Non-contact acquisition of brain function using a time-extracted compact camera.

A revolution in functional brain imaging techniques is in progress in the field of neurosciences. Optical imaging techniques, such as high-density diffuse optical tomography (HD-DOT), in which source-detector pairs of probes are placed on subjects' heads, provide better portability than conventional functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) equipment. However, these techniques remain costly and can only acquire images at up to a few measurements per square centimetre, even when multiple detector probes are employed.

Interference phase-contrast imaging technology without beam separation.

Interferometers are widely used in science and industry to measure small displacements, changes in refractive index, and surface irregularities. In all interferometers, including phase-contrast microscopes and DICs (differential interference contrast microscopes), light from a single source is split into two beams that travel along different optical paths. They are then recombined to produce interference.

A patient with schizophrenia presenting with post-lobotomy catatonia treated with olanzapine: a case report.

A 79-year-old Japanese woman with schizophrenia was hospitalized because of idiopathic duodenal stenosis. Three days after discontinuing ingestion, including the administration of psychotropic drugs, the patient demonstrated incoherent behaviour and strong general muscle tension, and was unable to engage in conversation. Computed tomography indicated bilateral regions of low density in the frontal lobes, subsequent to which she was diagnosed with post-lobotomy catatonia.

Clinical evaluation of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube feeding in Japanese patients with dementia.

Aim: The aim of this study was to clinically evaluate percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube feeding of elderly Japanese patients with dementia.

Method: The records of the 155 patients with dementia who underwent PEG in Juntendo Tokyo Koto Geriatric Medical Center were reviewed for pertinent clinical data, including diagnosis of dementia, place of stay before and after hospitalization, as well as survival rate, albumin levels, and incidence of aspiration pneumonia (AP) before and 6 months after PEG feeding. The latter three data of these patients were compared with those of 106 patients with dementia fed through a nasogastric (NG) tube.

Investigation of crystallization and amorphization dynamics of phase-change thin films by subnanosecond laser pulses.

We report experimental results on amorphization and crystallization dynamics of reversible phase-change (PC) thin-film samples, GeSbTe and GeBiTe, for optical disk data storage. The investigation was conducted with subnanosecond laser pulses using a pump-and-probe configuration. Amorphization of the crystalline films could be achieved with a single subnanosecond laser pulse; the amorphization dynamics follow closely the temperature kinetics induced in the irradiated spot.

T-cell malignant lymphoma of the ileum causing ileac fistulas: report of a case.

We herein present a rare case of three fistulas caused by a recurrence of T-cell lymphoma of the ileum. A 67-year-old man presented at a local hospital with left lower abdominal pain in May 1997. Upper and lower gastrointestinal examinations did not reveal any abnormal findings, but an abdominal aortic aneurysm was diagnosed by computed tomography, and thus was determined to be the source of the pain.