Clustering mechanism of ethanol-water mixtures investigated with photothermal microfluidic cantilever deflection spectroscopy.

The infrared-active (IR) vibrational mode of ethanol (EtOH) associated with the asymmetrical stretching of the C-C-O bond in pico-liter volumes of EtOH-water binary mixtures is calorimetrically measured using photothermal microfluidic cantilever deflection spectroscopy (PMCDS). IR absorption by the confined liquid results in wavelength dependent cantilever deflections, thus providing a complementary response to IR absorption revealing a complex dipole moment dependence on mixture concentration. Solvent-induced blue shifts of the C-C-O asymmetric vibrational stretch for both anti and gauche conformers of EtOH were precisely monitored for EtOH concentrations ranging from 20-100% w/w.

Analysis of the acute ophthalmic manifestations of the erythema multiforme/Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis disease spectrum.

Purpose: To evaluate the epidemiology, possible etiologic factors, complications encountered, and treatment administered to a group of patients with ocular involvement in the erythema multiforme/Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis disease spectrum who were seen at two large tertiary referral centers over a 34-year period.

Methods: Hospital records from 1960 to 1994 at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children were reviewed for patients with erythema multiforme, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, or toxic epidermal necrolysis. Only patients fulfilling specific clinical diagnostic criteria and those who received a diagnosis by a dermatologist were included in the review.

Penetrating keratoplasty in atopic keratoconjunctivitis.

Penetrating keratoplasty (PK) may be required for visual rehabilitation or tectonic purposes in patients with severe keratopathy due to atopic keratoconjunctivitis (AKC). The outcome of PK is often poor in such patients because of adnexal and ocular surface abnormalities. We studied nine AKC patients requiring PK and evaluated the visual outcome and prognostic factors in 11 eyes.