The prospect of supercapacitors in integrated energy harvesting and storage systems.

Renewable energy sources, such as wind, tide, solar cells, etc, are the primary research areas that deliver enormous amounts of energy for our daily usage and minimize the dependency upon fossil fuel. Paralley, harnessing ambient energy from our surroundings must be prioritized for small powered systems. Nanogenerators, which use waste energy to generate electricity, are based on such concepts. We refer to these nanogenerators as energy harvesters. The purpose of energy harvesters is not to outcompete traditional renewable energy sources. It aims to reduce reliance on primary energy sources and enhance decentralized energy production. Energy storage is another area that needs to be explored for quickly storing the generated energy. Supercapacitor is a familiar device with a unique quick charging and discharging feature. Encouraging advancements in energy storage and harvesting technologies directly supports the efficient and comprehensive use of sustainable energy. Yet, self-optimization from independent energy harvesting and storage devices is challenging to overcome. It includes instability, insufficient energy output, and reliance on an external power source, preventing their direct application and future development. Coincidentally, integrating energy harvesters and storage devices can address these challenges, which demand their inherent action. This review intends to offer a complete overview of supercapacitor-based integrated energy harvester and storage systems and identify opportunities and directions for future research in this subject.

Meibography-Guided Electroepilation for Congenital Distichiasis: A Novel Surgical Technique.

PURPOSE: Congenital distichiasis is managed either by ablation, using laser, cryotherapy, or electroepilation, or by surgical excision with mucous membrane grafting. Ablative procedures are usually blind as the exact depth of distichiatic eyelashes is unknown. The described surgical technique utilizes meibography for imaging the root and depth of distichiatic eyelashes that aided in performing electroepilation. METHODS: Six patients (n = 24 eyelids; mean age 15.5 ± 12.2 years) underwent infrared meibography (Oculus Keratograph 5 M) and noninvasive tear breakup time prospectively. Eyelashes were electroepilated using a premarked needle inserted at a depth based on meibography findings in 4 patients. Surgical success was defined as no distichiatic eyelash regrowth and functional success was defined as the resolution of symptoms at a minimum of 3 months of follow-up. RESULTS: All 6 patients had all 4 eyelids involved to varying degrees, with a total of 230 distichiatic eyelashes. The median number of distichiatic eyelashes was 9 in the upper eyelids and 4.5 in the lower eyelids. Meibography revealed visible distichiatic eyelash roots in 70% of eyelashes in the upper eyelid and 87.8% in the lower eyelid, respectively. The median eyelash root depth was 2.7 mm (mean 2.9 mm, range 1.8-5.4 mm). The mean noninvasive tear breakup time was 12.2 seconds despite absent or rudimentary meibomian gland segments seen on meibography. The anatomical success was 75% (12/16 eyelids), and functional success was 87.5% (7/8 eyes) at a median follow-up of 5.5 months. CONCLUSION: Preoperative infrared meibography in eyelids with congenital distichiasis helps estimate the eyelash depth and can be used to guide eyelash ablation procedures.

Trichiasis in cicatricial ocular surface disease: a multi-center comparison of electroepilation versus eyelash resection outcomes.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the outcomes of trichiasis (excluding entropion) management in non-trachomatous cicatricial ocular surface diseases. METHODS: This is a multicenter, retrospective study of 59 patients with trichiasis who were managed using two different techniques: electroepilation using radiofrequency (RF) cautery and eyelash resection. The assessed outcomes were residual trichiasis at 6 weeks, 6, and 12 months of follow-up and the number of procedures needed. RESULTS: 41 patients (90 eyelids) underwent electroepilation, and 18 (41 eyelids) were managed with eyelash resection. All patients belonged to either Indian or Japanese ethnicity. Most patients in both groups had Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (63.4% vs. 88.9%). The mean age (43.2 vs. 46 years), disease duration (122 vs. 192.4 months), median trichiasis grade (2 vs. 2), and involvement of upper eyelids (53/90 vs. 23/41) were similar in the two groups. At six weeks, 48.9% of eyelids that underwent electroepilation had no trichiasis, and recurrences were managed with repeat electroepilation (6 eyelids) and mucous membrane grafting (10 eyelids), and 35 eyelids opted for manual epilation, giving 67.8% success at a mean follow-up of 20 months. The eyelash resection group had 75.6% success at 6 months, and recurrences were managed using lid splitting and eyelash resection, resulting in 100% success at a mean follow-up of 79 months. More interventions were needed in the electroepilation group compared to eyelash resection. CONCLUSION: Eyelash resection of the trichiatic eyelashes achieves a better success rate than electroepilation in cicatricial ocular surface disorders. Following electroepilation, one needs multiple interventions to resolve trichiasis.

