Multidisciplinary Strategies With Real-Time Fluorescence Images and Negative Pressure Wound Therapy to Manage Organ/Space Surgical Site Infection in Transplanted Kidneys.

BACKGROUND: Surgical site infection (SSI) after kidney transplantation can severely compromise graft function and prolong hospital stay. Organ/space SSI (osSSI) is a severe type of SSI associated with a significantly higher mortality rate. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: This study aims to provide new strategies of managing (osSSI) after kidney transplant and other high-risk wound infections. METHOD: This is a single-center, retrospective study that analyzed the treatment outcomes of 4 patients who developed osSSI after kidney transplant at Shuang-Ho Hospital. The management strategy included real-time fluorescence imaging with MolecuLight, negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) with Si-Mesh, and incisional NPWT (iNPWT). RESULT: The average length of hospital stay was 18 days (range, 12-23 days). During hospitalization, all patients obtained high-quality debridement under real-time fluorescence image confirmation. The average duration of NPWT was 11.8 days (range, 7-17 days) and iNPWT was 7 days. All transplanted kidneys were preserved with normal function after 6 months of follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Our strategies with real-time fluorescence imaging provide a novel and effective method that can be used in adjunct with the standard of care for managing osSSI after kidney transplantation. More studies are warranted to validate the efficacy of our approach.

Charge transfer enhanced magnetic correlations in type-II multiferroic Co3TeO6.

Magnetic structure of the Co ions in monoclinic Co3TeO6 in the antiferroelectric state at 16 K has been determined by neutron powder together with single-crystal diffractions. The indices of the magnetic reflections that appear at the incommensurate positions were determined by diffractions from a single crystal, which allow to uniquely identify the magnetic modulation vector. There are two crystallographically distinct Co layers. Magnetic incommensurability appears in the Co spins in the layers comprising zig-zag chains, with a magnetic modulation vector of (0.357, 0.103, 0.121) at 3 K but changes to (0.4439, 0, 0.137) at 16 K, while the Co ions in the honeycomb webs form a collinear antiferromagnetic structure. Thermal reduction rate of the Co moments in the honeycomb webs was found to be much smaller than those in the zigzag chains. Shifting of large amounts of electronic charge into the Co─O bonds in the honeycomb webs on warming is used to understand the behavior.

Progressive rear-view mirror for motorcycles.

In this work, we present the design and fabrication of a progressive rear-view mirror for motorcycles. In the context of physiological and physical background knowledge, we first analyze the geometric relationships among the profile of the mirror, the blind spot, the field of view, and the reflected image size. On the basis of Walker's eye model, the binocular disparity is further calculated according to the image size on each retina. We present the polynomial expansion that specifies our progressive mirror's profile, as well as the fused deposition modeling process for fabricating physical mirrors. Compared with a conventional aspheric or flat mirror, this progressive mirror can achieve a wider horizontal viewing angle and shows a more stable image, thus enhancing riding safety.

Reconstruction of the optical system of personalized eye models by using magnetic resonance imaging.

This study presents a practical method for reconstructing the optical system of personalized eye models by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Monocular images were obtained from a young (20-year-old) healthy subject viewing at a near point (10 cm). Each magnetic resonance image was first analyzed using several commercial software to capture the profile of each optical element of the human eye except for the anterior lens surface, which could not be determined because it overlapped the ciliary muscle. The missing profile was substituted with a modified profile from a generic eye model. After the data-including the refractive indices from a generic model-were input in ZEMAX, we obtained a reasonable initial layout. By further considering the resolution of the MRI, the model was optimized to match the optical performance of a healthy eye. The main benefit of having a personalized eye model is the ability to quantitatively identify wide-angle ocular aberrations, which were corrected by the designed free-form spectacle lens.

Development of Ferromagnetic Superspins in Bare Cu Nanoparticles by Electronic Charge Redistribution.

