Real-time surveillance of left atrial appendage thrombus during contrast computed tomography imaging for catheter ablation: THe Reliability of cOMputed tomography Beyond UltraSound in THROMBUS detection (THROMBUS) study.

Left atrial contrast computed tomography (LA-CT) as well as transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) can exclude left atrial appendage (LAA) thrombus, but is sometimes unable to evaluate LAA due to incomplete LAA filling. The aim of the current study was to validate the utility of real-time approach of LA-CT with real-time surveillance of LAA-filling defect (FD). We enrolled consecutive 894 patients with LA-CT studies acquired for catheter ablation and compared the diagnostic accuracy in demonstrating LAA-FD between conventional protocol (N = 474) and novel protocol with real-time surveillance of LAA-FD immediately after the initial scanning and, when necessary, adding delayed scanning in the supine or prone position (N = 420).

Capacitive-coupling-based information transmission system for implantable devices: investigation of transmission mechanism.

Many medical electronic devices that can be implanted deep inside the body have been developed recently. These devices are designed to transmit the information that is collected inside the body to receiving antennas outside the body. In this work, we examine a method that uses a high-frequency current in the transmitting electrodes of the implanted device for the transmission of information to receiving electrodes attached to the body surface.

Oxidative stress caused by a low concentration of hydrogen peroxide induces senescence-like changes in mouse gingival fibroblasts.

Periodontal tissue deteriorates under persistent oxidative stress induced by inflammatory reactions in the microflora of the oral cavity. This study aimed to evaluate the cellular properties of mouse gingival fibroblasts (MGFs) in the presence of oxidative stress. MGFs from 10-, 30- and 52-week-old mice were used to evaluate the changes in the cellular properties with aging.

Chemical liquid deposition of aromatic poly(azomethine)s by spontaneous on-site polycondensation in aqueous solution.

Colored Schiff-base π-conjugated polymer thin films from different combinations of aromatic amines and aldehydes have been prepared. The polymer films spontaneously form under ambient conditions by simple immersion of graphite substrates in an aqueous solution containing the monomer units. Chemical liquid deposition is achieved by delicate control of solution pH, which allows surface selective polymerization and deposition but inhibits reaction in the aqueous phase.

Thermodynamically controlled self-assembly of covalent nanoarchitectures in aqueous solution.

The pursuit of methods for design and preparation of robust nanoarchitectonic systems with integrated functionality through bottom-up methodologies remains a driving force in molecular nanotechnology. Through the use of π-conjugated covalent bonds, we demonstrate a general substrate-mediated, soft solution methodology for the preparation of extended π-conjugated polymeric nanoarchitectures in low-dimensions. Based on thermodynamic control over equilibrium polymerization at the solid-liquid interface whereby aromatic building blocks spontaneously and selectively link, close-packed arrays composed of one-dimensional (1-D) aromatic polymers and two-dimensional (2-D) macromolecular frameworks have been prepared and characterized by in situ scanning tunneling microscopy.