Lacrimal drainage anomalies in 3p deletion syndrome.

3p deletion syndrome or deletion 3p25-pter syndrome is an exceptionally rare genetic disorder characterized by deletion of the distal segment of the short arm of chromosome 3. There are less than a hundred reported cases worldwide. Clinical characteristics include severe physical and mental retardation, trigonocephaly, micrognathia, and diffuse hypotonia. The common ocular manifestations include congenital ptosis and canthal anomalies. To the best of the authors' knowledge, no lacrimal drainage anomalies have been reported earlier. The present case describes proximal lacrimal drainage anomalies in a patient with 3p deletion syndrome. The patient was successfully managed with membranotomy and punctal and canalicular dilatation, resulting in a complete resolution of epiphora.

Lacrimal drainage anomalies in Pierre Robin sequence.

Pierre-Robin sequence consists of a classical triad of micrognathia, glossoptosis, and upper airway obstruction. The common ocular manifestations include congenital glaucoma, high myopia, maculopathy, and retinal detachment. Except for a mention of a nasolacrimal duct obstruction without many details, lacrimal drainage anomalies have not been reported earlier to the best of the authors' knowledge. The present case describes several lacrimal drainage anomalies including supernumerary puncta, canalicular wall hypoplasia, grossly dilated nasolacrimal duct, and complex congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction in a patient of Pierre Robin sequence. The patient was successfully managed with endoscopic guided probing and marsupialization of the large intranasal cyst resulting in a complete resolution of epiphora.

Survival benefit of exenteration in COVID-19-associated rhino-orbital mucormycosis.

PURPOSE: There has been a sudden increase in the number of rhino-orbital mucormycosis cases, primarily affecting patients recovering from COVID-19 infection. The local health authorities have declared the current situation an epidemic. In this study, we assess the role of exenteration in preventing disease progression and improving survival in patients with rhino-orbital mucormycosis. METHODS: The patients undergoing exenteration were grouped into the exenteration arm and those denying exenteration were grouped into the nonexenteration arm. The patients were followed at 1 month and 3 months. The 6-month survival data were collected telephonically. Continuous data were presented as Mean ± SD/Median (IQR) depending on the normality distribution of data, whereas the frequency with percentages was used to present the categorical variables. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were created to estimate the difference in survival of patients with exenteration in rhino-orbital mucormycosis versus those without exenteration. RESULTS: A total of 14 patients were recruited for our study based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. All the patients were qualified for exenteration; however, only eight patients underwent exenteration and six patients did not consent to exenteration. At the end of 3 months in the exenteration group, four (50%) patients died. Two patients died within a week of exenteration, whereas two patients died after 2 weeks of exenteration. The deaths in the first week were attributed to septic shock and the deaths happening beyond 2 weeks were attributed to severe meningitis. The Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed the cumulative probability of being alive at 1 month in the exenteration arm to be 85%, and it decreased to 67% by 53 days and subsequently remained stable until the end of 3 months. CONCLUSION: The Kaplan-Meier survival analysis did not show a survival benefit of exenteration at 3 months and 6 months in COVID-associated rhino-orbital mucormycosis.

Lacrimal Drainage Infections with Sphingomonas paucimobilis: Clinical Presentations, Complications and Outcomes.

PURPOSE: To report the clinical presentations, complications, and outcomes of Sphingomonas paucimobilis-specific lacrimal drainage infections. METHODS: A retrospective chart review of all patients diagnosed with Sphingomonas paucimobilis lacrimal infections and managed at a tertiary care Dacryology Service from November 2015 to May 2022 over a 6.5-year period were recruited and analyzed. Data collected include demographic details, clinical presentation, microbiological diagnosis, antibiotic susceptibility profiles, management, complications, and outcomes. The microbiological techniques employed were aerobic and anaerobic cultures, phenotypic identification with VITEK 2R system, polymerase chain reaction, antibiotic sensitivity profile and minimal inhibitory concentration. RESULTS: Twelve Sphingomonas-specific lacrimal drainage infections of 11 patients were identified. Of these five were canaliculitis and seven were acute dacryocystitis. All the seven acute dacryocystitis presented in an advanced stage; five were with lacrimal abscess and two with orbital cellulitis. The antibiotic susceptibility profile of canaliculitis and acute dacryocystitis were comparable and the organism was sensitive to several classes of antibiotics. The outcomes of punctal dilatation and nonincisional curettage were effective for canaliculitis. Patients with acute dacryocystitis had advanced clinical stage at presentation but responded well to intensive systemic management and had excellent anatomical and functional outcomes with dacryocystorhinostomy. CONCLUSION: Sphingomonas-specific lacrimal sac infections can have aggressive clinical presentations and need early and intensive therapy. The outcomes are excellent with multimodal management.

