mesophotic zone (~30–150 m) transition to heterotrophy with increasing depth because of decreased photosynthetic productivity. Recently, these interpretations of the stable isotope data to distinguish between autotrophy and heterotrophy have been criticized because they are confounded by increased nutrients, reverse translocation of photosynthate, and changes in irradiance that do not influence photosynthate translocation. Here we critically examine the studies that support these criticisms and show that they are contextually not relevant to interpreting the transition to heterotrophy in corals from shallow to mesophotic depths. Additionally, new data and a re-analysis of previously published data show that additional information (e.g., skeletal isotopic analysis) improves the interpretation of bulk stable isotope data in determining when a transition from primary dependence on autotrophy to heterotrophy occurs in scleractinian corals

Microbiome diversity and metabolic capacity determines the trophic ecology of the holobiont in Caribbean sponges

Sponges are increasingly recognized as an ecologically important taxon on coral reefs, representing significant biomass and biodiversity where sponges have replaced scleractinian corals. Most sponge species can be divided into two symbiotic states based on symbiont community structure and abundance (i.e., the microbiome), and are characterized as high microbial abundance (HMA) or low microbial abundance (LMA) sponges. Across the Caribbean, sponge species of the HMA or LMA symbiotic states differ in metabolic capacity, as well as their trophic ecology. A metagenetic analysis of symbiont 16 S rRNA and metagenomes showed that HMA sponge microbiomes are more functionally diverse than LMA microbiomes, offer greater metabolic functional capacity and redundancy, and encode for the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. Stable isotope analyses showed that HMA and LMA sponges primarily consume dissolved organic matter (DOM) derived from external autotrophic sources, or live particulate organic matter (POM) in the form of bacterioplankton, respectively, resulting in a low degree of resource competition between these symbiont states. As many coral reefs have undergone phase shifts from coral- to macroalgal-dominated reefs, the role of DOM, and the potential for future declines in POM due to decreased picoplankton productivity, may result in an increased abundance of chemically defended HMA sponges on tropical coral reefs

An extended view of the Pisces Overdensity from the SCUSS survey

SCUSS is a u-band photometric survey covering about 4000 square degree of the South Galactic Cap, reaching depths of up to 23 mag. By extending around 1.5 mag deeper than SDSS single-epoch u data, SCUSS is able to probe much a larger volume of the outer halo, i.e. with SCUSS data blue horizontal branch (BHB) stars can trace the outer halo of the Milky Way as far as 100-150 kpc. Utilizing this advantage we combine SCUSS u band with SDSS DR9 gri photometric bands to identify BHB stars and explore halo substructures. We confirm the existence of the Pisces overdensity, which is a structure in the outer halo (at around 80 kpc) that was discovered using RR Lyrae stars. For the first time we are able to determine its spatial extent, finding that it appears to be part of a stream with a clear distance gradient. The stream, which is ~5 degrees wide and stretches along ~25 degrees, consists of 20-30 BHBs with a total significance of around 6sigma over the background. Assuming we have detected the entire stream and that the progenitor has fully disrupted, then the number of BHBs suggests the original system was similar to smaller classical or a larger ultra-faint dwarf galaxy. On the other hand, if the progenitor still exists, it can be hunted for by reconstructing its orbit from the distance gradient of the stream. This new picture of the Pisces overdensity sheds new light on the origin of this intriguing system.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, accepted by Ap

30-Day emergency department revisit rates among older adults with documented dementia

OBJECTIVES: Published literature on national emergency department (ED) revisit rates among older adults with dementia is sparse, despite anecdotal evidence of higher ED utilization. Thus we evaluated the odds ratio (OR) of 30-day ED revisits among older adults with dementia using a nationally representative sample. DESIGN: We assessed the frequency of claims associated with a 30-day ED revisit among Medicare beneficiaries with and without a dementia diagnosis before or at index ED visit. We used a logistic regression model controlling for dementia, age, sex, race, region, Medicaid status, transfer to a skilled nursing facility after ED, primary care physician use 12 months before index, and comorbidity. SETTING: A nationally representative sample of claims data for Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 and older who maintained continuous fee-for-service enrollment during 2015 and 2016. Only outpatient claims associated with an ED visit between January 2016 and November 2016 were included as a qualifying index encounter. PARTICIPANTS: We identified 240 249 patients without dementia and 54 622 patients for whom a dementia code was recorded in the year before the index encounter in 2016. RESULTS: Our results indicate a significant difference in unadjusted 30-day ED revisit rates among those with an ED dementia diagnoses (22.0%) compared with those without (13.9%). Our adjusted results indicated that dementia is a significant predictor of 30-day ED revisits (P \u3c .0001). Those with a dementia diagnosis at or before the index ED visit were more likely to have experienced an ED revisit within 30 days (OR = 1.27; 95% confidence interval = 1.24-1.31). CONCLUSION: Dementia diagnoses were a significant predictor of 30-day ED revisits. Further research should assess potential reasons why dementia is associated with markedly higher revisit rates, as well as opportunities to manage and transition dementia patients from the ED back to the community more effectively. J Am Geriatr Soc 67:2254-2259, 2019