Resonant Rectifier ICs for Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting Using Low-Voltage Drop Diode Equivalents.

Herein, we present the design technique of a resonant rectifier for piezoelectric (PE) energy harvesting. We propose two diode equivalents to reduce the voltage drop in the rectifier operation, a minuscule-drop-diode equivalent (MDDE) and a low-drop-diode equivalent (LDDE). The diode equivalents are embedded in resonant rectifier integrated circuits (ICs), which use symmetric bias-flip to reduce the power used for charging and discharging the internal capacitance of a PE transducer.

Self inflicted corneal abrasions due to delusional parasitosis.

The authors report a case of self inflicted bilateral corneal abrasions and skin damage due to ophthalmic and cutaneous delusional parasitosis. A male in his 50s presented with a 10 year history of believing that parasites were colonizing his skin and biting into his skin and eyes. The patient had received extensive medical evaluations that found no evidence that symptoms were due to a medical cause.

Differences in the self-reported reasons for adolescent drug use reported at admission vs. reported at discharge.

Unlabelled: There are several possible reasons for adolescents' alcohol and drug abuse. While genetic, social and cultural factors all play a part in influencing their behavior of using alcohol and drugs, their self-reported reasons may also offer insight into why they use. Adolescents reported using alcohol and drugs to self-medicate their emotional symptoms, due to peer-pressure or their desire to get high.

Are medical students assigning proper global assessment of functioning scores?

Objective: This article seeks to determine whether medical students can estimate the appropriate score for the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) compared with psychiatry residents and staff psychiatrists. The authors hypothesized that medical students' estimations of GAF scores for patients in clinical vignettes would differ from those assessed by the psychiatry residents and staff psychiatrists.

Method: The authors designed a cross-sectional confidential survey of medical students, psychiatry residents, and staff psychiatrists.

Use of alcoholic beverages in VA medical centers.

Background: Benzodiazepines are the first-line choice for the treatment of alcohol withdrawal syndrome. However, several hospitals continue to provide alcoholic beverages through their formulary for the treatment of alcohol withdrawal. While there are data on the prevalence of this practice in academic medical centers, there are no data on the availability of alcoholic beverages at the formularies of the hospitals operated by the department of Veteran's Affairs.

Risperidone monotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder related to sexual assault and domestic abuse in women.

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a common, chronic, and often disabling mental illness. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors are the usual first-line treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, but many patients fail to respond adequately. Thus, other treatment options, including the atypical antipsychotics such as risperidone, need to be tested.