Nutrition and Isolation in a Rural US Population over 80 Years Old: A Descriptive Analysis of a Vulnerable Population.

Factors allowing rural, community-dwelling 80+ year-olds to thrive remain unexplored. Isolation can impact this vulnerable population. In this study, patients were prospectively surveyed for age, gender, cohabitation (self, spouse, family) and location (suburban, rural, and isolated).

Nanoscale morphology and thermal properties of low insertion loss fiber Bragg gratings produced using the phase mask technique and a single femtosecond laser pulse.

Fiber Bragg gratings with a very low insertion loss are inscribed using the phase mask technique and a single infrared (800 nm) femtosecond laser pulse. The morphology of the resultant light-induced structural changes in the Ge-doped silica fiber (SMF-28) is analyzed using scanning electron microscopy. The electron microscopy images reveal that each Bragg grating period incorporates an elongated micropore embedded in a region of homogeneous material modification.

Delayed hemorrhage following deep brain stimulation device placement in a patient with Parkinson's disease and lupus anticoagulant syndrome: illustrative case.

Background: Treatment options for Parkinson's disease (PD) include both medical and surgical approaches. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a surgical procedure that aims to improve motor symptomatology.

Observations: A 66-year-old White male with a 9-year history of PD presented to the neurosurgery clinic for DBS consideration.

Fiber Bragg Grating Wavelength Drift in Long-Term High Temperature Annealing.

High-temperature-resistant fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) are the main competitors to thermocouples as sensors in applications for high temperature environments defined as being in the 600-1200 °C temperature range. Due to their small size, capacity to be multiplexed into high density distributed sensor arrays and survivability in extreme ambient temperatures, they could provide the essential sensing support that is needed in high temperature processes. While capable of providing reliable sensing information in the short term, their long-term functionality is affected by the drift of the characteristic Bragg wavelength or resonance that is used to derive the temperature.

Ultrafast Laser Processing of Optical Fibers for Sensing Applications.

A review of recent progress in the use of infrared femtosecond lasers to fabricate optical fiber sensors that incorporate fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) and random fiber gratings (RFG) is presented. The important advancements in femtosecond laser writing based on the phase mask technique now allow through-the-coating (TTC) fabrication of Bragg gratings in ultra-thin fiber filaments, tilted fiber Bragg gratings, and 1000 °C-resistant fiber Bragg gratings with very strong cladding modes. As an example, through-the-coating femtosecond laser writing is used to manufacture distributed fiber Bragg grating sensor arrays for oil pipeline leak detection.

Ensuring contact: calling rural Appalachian older adults during the COVID-19 epidemic.

Introduction: Older adults, especially those aged 85 years or older, remain at significantly higher risk for COVID-19. This group, along with those with pre-existing heart and lung disease and diabetes, have accounted for 80% of hospitalizations and an even higher percentage of COVID-19 related deaths in the USA. West Virginia, the only state in the USA located completely within Appalachia, has a higher percentage of elderly than all but two states in the nation.

Extreme Environment Sensing Using Femtosecond Laser-Inscribed Fiber Bragg Gratings.

The femtosecond laser-induced fiber Bragg grating is an effective sensor technology that can be deployed in harsh environments. Depending on the optical fiber chosen and the inscription parameters that are used, devices suitable for high temperature, pressure, ionizing radiation and strain sensor applications are possible. Such devices are appropriate for aerospace or energy production applications where there is a need for components, instrumentation and controls that can function in harsh environments.

Virtual intubation training at a remote military site.

To provide medical support to the far forward battlefield, training in advanced medical technologies is essential for military healthcare providers. To meet this challenge, the use of modern video communication technologies and novel medical devices can be implemented. This study demonstrates the combined use of modern video conferencing technology and video laryngoscopy equipment in the virtual laryngoscopy training of deployed military medical personnel.

The use of virtual training to support insertion of advanced technology at remote military locations.

Effective training in advanced medical technologies is essential for military healthcare providers to support the far forward battlefield. The use of modern video communication technologies and novel medical devices can be utilized for meeting this challenge. This study demonstrates the combined use of video conferencing equipment and videolaryngoscopy in the virtual training of a novice in videolaryngoscopy, nasal intubation and airway foreign body removal.

Direct evidence of tilted Bragg grating azimuthal radiation mode coupling mechanisms.

A number of useful fiber optic devices depend on being able to predict and manipulate the radiation field emitted by tilted fiber Bragg gratings. Previously we demonstrated analytically the manner in which this radiation field is directionally dependent on the phase matching characteristics of a grating's three-dimensional structure as well as the polarization dependent dipole response of the medium itself. In this paper, for the first time, experimental measurements of the out-tapped field are presented which clearly illustrate and confirm the existence of the predicted trends associated with each of these physical mechanisms.

Some symmetry-induced isotope effects in the kinetics of recombination reactions.

Symmetry-induced isotope effects in recombination and collision-induced dissociation reactions are discussed. Progress on understanding the anomalous isotope effects in ozone is reviewed. Then, calculations are performed for the simpler reaction xNe+yNe+H<-->xNeyNe+H, where x and y label either identical or different isotopes.

Multiple-beam interference patterns in optical fiber generated with ultrafast pulses and a phase mask.

We compare the cladding patterns present in grating structures fabricated with an ultrafast laser and a phase mask with a cw beam interference model. We find that the observed patterns agree well with the model results for picosecond pulses; however, for femtosecond pulses, we show that the full bandwidth and the pulsed nature of the sources must be considered because the pattern can be affected by group-velocity walk-off. An interesting consequence of order walk-off is the possibility of pure two-beam interference generation with a phase mask in the femtosecond pulse regime.

Fiber bragg gratings made with a phase mask and 800-nm femtosecond radiation.

High-quality retroreflecting fiber Bragg gratings were written in standard Ge-doped telecom fiber (Corning SMF-28) after a few minutes exposure with pulsed 800-nm, 120-fs laser radiation by use of a deep-etch silica zero-order nulled phase mask optimized for 800 nm. Induced index modulations of 1.9 x 10(-3) were achieved with peak power intensities of 1.

Falls in rural elders: an empirical study of risk factors.

Background: Our objective was to analyze and determine several risk factors of falls in the rural elderly population. Our study examined several variables believed to be positively correlated with the likelihood of an elderly person sustaining a fall.

Methods: Analysis was performed on a prospective study of 308 community-dwelling rural elders during a span of 6 years.