We report on the results of investigating the ferromagnetic properties of bare Cu nanoparticles. Three sets of bare Cu nanoparticle assemblies with mean particle diameters of 6.6, 8.1, and 11.1 nm were fabricated, employing the gas condensation method. Curie-Weiss paramagnetic responses to a weak driving magnetic field were detected, showing the appearance of particle superspins that overcomes the diamagnetic responses from the inner core. The isothermal magnetization displays a Langevin field profile together with magnetic hysteresis appearing even at 300 K, demonstrating the existence of ferromagnetic superspins in the Cu nanoparticles. Shifting of a noticeable amount of electronic charge from being distributed near the lattice sites in bulk form toward their neighboring ions in nanoparticles was found. The extended 3d and 4s band mixture are the main sources for the development of localized 3d holes for the development of ferromagnetic particle superspins in Cu nanoparticles.

Huge Inverse Magnetization Generated by Faraday Induction in Nano-Sized Au@Ni Core@Shell Nanoparticles.

We report on the design and observation of huge inverse magnetizations pointing in the direction opposite to the applied magnetic field, induced in nano-sized amorphous Ni shells deposited on crystalline Au nanoparticles by turning the applied magnetic field off. The magnitude of the induced inverse magnetization is very sensitive to the field reduction rate as well as to the thermal and field processes before turning the magnetic field off, and can be as high as 54% of the magnetization prior to cutting off the applied magnetic field. Memory effect of the induced inverse magnetization is clearly revealed in the relaxation measurements. The relaxation of the inverse magnetization can be described by an exponential decay profile, with a critical exponent that can be effectively tuned by the wait time right after reaching the designated temperature and before the applied magnetic field is turned off. The key to these effects is to have the induced eddy current running beneath the amorphous Ni shells through Faraday induction.

Submicrometer grating light bar for a color-separation backlight.

A light bar patterned using a submicrometer grating was designed to replace conventional dye color filters for color liquid crystal displays. The light bar generates color rays by transmitting them from side-lit color light-emitting diodes through the submicrometer grating. These angular color rays are then redirected by a V-grooved light guide, and then converged by a lens array and mapped to corresponding subpixel positions to efficiently display color images. The results show that 106% of the National Television System Committee (NTSC) color space in a blue-green-red-green (B-G-R-G) repeating pattern display pixel layout can be achieved.

Immediate Effects of Vergence Exercises Using Automatic Dual Rotational Risley Prisms on Accommodative Lag and Facility.

INTRODUCTION: This study evaluated novel automatic dual rotational Risley prisms (ADRRPs) as a vergence exercise tool for patients with myopia to improve accommodative lag and accommodative facility. METHODS: Participants with myopia aged 20-24 years were recruited. After vergence exercises with prisms (treatment group) or plano lenses (control group) using ADRRPs for 10 min, measurements were taken using an open-field autorefractor (Grand Seiko WAM-5500) at viewing distances of 0.4 m and 6.0 m. We measured accommodative facility using a ± 2.00 D accommodative flipper. RESULTS: A total of 56 participants (treatment group, 39; control group, 17) performed vergence exercises using ADRRPs. Participants in the treatment group showed improvements in accommodative lag at a 0.4 m viewing distance, with measurements of 0.57 D (right eye; OD) and 0.53 D (left eye; OS) and 0.21 D (OD) and 0.27 D (OS) before and after the exercises, respectively (p < 0.001). Over-refractions using an open-field autorefractor with spherical equivalent contact lenses at a 6.0 m viewing distance were - 0.01 ± 0.30 D (OD) and 0.03 ± 0.34 D (OS) and 0.15 ± 0.32 D (OD) and 0.19 ± 0.28 D (OS) before and after the exercises, respectively (difference + 0.16 D; p < 0.001). Accommodative facility values before and after exercises were 14.88 ± 3.36 and 15.59 ± 3.60 cpm, respectively (p < 0.01). No significant differences in accommodative lag, relaxation, and accommodative facility before and after exercise were observed in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Using ADRRPs in vergence exercises can improve accommodative lag, accommodative facility, and accommodative relaxation in adults with myopia. Further research to evaluate persistent and long-term effects is needed.

Angularly positioned LED-based spatial-temporal color separation system.

