[The usefulness of Doppler echocardiography in the diagnosis of neonatal Marfan's syndrome. A clinical case report]

Marfan syndrome is very rarely diagnosed in the neonate, and specific pathological and clinical findings are described in this age; cardiac involvement occurs very often, carrying severe prognosis in most patients. In the presented case the diagnosis was suspected according to clinical findings; bidimensional echocardiography showed that the most important lesion was tricuspid dysplasia and prolapse; Doppler echocardiography has contributed to explain the clinical severity, showing regurgitation of all cardiac valves and a pattern of functional tricuspid atresia. Autoptic examination has later confirmed all these findings.

A water-cooled EM applicator radiating in a phantom equivalent tissue--experiments and numerical analysis

A prototype of a water-cooled electromagnetic applicator for intracavitary hyperthermia has been tested. The temperature distributions produced in a polyacrylamide dissipative medium have been shown using liquid crystals. A complete electromagnetic and heat transfer model can predict the experimental temperatures.

[Intra-arterial diazepam. Treatment and evolution of a case]

The Authors report a case of accidental self-administration of diazepam (valium) in the brachial artery by a drug addict and describe the developments, the sequelae and the pathogenetic mechanism.

Nonambiguous determination of optical constants for absorbing materials

A recently proposed method for determining the optical constants of absorbing materials starting from reflectance measurements is analytically treated. The conditions for a nonambiguous determination of the optical constants are established. The values of the parameters satisfying these conditions are explicitly evaluated.

Electromagnetic and thermal models of a water-cooled dipole radiating in a biological tissue

An insulated, water-cooled dipole, radiating in a biological tissue, is analyzed with a theoretical electromagnetic and thermal model. The SAR and temperature distributions are calculated taking into account the effect of the water flowing inside the applicator. The steady-state temperatures in a dissipative medium, interacting with the dipole, are evaluated for several thicknesses of the external casing, water temperatures and blood perfusions. A correct design of the external casing thickness and a proper choice of the temperature and flow velocity of water allows to control the wall temperature of the applicator within physiological limits. The influence of the blood perfusion on the temperature distribution is investigated.

[Histologic analysis of intraepidermal melanocytic proliferation in the peripheral area of superficially diffused melanoma]

Histological analysis of intraepidermal melanocytic proliferation in the peripheral areas of superficial spreading melanoma. The intraepidermal melanocytic proliferation in the areas adjacent to the invasive component of 100 superficial spreading melanomas of the skin (levels III and IV) was studied. Three patterns were identified: 1) melanoma in situ type (MIS); 2) melanocytic dysplasia type (DYS); 3) normal skin or increased number of typical melanocytes (0). The different distribution of these patterns in the areas adjacent to the invasive melanoma led to a histological classification of the tumors into 4 topographical models. Two models showed MIS areas and contiguous normal skin (A1, A2); two models showed MIS areas adjacent to DYS areas, that in turn were contiguous to normal skin (B1, B2). In all cases, however, in centrifugal sense, more severe alterations preceded less severe ones. These observations suggest that superficial spreading melanoma grows horizontally by induction of neighbour cells (neoplastic recruitment). The neoplastic transformation seems to progress in two ways: directly to melanoma in situ or through an intermediate phase (melanocytic dysplasia).

[Propofol versus thiopentone. A hemodynamic study]

The authors, after a brief introduction concerning the importance of the use of NCCOM3 (Non invasive Continuous Cardiac Output Monitor) for the non invasive assessment of the haemodynamic parameters (Cardiac Output, Heart Rate, Ventricular Ejection Time, Stroke Volume), compare the haemodynamic variations induced by two types of intravenous anesthesia in 40 patients, selected at random, who underwent anesthesia for minor gynaecological procedures in the day hospital. The results obtained show that the haemodynamic variations induced by thiopentone and propofol are almost analogues until the end of surgery, while a difference, even though statistically non significant, was observed at the moment of reawakening. The authors would like to underline the synergism of two drugs and fentanyl as regards to the depressive effects on blood circulation.

Giant-cell arteritis causing severe aortic regurgitation secondary to aneurysm of the ascending aorta--a case report

This report describes a case of aneurysm of the ascending aorta with secondary, severe, aortic valve incompetence following temporal arteritis in a sixty-five-year-old woman.

Degrees of freedom for spherical scatterers

The number of degrees of freedom of the field scattered by a spherical object is evaluated, in the Born approximation, by means of the eigenfunction technique.

Quasi-homogeneous sources and geometrical optics

It is shown that the quasi-homogeneous model of a partially coherent source predicts the same optical-intensity distribution across the Fresnel and Fraunhofer regions as would be predicted by geometrical optics.

Aortic regurgitation in newborn

Clinical signs of aortic regurgitation were noted after birth in an infant who died suddenly at the age of 18 months. Congenital malformation of the aortic root with an aneurysm of the right aortic sinus and disconnection of the corresponding cusp were found at necropsy.

Holographic methods for painting diagnostics

A holographic method for detecting detached regions between the priming layers and the underlying wood support in panel paintings is described. Experimental results obtained by the application of the method both on laboratory models and on an ancient Italian panel painting are presented. The great advantages that this technique can offer to the conservation and restoration of works of art are emphasized.