Multi-Etiological Hyponatremia in Association With Suspected Beer Potomania.

Beer potomania is a unique condition characterized by hyponatremia secondary to excessive beer drinking and low daily solute intake. We report a case of a 41-year-old African American female with multiple comorbidities, notably alcohol use disorder, who was initially treated for hypertensive emergency and was subsequently found to be hyponatremic during the same visit. Beer potomania was suspected as a leading etiology of hyponatremia. This report emphasizes the importance of the proper diagnosis and appropriate management of beer potomania in the setting of concomitant comorbidities. Clinician awareness is crucial in implementing immediate treatment and in the prevention of potentially fatal sequelae such as severe malnutrition and osmotic demyelination syndrome.

Conservative Approach and Management of Complicated Lung Abscess.

A 72-year-old male presented to the ER with three days of productive cough, shortness of breath, and generalized weakness. Chest X-ray showed right lung opacity in the lower lobe. Chest CT scan showed consolidation in the superior segment of the right lower cavity with air-fluid level extending to the pleural and chest wall, suggestive of lung abscess with loculated empyema and thickened pleura. The patient received antibiotics and CT-guided aspiration of blood-tinged fluid followed by two weeks of drainage via a transthoracic catheter. There was a near-complete resolution of the opacity and closure of the lung abscess on follow-up chest imaging. The patient clinically improved with resolution of the cough and dyspnea. Workup was negative for bacteria and acid-fast bacilli (AFB). The purpose of this paper is to review short-term and long-term management, approach, and consideration to be taken while facing a pan-negative etiological workup of a complicated abscess.

Intussusception in the Geriatric Population: A Case Report.

Recurrent abdominal pain in the adult population is a complex symptom with a broad spectrum of diagnoses. The diagnosis of intussusception in the elderly is considerably rarer than in the younger population. High clinical suspicion is required, and imaging is needed for confirmation. Here, we present and discuss the clinical course and management of an 82-year-old female who underwent small bowel resection following recurrent intussusception that was confirmed by imaging and at the time of surgery. The patient was known for having a history of polyps, and the pathology report described a large tubulovillous adenoma found on the resected small bowel specimen. The patient was discharged after surgery with complete remission. This case report intends to explore the importance of surgical intervention versus conservative management in a patient with a similar clinic presentation. This report also intends to highlight the importance of surgical intervention to prevent intussusception-related complications and reduce patient mortality further.

Pilar Cysts of the Head and Neck: A Case Report.

Pilar cysts, a subtype of sebaceous cysts, are benign masses often commonly found on the scalp, back, and face. They are common amongst women and carry a low potential for malignancy. These lesions arise due to the buildup of keratin in the skin pore, blocking the exit port of sebaceous gland secretions. The buildup of keratin material ultimately leads to cyst formation. The complications of these cysts include inflammation, rupture, infection, and transformation to cancerous lesions in some rare instances. This is a case of a 59-year-old female with a long-standing history of recurrent complicated pilar cysts who presented to the outpatient surgical clinic for assessment of cysts for removal. A total of eleven cysts were successfully removed through two separate surgeries.

Electronic Band Structure and Transport Properties of the Cluster Compound Ag3Tl2Mo15Se19.

Mo-based cluster compounds are a large class of materials with complex crystal structures that give rise to very low lattice thermal conductivity. Here, we report on the crystal structure and transport property measurements (5-800 K) of the novel Tl-filled compound Ag3Tl2Mo15Se19. This compound adopts a crystal structure described in the rhombohedral R3 c space group [ a = 9.9601(1) Å, c = 57.3025(8) Å, and Z = 6] built by the covalent arrangement of octahedral Mo6 and bioctahedral Mo9 clusters in a 1:1 ratio, with the Ag and Tl atoms filling the large cavities between them. Transport property measurements performed on polycrystalline samples indicate that this compound behaves as a heavily doped semiconductor with mixed electrical conduction. Electronic band structure calculations combined with a semiclassical approach using the Boltzmann transport equation are in good agreement with these measurements. This compound exhibits a lattice thermal conductivity as low as 0.4 W m-1 K-1 because of highly disordered Ag and Tl atoms. Because of the low thermopower values induced by the mixed electrical conduction, the dimensionless thermoelectric figure of merit ZT remains moderate with a peak value of 0.18 at 750 K.

On Fe-Fe Dumbbells in the Ideal and Real Structures of FeGa3.

The intermetallic phase FeGa3 belongs to the rare examples of substances with transition metals where semiconducting behavior is found. The necessary electron count of 17 ve/fu can be formally derived from eight Fe-Ga and one Fe-Fe two-center-two-electron bond. The situation is reminiscent of the well-known Fe2(CO)9 scenario, where a direct Fe-Fe two-center-two-electron bond was shown to not be present. Fe-Fe interaction in FeGa3 and its substitution variants represents the crucial point for explanation of electronic, thermal transport, and optical properties of this material. Chemical bonding analysis in position space of FeGa3 and Fe2(CO)9 on the basis of the topology of the electron localizability indicator distribution, QTAIM atoms, two- and three-center delocalization indices, domain natural orbitals, IQA analysis, and an evaluation of the Fe-Fe dissociation energy yields a complete picture of the partially compensated Fe-Fe bond, which is nevertheless strong enough to be of decisive importance. Structural reinvestigation of differently synthesized single crystals leads to the composition Fe1+ xGa3 (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.018), where the additional Fe atoms are predicted from DFT/PBE calculations to yield a magnetic moment of about 2 µB/Fe2 atom and metallic in-gap states. Accompanying magnetization and ESR measurements are consistent with this picture.

Enhancement of the Thermoelectric Properties of FeGa3-type Structures with Group 6 Transition Metals: A Computational Exploration.

The possible existence of group 6 TM3 compounds with T = Cr, Mo, W and M = Ga, In is investigated with the aid of density functional theory calculations. Their most probable crystal structure is expected to be of the FeGa3 type tetragonal space group P42/mnm. All compounds are computed to be semiconductors with a band gap ranging from 0.08 to 0.43 eV, at the modified Becke-Johnson level of theory. The thermoelectric properties are analyzed via calculations based on Boltzmann transport equation under a constant relaxation time approximation. Promising power factors are computed for both n- and p-type WGa3 because of a band degeneracy around the Fermi level similar to that of heavily doped PbTe and SnTe materials. If the optimal chemical potential can be reached, a thermoelectric figure of merit up to 0.6 at 800 K for both n- and p-type may be expected for WGa3.