This study proposes a two-field driving scheme for field sequential color liquid crystal displays (LCDs) without color filters. The proposed scheme is based on angularly positioned color LEDs. In each field, the angular rays of two colors are collimated by a collimation lens, redirected by a light guide, and converged by a cylindrical-lens array to map into corresponding sub-pixel positions to efficiently display color images. The three main advantages of this approach are the elimination of dye color filters, high feasibility using conventional ultra-precision machining processes, and a larger color gamut.

Dual-layer blazed grating fabricated by the roll-to-roll microreplication process for chromostereoscopy.

In this work we present the design and fabrication of a dual-layer blazed grating (DBG) to replace a single-layer blazed grating for chromostereoscopy. Based on the physiological and physical background, we first analyze the relationship between the performance of a grating pair and color-stereo effect. The DBG is composed of two materials of different indices and fabricated upon a polyethylene terephthalate film by two steps of a roll-to-roll microreplication process. With this dual-layer design, the fabrication tolerance in the blazed facets of the grating is three times looser and more achievable as compared with that of a grating composed of single material.

Non-conventional superconductivity in magnetic In and Sn nanoparticles.

We report on experimental evidence of non-conversional pairing in In and Sn nanoparticle assemblies. Spontaneous magnetizations are observed, through extremely weak-field magnetization and neutron-diffraction measurements, to develop when the nanoparticles enter the superconducting state. The superconducting transition temperature TC shifts to a noticeably higher temperature when an external magnetic field or magnetic Ni nanoparticles are introduced into the vicinity of the superconducting In or Sn nanoparticles. There is a critical magnetic field and a critical Ni composition that must be reached before the magnetic environment will suppress the superconductivity. The observations may be understood when assuming development of spin-parallel superconducting pairs on the surfaces and spin-antiparallel superconducting pairs in the core of the nanoparticles.

Effects of Extended Viewing Distance on Accommodative Response and Pupil Size of Myopic Adults by Using a Double-Mirror System.

Purposes: This study discussed the accommodative response and pupil size of myopic adults using a double-mirror system (DMS). The viewing distance could be extended to 2.285 m by using a DMS, which resulted in a reduction and increase in the accommodative response and pupil size, respectively. By using a DMS, the reduction of the accommodative response could improve eye fatigue with near work. Method: Sixty subjects aged between 18 and 22 years old were recruited in this study, and the average age was 20.67 ± 1.09. There were two main steps in the experimental process. In the first step, we examined the subjects' refraction state and visual function, and then fitted disposable contact lenses with a corresponding refractive error. In the second step, the subjects gazed at an object from a viewing distance of 0.4 m and at a virtual image through a DMS, respectively, and the accommodative response and pupil size were measured using an open field autorefractor. Results: When the subjects gazed at the object from a distance of 0.4 m, or gazed at the virtual image through a DMS, the mean value of the accommodative response was 1.74 ± 0.43 or 0.16 ± 0.47 D, and the pupil size was 3.98 ± 0.06 mm or 4.18 ± 0.58 mm, respectively. With an increase in the viewing distance from 0.4 m to 2.285 m, the accommodative response and pupil size were significantly reduced about 1.58 D and enlarged about 0.2 mm, respectively. For three asterisk targets of different sizes (1 cm × 1 cm, 2 cm × 2 cm, and 3 cm × 3 cm), the mean accommodative response and pupil size through the DMS was 0.19 ± 0.16, 0.27 ± 0.24, 0.26 ± 0.19 D; and 4.20 ± 1.02, 3.94 ± 0.73, 4.21 ± 0.57 mm, respectively. The changes of the accommodative response and pupil size were not significant with the size of the targets (p > 0.05). In the low or high myopia group, the accommodative response of 0.4 m and 2.285 m was 1.68 ± 0.42 D and 0.21 ± 0.48 D; and 1.88 ± 0.25 D and 0.05 ± 0.40 D, respectively. The accommodative response was significantly reduced by 1.47 D and 1.83 D for these two groups. The accommodative microfluctuations (AMFs) were stable when a DMS was used; on the contrary, the AMFs were unstable at a viewing distance of 0.4 m. Conclusions: In this study, the imaging through a DMS extended the viewing distance and enlarged the image, and resulted in a reduction in the accommodative response and an increase in the pupil size. For the low myopia group and the high myopia group, the accommodative response and pupil size were statistically significantly different before and after the use of the DMS. The reduction of the accommodative response could be applied for the improvement of asthenopia.

