Fe valence determination and Li elemental distribution in lithiated FeO0.7F1.3/C nanocomposite battery materials by electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS).

Electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) is a powerful technique for studying Li-ion battery materials because the valence state of the transition metal in the electrode and charge transfer during lithiation and delithiation processes can be analyzed by measuring the relative intensity of the transition metal L3 and L2 lines. In addition, the Li distribution in the electrode material can be mapped with nanometer scale resolution. Results obtained for FeO0.7F1.3/C nanocomposite positive electrodes are presented. The Fe average valence state as a function of lithiation (discharge) has been measured by EELS and results are compared with average Fe valence obtained from electrochemical data. For the FeO0.7F1.3/C electrode discharged to 1.5 V, phase decomposition is observed and valence mapping with sub-nanometer resolution was obtained by STEM/EELS analysis. For the lowest discharge voltage of 0.8 V, a surface electrolyte inter-phase (SEI) layer is observed and STEM/EELS results are compared with the Li-K edges obtained for various Li standard compounds (LiF, Li2CO3 and Li2O).

Horton giant cell arteritis of the legs. Report of a case.

Horton giant cell arteritis of the legs is a very rare and unusual occurrence. A very interesting case of acute ischemia of the right leg in a 51-year-old woman treated with emergency thromboendarterectomy is described. Histological findings led to the diagnosis of Horton giant cell arteritis and the patient was submitted to steroid and vascular therapy. Good results were obtained and follow-up after five years confirms the good general condition of the patient.

[Aneurysm of the hepatic artery. A case report]. / Aneurisma dell'arteria epatica. Descrizione di un caso clinico.

The authors describe the case of the sixty-one-year-old man admitted to hospital because of a growing jaundice that after the surgical operation proved to be caused by a compression of the PBV determined by a voluminous aneurysm of the hepatic artery. The integrity of the gastroduodenal artery made it possible to make a simple aneurysmectomy with clinic. The patient was discharged from hospital after fifteen days from the surgical operation; he was surgically healed and with normal enzymatic values. The follow-up two years after discharge confirmed a hematochemical state within normal limits.

[On the behavior of the atrioventricular valves in AV blocks. Polygraphic and echocardiographic study]. / Sul comportamento delle valvole atrio-ventricolari nei blocchi A-V. Studio poligrafico ed ecocardiografico.

By means of echocardiography, phonocardiography and jugular venous pulse recording, we have investigated 8 patients with atrio-ventricular conduction disturbances of various degrees: 4 with a first-degree AV block; 3 with complete heart block; 1 with type 1, 2nd degree AV block. The pattern of mitral valve motion at M-mode echocardiography suggests that the leaflets of the atrioventricular valves are definitively closed in diastole, only by the ventricular contraction. The simultaneous recording of echocardiogram and phonocardiogram in complete heart block seems to indicate that the increased intensity of the first heart sound is not always due to the increased velocity of valve closure, but also to the sudden vibration of the atrial floor, which is put under undue tension by the simultaneous atrial and ventricular contraction.

[Various lipoprotein fractions and their relation to ischemic heart disease]. / Le varie frazioni lipoproteiche ed i loro rapporti nella cardiopatia ischemica.

In a study carried out on over 700 patients with three different manifestations of aterosclerosis (cerebrovascular, coronary and peripheral), we could not find any statistically significant difference between the total cholesterol and triglyceride concentration in these three groups. Also, there was o difference in cholesterol and triglyceride levels between these three groups and 200 normal subjects. The same held true when we compared a selected group of 76 patients with ischaemic heart disease who had no other risk factor, with a group of 80 control subjects. On the contrary, when we compared several fractions of serum lipoproteins and the ratios of apolipoprotein A to Apolipoprotein B, LDL Cholesterol to HDL Cholesterol, and total Cholesterol to HDL Cholesterol of the two groups, the differences were statistically significant. We conclude that when other risk factors are excluded, the protein component, rather than the lipid component of the plasma lipoproteins correlates the presence of coronary artery disease.