Acid-directed preparation of micro/mesoporous heteroatom doped defective graphitic carbon as bifunctional electroactive material: Evaluation of trace metal impurity.

Extensive research to explore cost-effective carbon materials as electrocatalysts and electrode materials for energy conversion and storage has been conducted in the recent literature. This raised a crucial question regarding the origin of this electrocatalytic activity from the heteroatom doping/ hierarchical porous defect-rich architecture and/ or the trace metal impurities introduced during synthesis/ inherent to the precursor. In this work, an insight into this issue is provided by considering a lignocellulosic biowaste, Euryale Ferox (foxnut) shells as a precursor to derive micro/ mesoporous defective graphitic carbon sheets by the phosphoric acid (H3PO4) dictated in-situ carbonization for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and supercapacitor applications. The sample synthesized at 900 °C (FP900) shows an onset potential of 0.98 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), ORR current density of 5.5 mA cm-2, and current stability of 93% (in 10 h measurement) in 0.1 M KOH. In addition, a symmetric supercapacitor device is assembled using the prepared material and the specific capacitance of 207.5 F g-1 at 1 A g-1 is obtained. An attempt to explain the origin of the electrochemical performance is made by establishing parallels with the physicochemical characterizations. The inherently doped heteroatoms give rise to electroactive functionalities and the wide enough pore size distribution improves the active sites utilization efficiency by enhancing the accessibility to electrolytic ions resulting in better electrochemical performance. Furthermore, the contribution from the intrinsic trace metal impurities is evaluated using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy. The presented research clarifies the non-contributing nature of trace metal species owing to the inaccessibility of active sites and lower abundance in F900 and FP900, respectively.

Bilateral endogenous endophthalmitis complicated by scleral perforation: an unusual presentation.

Endogenous endophthalmitis complicated by necrotising scleritis has rarely been reported in the literature. We, hereby, report a case of bilateral scleral perforation with endogenous endophthalmitis in an 87-year-old female patient with diabetes who presented as bilateral orbital cellulitis. Systemic workup ruled out autoimmune aetiology. The culture and sensitivity of exudates exuding from the scleral perforation showed Escherichia coli The Patient was managed conservatively with parenteral and topical antibiotics along with steroid, but the vision could not be salvaged. The report emphasizes on atypical presentation of endogenous endophthalmitis. In old and immunosuppressed individuals presenting with a clinical picture of bilateral orbital cellulitis with profound vision loss, endogenous endophthalmitis should be ruled out.

Obesity is related to multiple functional abdominal diseases.

Analysis of the body mass index of pediatric patients with gastrointestinal complaints as a whole and by disease subgroup revealed a greater percentage of obese patients with constipation, gastroesophageal reflux, irritable bowel syndrome, encopresis, and functional abdominal pain compared with local and New Jersey control populations.

Facile Development Strategy of a Single Carbon-Fiber-Based All-Solid-State Flexible Lithium-Ion Battery for Wearable Electronics.

Microsized and shape-versatile flexible and wearable lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are promising and smart energy storage devices for next-generation electronics. In the present work, we design and fabricate the first prototype of microsized fibrous LIBs (thickness ≈ 22 µm) based on multilayered coaxial structure of solid-state battery components over flexible and electrically conductive carbon fibers (CFs). The micro coaxial batteries over the CF surface were fabricated via electrophoretic deposition and dip-coating methods. The microfiber battery showed a stable potential window of 2.5 V with an areal discharge capacity of ∼4.2 µA h cm-2 at 13 µA cm-2 of the current density. The as-assembled battery fiber delivered a comparable energy density (∼0.006 W h cm-3) with solid-state lithium thin-film batteries at higher power densities (∼0.0312 W cm-3). The fibrous batteries were also connected in parallel and in series to deliver large current and high voltage, respectively. The fibrous battery also retains up to 85% discharge capacity even after 100 charge-discharge cycles. Furthermore, these battery fibers performed well under both static and bending conditions, which shows the robustness of the battery fiber. Therefore, this type of fibrous microbattery can be used in advanced flexible and wearable microelectronics, bioelectronics, robotics, and textile applications.