An integrated optical pickup with roll-to-roll fabricated diffractive components.

This work designed and fabricated an optical pickup system based on optical films using the roll-to-roll process. The design combined the advantages of the stacked and planar optical pickup system. Two blazed gratings were used as beam splitters for bending the optical path, while a cylindrical lens was used for astigmatic focus-error detection. The proposed design effectively reduces overall system configuration, component cost, and fabrication complexity.

Sub-wavelength gratings fabricated on a light bar by roll-to-roll UV embossing process.

This research uses a roll-to-roll based ultraviolet (UV) resin process to make sub-wavelength gratings for display applications. Based on the rigorous coupling wave analysis (RCWA), we analyze the relationship between the first order transmission/reflection efficiency and the pitch of the grating for various shapes as rays pass through the sub-wavelength gratings, patterned with a backlight. The objective is to turn the R/G/B (620 nm, 520 nm, and 450 nm) incident rays into uniformly and normally output white light with high illuminance from the surface of a light guide.

Proteus mirabilis thoracic vertebral osteomyelitis: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Proteus mirabilis is the second most common pathogen that causes urinary tract infections after Escherichia coli. In rare cases, it is associated with vertebral osteomyelitis. The underlying mechanism of this relationship may be related to the retrograde dissemination of bacteria through the paravertebral venous plexus. CASE PRESENTATION: We report a case of an 80-year-old Taiwanese woman who had recurrent episodes of fever and chronic back pain for 1 year. All blood cultures were positive for P. mirabilis. Inflammation scans and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a previously undetected vertebral lesion between the seventh and eighth thoracic vertebra. She responded well to treatment with antibiotics, reporting considerable relief of back pain and no fever recurrence at the 4-month follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Chronic back pain is a common but often dismissed symptom among the older population; osteomyelitis should be considered in patients with recurrent fever or neurological symptoms. Old age, chronic renal failure, and diabetes mellitus are possible predisposing factors for osteomyelitis. Our findings suggest that long-term treatment with antibiotics is effective for osteomyelitis caused by P. mirabilis,, although surgery is required for abscess formation or serious vertebral destruction.

Reduction in Accommodative Response of Schoolchildren by a Double-Mirror System.

PURPOSE: This study first proposed the application of a double-mirror system (DMS) to extend viewing distance and investigate the accommodative response of schoolchildren under a DMS. METHOD: Fifty-seven subjects aged between 7 and 12 years old were recruited in this study, and the experiment was divided into two stages. The first stage consisted of a case history inquiry, a refraction state, and a visual function examination. In the second stage, the subjects gazed at an object at distances of 0.4 m, 2.285 m, and through a DMS, respectively, and their accommodative responses were measured using an open-field autorefractor. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the schoolchildren's accommodative response between subjects gazing at an object at 2.285 m (0.14 ± 0.35 D, p > 0.05) and those gazing at it through a DMS (0.20 ± 0.35 D). However, their accommodative response showed a significant difference between subjects gazing at an object at 0.4 m and 2.285 m and those gazing at it at 0.4 m and through a DMS. CONCLUSION: In this experiment, the results of the children's accommodative response measured at 2.285 m or through a DMS are very similar. The viewing distance can be extended by a DMS, resulting in accommodative relaxation. This result may have potential applications in myopia control.

The Correlations between Horizontal and Vertical Peripheral Refractions and Human Eye Shape Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Highly Myopic Eyes.

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between relative peripheral refraction and retinal shape by 2-D magnetic resonance imaging in high myopes. Thirty-five young adults aged 20 to 30 years participated in this study with 16 high myopes (spherical equivalent < -6.00 D) and 19 emmetropes (+0.50 to -0.50 D). An open field autorefractor was used to measure refractions from the center out to 60° in the horizontal meridian and out to around 20° in the vertical meridian, with a step of 3 degrees. Axial length was measured by using A-scan ultrasonography. In addition, images of axial, sagittal, and tangential sections were obtained using 2-D magnetic resonance imaging. The highly myopic group had a significantly relative peripheral hyperopic refraction and showed a prolate ocular shape compared to the emmetropic group. The highly myopic group had relative peripheral hyperopic refraction and showed a prolate ocular form. Significant differences in the ratios of height/axial (1.01 ± 0.02 vs. 0.94 ± 0.03) and width/axial (0.99 ± 0.17 vs. 0.93 ± 0.04) were found from the MRI images between the emmetropic and the highly myopic eyes (p < 0.001). There was a negative correlation between the retina's curvature and relative peripheral refraction for both temporal (Pearson r = -0.459; p < 0.01) and nasal (Pearson r = -0.277; p = 0.011) retina. For the highly myopic eyes, the amount of peripheral hyperopic defocus is correlated to its ocular shape deformation. This could be the first study investigating the relationship between peripheral refraction and ocular dimension in high myopes, and it is hoped to provide useful knowledge of how the development of myopia changes human eye shape.

Enhanced lattice perfection by low temperature thermal annealing in photoelectric (CH3NH3)PbBr3.

The coupling between the organic CH3NH3+ cations and inorganic perovskite PbBr3- framework in a large single crystal of (CH3NH3)PbBr3 weighting 13 g was studied using neutron diffraction and inelastic neutron scattering. Two lattice incommensurate (ICM) phases were found, one at higher temperatures, marked ICMHT, which appeared between 147 and 135 K. The second one, marked ICMLT, developed below 143 K and remained at 75 K. The transition from the ICMLT to ICMHT phase upon warming gave rise to extremely large lattice shrinking, followed by extremely large lattice expansion of the tetragonal basal plane of the PbBr3 lattice. There was a progressive decrease in the width of the Bragg peaks from the PbBr3 lattice upon warming, which can be described using a critical exponent for each type of Bragg peak to show complete ordering of the atoms into a (CH3NH3)PbBr3 lattice at 194 K. (CH3NH3)PbBr3 exhibits six definitive acoustic-like phonon branches at 75 K. The six branches renormalizes into two at 200 K, with the frequencies of both the transverse and longitudinal modes greatly enhanced. The asymmetric structure of the CH3NH3 ions helps to understand the observed behaviors.

Color separation system with angularly positioned light source module for pixelized backlighting.

A color-separation system that angularly positions color LEDs to produce color separation and a lens array to focus this light onto the pixels is proposed. The LED rays from different incident angles are mapped into corresponding sub-pixel positions to efficiently display color image, which can be used to replace the absorbing color filter in the conventional liquid crystal layer. In this paper, the prototype backlight has been designed, fabricated and characterized. The measurement results of this module showed that a gain factor of transmission efficiency three times more than that of conventional color filters efficiency improvement and a larger color gamut are expected.

Largely Enhanced Ferromagnetism in Bare CuO Nanoparticles by a Small Size Effect.

Magnetic properties of fully oxygenated bare CuO nanoparticles have been investigated using magnetization, X-ray diffraction, neutron diffraction, and Raman scattering measurements. The Langevin field profile is clearly revealed in the isothermal magnetization of 8.8 nm CuO nanoparticle assembly even at 300 K, revealing a 172 times enhancement of the ferromagnetic responses over that of bulk CuO. Surface magnetization of 8.8 nm CuO reaches 18% of the core magnetization. The Cu spins in 8.8 nm CuO order below 400 K, which is 1.7 times higher than the 231 K observed in bulk CuO. A relatively simple magnetic structure that may be indexed using a modulation vector of (0.2, 0, 0.2) was found for the 8.8 nm CuO, but no magnetic incommensurability was observed in bulk CuO. The Cu spins in 8.8 nm CuO form spin density waves with length scales of 5 chemical unit cells long along the crystallographic a- and c-axis directions. Considerable amounts of electronic charge shift from around the Cu lattice sites toward the interconnecting regions of two neighboring Cu-Cu ions, resulting in a stronger ferromagnetic direct exchange interaction for the neighboring Cu spins in 8.8 nm CuO.