Method for emissivity measurement of semitransparent coatings at ambient temperature.

Coatings deposited on a material surface are effective way of changing its surface properties. For increasing or decreasing radiation heat transfer, coatings with high or low emissivity are used. Measurement of spectral emissivity is a fundamental step to effective use of coatings for this application.

Prospective Study on Salivary Evening Melatonin and Sleep before and after Pinealectomy in Humans.

Melatonin is secreted systemically from the pineal gland maximally at night but is also produced locally in many tissues. Its chronobiological function is mainly exerted by pineal melatonin. It is a feedback regulator of the main circadian pacemaker in the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nuclei and of many peripheral oscillators.

Maternal BMI and HDL as predictors of pregnancy outcome in women with type 1 diabetes.

Objective: Diabetes in pregnancy is associated with increased risks of maternal as well as foetal complications.

Methods: Retrospective data on 96 women and their 96 newborns were anonymously statistically analysed to assess pregnancies of type 1 diabetes (T1D) women managed in our hospital in past nine years. The outcomes of the neonates were divided into three categories according to the clinical status, presence of congenital abnormalities and infant's treatment.

The dynamic changes of zinc transporter 8 autoantibodies in Czech children from the onset of Type 1 diabetes mellitus.

Aims: The prevalence of autoantibodies to zinc transporter 8 (ZnT8) in Czech children at the onset of Type 1 diabetes mellitus and dynamic changes in ZnT8 autoantibody levels during disease progression were studied. The value of ZnT8 autoantibody measurements in diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes was assessed.

Methods: Serum samples from 227 children with newly diagnosed Type 1 diabetes and from 101 control children without diabetes were analysed in a retrospective cross-sectional study.

Agomelatine improves sleep in a patient with fatal familial insomnia.

A young patient with FFI was started on agomelatine 25 mg to medicate nocturnal insomnia. Under this treatment sleep efficiency was improved, slow wave sleep was high and awakenings during sleep period time were far less than before. Clinically the patient was less restless during nighttime.

Analysis of optical recording stability using wavelet entropy of action potentials.

A method based on wavelet entropy is presented for analysis of optically recorded action potentials to assess stability of the experiment. The action potentials are recorded using fluorescent voltage-sensitive dye di-4-ANEPPS by optical means. The acquired signals are preprocessed using averaging with filtered residue method and decomposed by continuous wavelet transform.

[Long-term follow-up of the health status of opiate abusers treated with methadone--pilot study].

Background: Examination of the health status of patients abusing opiates can be substantiated by their high morbidity. The aim of the work was to describe the actual health status and the extent and seriousness of the affliction before the substitution therapy with opioid receptors agonist--methadone.

Methods And Results: The group of drug abusers consisted of 101 persons (average age was 28.

Sleep and sleep-wake cycle in an 81-year-old patient with de novo ultra-rapid cycling bipolar disorder.

This is a case report of an 81-year-old man who developed de novo bipolar disorder with ultrarapid cycling at the age of 80. Mood was self-rated daily over a period of ten weeks; in addition, polysomnographic and motor activity recordings were performed during a drug-free baseline period. Both depressive and hypomanic episodes had an average duration of about 30 hours; the affective cycle was thus independent from the sleep-wake cycle.

[Temporal correlations between nocturnal spontaneous erections and sleep stages].

Early investigations on nocturnal penile tumescence (NPT) reported a close association with REM sleep; later, a less close coupling was observed under certain conditions e.g. in major depression.

Lymphocyte subpopulations in peripheral blood and malignant effusions of cancer patients.

The percentage of total T lymphocytes and helper and suppressor cells was determined in the peripheral blood and pleural and abdominal effusions of patients with advanced cancer. The ratio of helper to suppressor cells in the peripheral blood and in the effusions was calculated in each case. The percentage of total T lymphocytes and suppressor cells was found to be in a normal range.