Efficacy and Safety Of Radiation Synovectomy with Yttrium-90

In this long term retrospective study of radiation synovectomy with Yttrium-90 (Y90), we evaluated the results of 164 applications in 82 patients with RA, OA with synovitis, ankylosing spondylitis and psoriatic arthritis. Radiation synovectomy with Y90 has an overall success rate of approximately 50% and is therefore an effective alternative to surgical synovectomy in chronic synovitis which fails to respond to conservative treatment. Elbow and knee responded significantly better than shoulder and ankle joints. Patients with radiological stages from 0 to 2 showed a significantly better success rate than those with stage 3 changes. In responders, repeat therapy for recurrence of symptoms or treatment of a symptomatic corresponding symmetrical joint is advisable. Repeat therapy in a previous non-responder is associated with an unacceptably high failure rate. Therefore, when a joint fails to respond after 6 months, arthroscopy should be performed to evaluate further treatment procedures. A successful result was found in only 11 of 25 joints treated with arthroscopic synovectomy followed by radiation synovectomy within 2 weeks, indicating no benefit of this combination

Establishment of a mini-advanced technology development center

Issued as Quarterly reports no. [1-3] and Final report, Project no. L-30-802 (subproject is B-558/P.D. Loveless

Continuation of the mini-technology development center program in Barrow, Madison, and Jackson counties

Issued as Quarterly reports, nos. 1-3, and Final reports, nos. 1-2, Project no. L-30-812(subproject is B-562

MODELING OF GROWTH RATES OF SELECTIVE EPITAXIAL GROWTH (SEG) AND EPITAXIAL LATERAL OVERGROWTH (ELO) OF SILICON IN THE SIH2CL2-HCL-H2 SYSTEM

A semi-empirical model for the growth rate of selective epitaxial silicon(SEG) in the Dichlorosilane-HC1-Hz system that represents the experimenltal data has been presented. All epitaxy runs were done using a Gemini-I LPCVD pancake reactor. Dichlorosilane was used as the source gas and hydrogen as the carrier gas. Hydrogen Cllloride(HC1) was used to ensure that no nucleation took place on the oxide. The growth rate expression was considered to be the sum of a growth term dependent on the partial pressures of Dichlorosilane and hydrogen, and an etch berm that varies as the partial pressure of HC1. The growth and etch terms were found to have an Arrhenius relation with temperature, with activation energies of 52kcal/mol and 36kcal/mol respectively. Good agreement was obtained with experimental data. The variation of the selectivity threshold was correctly predicted, which had been a problem with earlier models for SEG growth rates. SEG/ELO Silicon was grown from 920-970°C at 40 and 150 torr pressures for a variety of HCI concentrations. In addition previous data collected by our research group at 820-1020°C and 40-150torr were used in the model

Weak coupling approximations in non-Markovian Transport

We study the transport properties of the Fano-Anderson model with a Lorentzian-shaped density of states in one of the electronic reservoirs. We explicitly show that the energy dependence of the density of states can cause non-Markovian effects and that the non-Markovian master equation may fail if these effects are strong. We evaluate the stationary current, the zero frequency current noise and the occupation dynamics of the resonant level by means of a quantum master equation approach within different approximation schemes and compare the results to the exact solution obtained by scattering theory and Green's functions.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures; due to suggestions of a referee we have added an appendix where our kernel is derived in detail; a few typos are correcte

The Nonlinear Dynamic Conversion of Analog Signals into Excitation Patterns

Local periodic perturbations induce frequency-dependent propagation waves in an excitable spatio-temporally chaotic system. We show how segments of noise-contaminated and chaotic perturbations induce characteristic sequences of excitations in the model system. Using a set of tuned excitable systems, it is possible to characterize signals by their spectral composition of excitation pattern. As an example we analyze an epileptic spike-and-wave time series.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure