Black Silk Research Articles

A comparative microbiological study of polyglycolic acid and silk sutures in oral surgical procedures.

Bacterial adherence to silk and polyglycolic acid suture is similar. Literature has shown bacterial adhesion is lower degree in polyglycolic acid suture compared to silk, but tissue reaction was more in the polyglycolic acid suture. The aim of the study was to compare the bacteria adhered on the silk and polyglycolic acid sutures. Sixty-two patients who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were included in the study and were divided equally into group A and group B. After intraoral surgical procedures the operated site was sutured either with 3-0 black silk or 3-0 polyglycolic acid sutures in group A and B respectively. On seventh day after irrigation with normal saline sutures were removed and one suture strand was transported to the Department of Microbiology to inoculate and identify the bacteria. 3-0 black silk exhibited a high degree of aerobic bacteria. The bacteria identified on the suture were Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus viridians, Enterobacter, Escherichia coli, Citrobacter and Klebsiella. In 3-0 polyglycolic acid suture Pseudomonas aeruginosa, E. coli, Streptococcus viridians bacteria were identified. PGA showed fewer bacterial adherences compared to black silk. Fewer bacterial adherence and resorbable PGA makes a better choice for intra oral surgical procedures.

LA Perse by Cristobal Balenciaga: An Historical, Scientific and Conservation Study

The Kunstmuseum Den Haag (hereafter KMDH) in the Netherlands holds one of four known La Perse Cristóbal Balenciaga jackets made in 1946. Previously owned by the opera singer Else Rijkens (1898–1953), the bolero-style jacket is richly hand-embroidered and constructed from white satin silk in the front and a contrasting black crepe silk in the back. The jacket has a matching toque, and a black crepe silk evening gown is visible under the two white satin silk bands at the front of the bolero, completing the set. La Perse is now considered one of the most emblematic pieces that Cristóbal Balenciaga made after the Second World War, with its rich hand-embroidery traditionally attributed by different fashion experts to the Lesage atelier. Through international collaborations between museums, conservators, curators, and cultural research institutions, this research will suggest that this attribution is inaccurate. The jacket has been part of the KMDH collection since 1956, but conservation issues with the embroidery motifs were not identified until 2020. Conservation research and historical interpretation were carried out in close collaboration between KMDH and the Instituto Valenciano de Conservación, Restauración e Investigación de Bienes Culturales in Spain (here after IVCR + i). The resulting data, collated with comparisons with embroidery samples found at the Musée des Arts décoratifs in Paris (hereafter MAD), as well as the assistance of the Balenciaga archives and of the historical embroidery house Hurel, leads to the conclusion that the embroidery work was made not by Lesage but by the notable embroidery house Rébé.

Efficacy of platelet rich fibrin in osseous regeneration after periapical surgeries

Efficacy of platelet rich fibrin in osseous regeneration after periapical surgeries - IJASHNB- Print ISSN No: - 2581-5210 Online ISSN No:- 2581-5229 Article DOI No:- 10.18231/j.ijashnb.2021.006, IP Indian Journal of Anatomy and Surgery of Head, Neck and Brain-IP Indian J Anat Surg Head Neck Brain

English

BACKGROUND The external iliac artery passes behind the inguinal ligament into the front of the thigh as the femoral artery (FA). The FA gives off many branches both superficial and deep. The profunda femoris artery (PFA) is one of the deep branches given off in the femoral triangle in front of the thigh. The PFA gives off the medial circumflex femoral artery (MCFA) and the lateral circumflex femoral arteries (LCFA) and continues downwards giving off the first, second and third perforating arteries. The PFA terminates as the fourth perforating artery. Many variations in the circumflex branches of the PFA have been found by various authors. These variations are of great significance during procedures done in front part of the thigh. METHODS This is a descriptive cadaveric study. We dissected the thighs of 57 embalmed bodies. We looked for the medial (MCFA) and lateral (LCFA) circumflex arteries which are branches of PFA. Each artery was followed till its termination. The distance of their origin from the point of the origin of PFA from the FA was measured and noted. The distance between pubic symphysis and anterior superior iliac spine was measured using black silk and measuring scale. The midpoint was marked using skin marking pen and an incision extending from anterior superior iliac spine to pubic symphysis was made. Another incision was made from the above midpoint to the midpoint of a horizontal incision at the level of knee joint. Femoral sheath was identified and incised. Femoral artery, profunda femoris artery and its circumflex branches were identified. The modes of origin of MCFA and LCFA were noted. The distance of origin of these from the origin of PFA were measured. Variations in the branching pattern of MCFA and LCFA were looked for and noted down. RESULTS We found that in 83 % of the total cases MCFA took origin from PFA and its origin was from the FA in 13 %. In 84 % of total cases LCFA arose from PFA on the right side and 70 % on the left side. A common stump of origin was noted in 3 cases. CONCLUSIONS Medial and lateral circumflex branches of PFA exhibit wide variations. KEY WORDS Medial Circumflex Femoral Artery, Lateral Circumflex Femoral Artery, Variations in Origin and Branching

Dehiscence rate in wound closed with cyanoacrylate and black braided silk after surgical removal of impacted third molar: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

AbstractAimTo perform a systematic review and meta‐analysis of dehiscence rate in wound closed with cyanoacrylate and black braided silk after surgical removal of impacted third molar.Materials and MethodsThis review is based on PRISMA guidelines and the review protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42019097294). An electronic search of PubMed (Medline), Google Scholar, Cochrane database, EbSCOhost, cross referencing and hand search of journals was carried out. The studies published in English literature from 1 January 2008 to 31 March 2019, where wound closure was done using black braided silk suture and cyanoacrylate following third molar surgery, and those reporting dehiscence rate after a minimum follow‐up of 7 days, were included. The event of occurrence of dehiscence in the two groups was used to calculate the risk ratio using the random effects model (Mantel–Haenszel model) at 95% CI.ResultsOf the 309 articles, three unique studies were identified for the review. Of these, two were randomized controlled trials. A total of 190 patients were included in these three trials. Total of seven events of dehiscence were observed in the cyanoacrylate group as compared to eight in the suture group. The meta‐analysis results indicate that there was no statistically significant difference in the dehiscence rate, RR 0.74, 95% CI (0.13–4.13), with a heterogeneity of I2 = 56%.ConclusionThere is no difference in the dehiscence rate of wound closed with cyanoacrylate and black braided silk suture.

A cadaveric study on the variations of the profunda femoris artery in South India

Background: The knowledge of the variations in the branching patterns of the arteries in the femoral triangle is important to avoid iatrogenic injury to the vessels during clinical procedures.
 Aims and Objectives: The study was designed to explore the varying positions of the origin of the profunda femoris artery from the femoral artery.
 Materials and Methods: We have dissected the thighs of 60 embalmed bodies. The midpoint between the anterior superior iliac spine and the pubic symphysis was marked (midinguinal point). The distance of the point of origin of profunda femoris artery (PFA) from the femoral artery (FA) to the midinguinal point (MIP) was measured by black silk thread and scale. The relation of PFA to FA at its origin was noted.
 Results: In the majority of the cases, the PFA was found to arise posterolaterally from the FA. In 63.3% of the cases, PFA was found to arise posterolaterally from the FA, while in 21.5% of cases it took origin laterally from it. In majority of the cases, the PFA arose at a distance of 3-6 cms from midinguinal point while a considerable number originated more distally.
 Conclusion: PFA exhibits significant variations. Posterolateral origin from FA was the most common mode of origin.

Elizabeth Blackwell: breaching the barriers for women in medicine

On Jan 23, 1849, the Presbyterian Church in Geneva, a small town on the shore of Seneca Lake in upstate New York, USA, was packed to the rafters. Women in stiff bonnets and men in frock coats watched attentively as young men approached the podium in groups of four to receive their medical diplomas from the president of Geneva College. Then last of all, a woman, dressed in a black silk gown, walked alone to the front. “You might have heard a pin drop”, said one eye witness. The president rose to his feet for the first time, solemnly handed the certificate to the young woman, and then bowed.

The Noble Nest by I. S. Turgenev: Poetics of Costume

The costume which has recently become the focus of many scientific disciplines has hardly attracted literary critics: the methodology of its research in fiction is just beginning to take shape. The historical and cultural approach, which essentially boils down to a commentary has been replaced by a very productive structural and semiotic approach that deciphers the semantics and functions of the costume. The methodology of our research is of a complex nature, combining the structural-semiotic, mythopoetic, and motivic aspects of the analysis of literary texts. The narratological aspect in the study of costume poetics is emphasized, which, as a rule, remains outside the scope of research.The narratological aspect is aimed at identifying “flickering” meanings in the structure of the whole – “prose as poetry” (V. Schmid).The dynamics of costume descriptions, their functionality in the structure of the whole and the specifics in the organization of the narrative (taking into account the “point of view”, the motive given by costume details and based on semantic nodes that connect polar meanings, etc.) are at the center of our research.Thanks to costume inclusions, the text of the novel The Noble Nest becomes multidimensional. Thus, the characterological detail of Panshin – a screw-shaped Golden ring is situational and at the same time conceptual: it connects the “beginnings” and “ends” of his story, symbolically programming fate. Laconic sketches of Lavretsky’s clothing, scattered throughout the text, formalizing the opposition of one’s own/ another’s, prepare a motif of loneliness and homelessness. In layered narrative created by the play of the author’s and character’s points of view, Lavretsky’s point of view “migrates” to the author’s one replacing it (“poetic” sign of the optics of the hero) and then separates from it. The content of the method of crushing, which replaced the silhouette image, is an expression of the confusion of the soul, deforming the female image. The details in Lavretsky’s “split” point of view are ambiguous: on the one hand, there is alienation, on the other hand, there is a subconscious attraction to the beloved woman in the primary, unreflexed sense of a person losing happiness. The novel’s flickering meaning is created by semantic nodes that match polarities. “White” is the symbolic color of the national, rooted in the soil (the white caps of Marfa Timofeevna and Nastasya Karpovna), and at the same time the ghostly, impossible realization of happiness (the rhyming white dress of Lisa and the white dress on the portrait of Lavretsky’s mother). “Black” is also ambivalent: the elegant black silk dress of Varvara Pavlovna and the unnamed color of Lisa’s monastic clothes in the Epilogue. The scarf that Marfa Timofeevna knits is a mythologeme that encodes the story of love and failed happiness and at the same time the semantic core of the poetics of incompleteness. Keywords: costume, costume poetics, mythologeme, narrative, semantics, point of view

Reconstruction of Anterior Skull Base Fracture Using Autologous Fractured Fragments: A Simple Stitching-Up Technique.

ObjectiveA displaced fracture in the anterior cranial base may be complicated by cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) rhinorrhea and enophthalmos. This study introduces a reconstruction technique with direct dural repair and reduction and fixation of the autologous fractured fragments.MethodsDisplaced fractures in the anterior cranial base were reconstructed using a stitching-up technique: A bicoronal scalp incision and frontal craniotomy was performed and the displaced bone was withdrawn. The lacerated dura was repaired primarily using a graft. Small holes were created in the intact cranial bones and the displaced harvest bone. Black silk was passed through the holes and the displaced bone was repositioned on tying the silk. Lumbar drain was not placed in any of the cases. The feasibility and outcome were evaluated.ResultsFive patients with displaced skull fractures of the anterior cranial base were included. All cases were men who had a direct impact on the forehead and/or eye. All the displaced fractures occurred in the orbital roof, and ethmoid bone fractures were present in 4 cases. Dural laceration was involved in 4 cases and repaired by placing artificial dura in 3 cases and a pericranial graft in 1 case. Following surgery, all cases were uneventful, and the anterior cranial fossa was well reconstructed. CSF leakage or enophthalmos did not occur in any of the cases.ConclusionDirect dural repair and autologous stitching-up reconstruction using the fractured fragment could be an effective method to prevent CSF leakage and enophthalmos in displaced fractures of the anterior cranial base.

This Time Is Different: Bitcoin Has More Reasons to Reach the Price of $100,000

Since its debut in January 2009 as the first successful cryptocurrency, Bitcoin has been associated with both extreme volatility and illicit activities (i.e. the black market website Silk Road) linked to terrorism-financing, money-laundering, illegal drugs and human trafficking. But this time is different and Bitcoin has more reasons to reach an unmatched price of $100,000 and $1,000,000 afterwards if governments of advanced nations along with that of China stops running headlong into backlash to the alpha Bitcoin and its prodigies (altcoins). Aside from the regulatory uncertainty, Bitcoin must improve design related flaws of its blockchain; as such, electric-intensive mining process; low scalability (i.e. block size limit of 1 megabyte and frequency block creation time of 10 minutes); proof-of-work - PoW (i.e. high latency, very costly and inefficient way of using resources); low transaction processing speed (i.e. between 3.3 and 7 transactions per second, compared with Ethereum’s 25, Ripple’s 1,500, OES’ 3,000, and Visa’s 25,000); and low security (i.e. the majority of mining is controlled by a handful of mining pools known as bitcoin cartels, which can rewrite an alternative financial history if 51% of the computing power is controlled by them). During the past decade (since 2013), the price of bitcoin has witnessed erotic price movements; when bitcoin passed the $1,000 mark (first bubble), the price rose from $196 in October 2013 to $1,155 in November 2013 and then plunged back to $227 in January 2015; company executives, hedge fund managers, media figures, and some celebrities have said the following about Bitcoin; “it is worse than tulip bulb”, “avoid Bitcoin like a plague”, “unlike stocks and bonds, has nothing to offer”, “will make central banks lose control”, “very iffy”, “Ponzi scheme”, “an unfounded fad (or even a pyramid scheme)”, “does not meet functions of money such as medium of exchange, store of value, and unit of account”, “a lot of froth and fraud.” Bitcoin phenomenon is nothing like the dot.com bubble or the 17th century Dutch tulipmania; while Bitcoin is still around and stronger than before, the antecedents that it is often compared with ceased to exist. Similar criticism keeps emerging every time Bitcoin breaks new price records, i.e. $20,089 on 17 December 2017, $32,052 on 3 January 2021, $40,846 on 6 February 2021, $50,341 on 16 February 2021, $61,221 on 14 March 2021, and finally $64,863 on 14 April 2021 (dropped to $28,893 on June 22, 2021). Conventional money will not disappear anytime soon, but at the same time, Bitcoin will continue to forge ahead unabated regardless of ongoing efforts to kill it off.

Особенности калмыцкого письменного языка XIX в. (на материале калмыцких писем И. Я. Шмидта (1800–1810 гг.))

Introduction. The article examines some phonetic and morphological features of the Kalmyk language traced in written monuments published by the famous Mongolists John Krueger and Robert Service in the ‘Kalmyk Old-Manuscript Documents of Isaac Jacob Schmidt’ (2002). The book presents facsimiles, transcriptions and translations of epistolary documents into English, which cover the period from 1800 to 1810. Most of the letters — 54 out of 80 — reflect correspondence with the Baga Dorbet Princes Tundutovs, including 18 from Erdeni Taisha, 27 from Tsebek, and 9 more from Jamba Taisha. These written monuments are kept in the archives of the Moravian Brothers Community in Herrnhut (Unitas Fratrum, Eng. ‘United Brothers’) in folder R.15.R.IIa No. 5. Goals. The paper aims at investigating some phonetic and morphological features of the then Kalmyk language discovered in the published letters. Results. The language of I. H. Schmidt’s letters reflects the stage in the development of the Kalmyk language in the late 18th – early 19th centuries characterized by a natural convergence of the phonetic and grammatical norms inherent to the written literary language and living folk speech. The materials of the texts show that the beginning of the 19th century witnessed a process of transition of the combinations -ou and -öü into the long vowels [u:] and [ü:], respectively. It is also noted that in words where the diphthong -iu is historically (traditionally) used, e.g., in the word alčiur — in letters it is transmitted as alčuur, which meets the requirements of live pronunciation. In the language of letters of I. J. Schmidt, when it comes to construct the imperative form of the 2nd person plural, several cases of using the colloquial formant -tan are recorded, instead of the traditional indicator -qtün / -qtun. The past participle, which is historically formed with -qsan / -qsen affixes, also approaches colloquial forms, therefore, there are frequent cases of using -san / -sen forms, which are closer to modern Kalmyk (e.g., xara torγon irsen bolxuna ‘if the black silk arrives’). Linguistic processes associated with the reduction of short vowels of non-first syllables of a word, reduction of morphological formants, etc., are reflected to a greater or lesser extent in the text of the studied monument. Conclusions. Thus, the language of I. Ya. Schmidt’s letters reflects the stage of development of the Kalmyk language at the end of the 18th – beginning of the 19th centuries characterized by a natural convergence of phonetic and grammatical norms of the written literary language and living folk speech.

Selective One-Dimensional 13C-13C Spin-Diffusion Solid-State Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Methods to Probe Spatial Arrangements in Biopolymers Including Plant Cell Walls, Peptides, and Spider Silk.

Two-dimensional (2D) and 3D through-space 13C-13C homonuclear spin-diffusion techniques are powerful solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) tools for extracting structural information from 13C-enriched biomolecules, but necessarily long acquisition times restrict their applications. In this work, we explore the broad utility and underutilized power of a chemical shift-selective one-dimensional (1D) version of a 2D 13C-13C spin-diffusion solid-state NMR technique. The method, which is called 1D dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR) difference, is applied to a variety of biomaterials including lignocellulosic plant cell walls, microcrystalline peptide fMLF, and black widow dragline spider silk. 1D 13C-13C spin-diffusion methods described here apply in select cases in which the 1D 13C solid-state NMR spectrum displays chemical shift-resolved moieties. This is analogous to the selective 1D nuclear Overhauser effect spectroscopy (NOESY) experiment utilized in liquid-state NMR as a faster (1D instead of 2D) and often less ambiguous (direct sampling of the time domain data, coupled with increased signal averaging) alternative to 2D NOESY. Selective 1D 13C-13C spin-diffusion methods are more time-efficient than their 2D counterparts such as proton-driven spin diffusion (PDSD) and dipolar-assisted rotational resonance. The additional time gained enables measurements of 13C-13C spin-diffusion buildup curves and extraction of spin-diffusion time constants TSD, yielding detailed structural information. Specifically, selective 1D DARR difference buildup curves applied to 13C-enriched hybrid poplar woody stems confirm strong spatial interaction between lignin and acetylated xylan polymers within poplar plant secondary cell walls, and an interpolymer distance of ∼0.45-0.5 nm was estimated. Additionally, Tyr/Gly long-range correlations were observed on isotopically enriched black widow spider dragline silks.

Structural Characterization of Black Widow Spider Dragline Silk Proteins CRP1 and CRP4.

Spider dragline silk represents a biomaterial with outstanding mechanical properties, possessing high-tensile strength and toughness. In black widows at least eight different proteins have been identified as constituents of dragline silk. These represent major ampullate spidroins MaSp1, MaSp2, MaSp’, and several low-molecular weight cysteine-rich protein (CRP) family members, including CRP1, CRP2, and CRP4. Molecular modeling predicts that CRPs contain a cystine slipknot motif, but experimental evidence to support this assertion remains to be reported. To advance scientific knowledge regarding CRP function, we recombinantly expressed and purified CRP1 and CRP4 from bacteria and investigated their secondary structure using circular dichroism (CD) under different chemical and physical conditions. We demonstrate by far-UV CD spectroscopy that these proteins contain similar secondary structure, having substantial amounts of random coil conformation, followed by lower levels of beta sheet, alpha helical and beta turn structures. CRPs are thermally and pH stable; however, treatment with reagents that disrupt disulfide bonds impact their structural conformations. Cross-linking mass spectrometry (XL-MS) data also support computational models of CRP1. Taken together, the chemical and thermal stability of CRPs, the cross-linking data, coupled with the structural sensitivity to reducing agents, are experimentally consistent with the supposition CRPs are cystine slipknot proteins.

Harm Joy

Harm Joy Leena Soman Navani (bio) Nanda put on her old shooting uniform: black silk camisole, tuxedo blazer, skinny jeans and a pair of black patent leather kitten heels. She felt long and regal. The only thing missing was her camera. She dug it out of the closet from behind the walker her mother had used for a time. She hadn’t taken a photo, or applied make-up and styled her hair for that matter, aside from the funeral, in almost a year. It was winter, and the world was a palette of greys, from the bleak sky to the salted streets. She arrived at the local country club twenty minutes early to get a feel for the lighting. The still, heated air inside dried her eyes worse than the wind. Though recently renovated, the space featured the same elaborate chandeliers and even more elaborately patterned rugs she remembered from prom. In the back courtyard was a three-tiered granite garden fountain without a single drop of water spilling, sprinkling, or splashing over its curves, suspended for winter. She took a picture of it through the glass doors of the ballroom. She had spotted the event on Facebook the night before and knew she had to go. Facebook told her that seven of her Facebook friends were attending. Four were interested, and many more old high school acquaintances sent their regrets in the comments. Nanda called her friend and former boss, Jonathan, who still ran the small local paper after all these years, and offered to work the event just like her intern days more than eleven years prior. She had just returned to her childhood home in Jersey from India, where she went to scatter her mother’s ashes. She and her mom had spread her father’s ashes along the Ganges a decade before that, so this time, she knew the drill. Nanda was as relieved to be back as she was daunted by the project ahead—selling her childhood home—so the event was more than a distraction. It was dessert before dinner. Actually, it was your basic fundraiser, and Nanda had laughed aloud at the cause, sitting alone at the kitchen table where she used to do her homework. She read it over and over and over again before calling Jon: The Rafaela Rossetti Leone Family Fund. That big old fat cruller of a word that she couldn’t pronounce, but could spell, scrolled through her mind like a screensaver: SCHADENFREUDE. So rare for her, and delectable. She didn’t regularly find pleasure in others’ misfortune. But this was Raffie Rossetti. Each new detail of Raffie’s paralysis sparked in Nanda a sugary glee. Athletic injuries, like diving in shallow water, caused about 9% of spinal cord injuries, whereas car and motorcycle accidents accounted for more than 35% new spinal cord injuries each year. Diving into a pool, emerging broken, but more human—too poetic for the likes of Raffie Rossetti, too much like baptism, the stuff of Americana summer fun. But a trampoline accident was just too good. So grossly suburban, so new money. So terribly unnecessary. In some ways, it was what they all deserved for their reckless consumption, their need for constant pleasure and convenience. That it happened to Raffie was almost too good to be true. [End Page 24] Nanda’s mother’s protracted death—the stuff of torture porn—had convinced her that there was no poetry to life, but maybe there was some poetic justice after all. ________ At the entrance, she took a photo of the poster-size photo of Raffie pre-accident that presided over the lobby. Raffie’s hair was still chestnut with butter blonde highlights, and her eyebrows over-plucked over two heavily lined mineral eyes, slate flecked with green and amber. She no longer sported the fake bake tan that left her the color of a Creamsicle throughout high school. But now as then, her teeth were terrifyingly white despite the packs of cigarettes she smoked. There had been rumors that Raffie’s mom was the kind of mom that bought them for her kids by the carton. Bottom line: she was still pretty...

Tensile Strength of Novel Nonabsorbable PTFE (Teflon®) versus Other Suture Materials: An In Vitro Study.

Objective To compare the in vitro tensile strength of sutures used in implant surgery according to the type of thread and the immersion time in artificial saliva. Methods For the development of the study, three suture materials were used: polyglactin 910 (PG), black silk (BS), and Teflon (PTFE) 4-0; 150 samples were used, which were divided among each type of suture and then subdivided into five groups of 10 according to the various immersion times (baseline, 3, 7, 14, and 21 days) in artificial saliva. A universal test machine was used to measure the tensile strength at a speed of 25 cm/min, stretch each sample until the material fails, and record the maximum strength in Newtons (N). Finally, the failure point of the samples was evaluated at 10× increase using a stereromicroscope (Leica Biosystems). Results When analyzing the tensile strength of the various groups of sutures, it was evidenced that PG maintained its strength, which was lowest at baseline and highest at 21 days. When performing the statistical inference of PG and PTFE, it was found that the force necessary to achieve detachment was not statistically significant (p < 0.05). However, it was shown that the force necessary to achieve rupture in the BS group was statistically significant (p=0.001). Conclusion To sum up, when comparing the in vitro tensile strength of PG, BS, and PTFE sutures at baseline and 3, 7, 14, and 21 days, there was no statistically significant difference. This indicates that all sutures used present sufficient performance that remains resistant as time progresses.

Duodenal injuries in blunt trauma abdomen: a retrospective analysis

Background: Blunt trauma to abdomen very rarely produces isolated duodenal injuries and are to the tune of 3-5%. They are associated with high morbidity and mortality because of the diagnostic delay and missed diagnosis. The aim of this study is to discuss the mode of presentation, investigations and treatment options of isolated duodenal injuries in blunt trauma abdomen.Methods: Retrospective analysis of patients with blunt trauma abdomen who presented to surgical department at government medical college, Kozhikode, Kerala was done. Those who sustained isolated duodenal injuries from January 2010 to 2016 January were included in this study. Complex biliopancreatic, bowel and vascular injuries were excluded.Results: For the single D2 injury, primary closure in 2 layers with 2-0 vicryl and 3-0 braided black silk was done with an omental wrap. The D3 and D4 injuries, limited resection of the unhealthy perforated segment including D3 and D4 were done followed by an end to end duodeno jejunostomy and duodenal exclusion by anterior gastrojejunostomy. Leak test was performed, feeding jejunostomy was done.Conclusions: Isolated duodenal injuries due to blunt trauma abdomen are very rare and should be suspected in patients presenting with upper abdominal pain and vomiting after trauma. CECT abdomen helps to detect it. The time interval between the onset and definitive intervention greatly influences the morbidity and mortality in these injuries.

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF LOWER POLE LIGATION IN TONSILLECTOMY

OBJECTIVE: Hemorrhage following tonsillectomy has always been a serious problem. Recently several techniques, devices and materials have been developed to reduce the intra-operative and post-operative blood loss but still no optimal methods have emerged. In this study we assessed the effectiveness of lower pole ligation in tonsillectomy ensuring the hemostasis and preventing the post-operative hemorrhage in early and late stages.&#x0D; MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a hospital based retrospective study performed in the department of ENT, Aziz Fatima Hospital (Medical College) and Faisal Hospital Faisalabad from May 2014 to June 2017. During this period 310 patients underwent tonsillectomy using COLD DISSECTION TECHNIQUE. Inferior pole was ligated by Negus artery forceps as close to its junction with the lingual tonsils ensuring no tissue remnants are left and knot applied by Negus ligature carrier with Black Silk #1. Bipolar diathermy was used for tonsillar bed hemostasis. Follow-up was continued for the next 4 weeks.&#x0D; RESULTS: Out of 310 patients undergoing the procedure only 2 presented with reactionary hemorrhage. One of them presented after 3 hours and the cause of bleeding was appreciated as slipping of the knot from the lower pole which was shifted to OT and ligated again using the Silk # 1. Second patient presented after 2 hours with mild reactionary hemorrhage and the site was not from the lower pole, but diffuse oozing from the tonsillar bed which was conservatively dealt by cold sponging and ice cold gargles. Out of 310 only 1 patient presented after 3 weeks with secondary hemorrhage which was treated by broad spectrum antibiotics.&#x0D; CONCLUSION: The use of lower pole ligation in tonsillectomy affords efficient and practical hemostasis. The procedure is inexpensive and requires no special and refined equipment. The anterior and posterior tonsillar pillars remained intact thus the functional anatomy was preserved.

Corresponding relation between PL of multicrystalline silicon wafers and solar cell efficiency

Various market factors (e.g., anti-dumping and anti-bribery, subsidy retreat, etc.) have accelerated technology upgrading and cost efficiency of PV industry. Improving conversion efficiency is an effective way to reduce cost. Mainstream silicon manufacturers are intensifying research and development of next generation high-efficiency multicrystalline silicon wafer that is of higher efficiency. It is essential to obtain the cell efficiency parameters at silicon wafer-side. This work analyzes the relationship between PL image parameters of multicrystalline silicon measured by photoluminescence tester (PL) and the corresponding cell conversion efficiency, and the relationship between parameters of PL image and cells. Firstly, an analysis software is independently compiled to analyze the black silk and normalized intensity parameters of PL image, with the numerical results of the corresponding silicon wafers calculated. Selected high efficiency multicrystalline silicon bricks are cut into silicon wafers of 190 μm thickness, which are put to tests sequentially on the PL images of multicrystalline silicon wafers and then made into solar cells. The producing process of solar cells includes ordinary acid texturing, diffusion, removal of phosphosilicon silicon glass (PSG), plasma chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), screen printing, etc. Then cell efficiency and V oc parameters thereof are tested, with the correspondence between cell efficiency and parameters thereof and the PL parameters. The experimental data show that the tail is mainly affected by large grain boundaries and high impurity content. The correlation deviation of the cell efficiency, normalized strength of V oc and PL images, and black silk ratio parameters are greater than those of the middle section and the head. The black silk ratio is low, and its solar cells efficiency and V oc are high. The normalized strength of PL images is high, and its solar cells efficiency and V oc are high. But the normalized strength of PL images and V oc of cell have strong correlation with black silk ratio of PL images, and the normalized strength and black silk ratio of PL images have weak correlation with cell conversion efficiency. The reason is that material properties of PL photoluminescence test silicon are related to the corresponding cell V oc, and cell conversion efficiency is affected by many factors: texture, diffusion, coating processes, etc. In this paper, the expression of normalized strength of PL and cell V oc is deduced based on the semiconductor correlation principle. It is proved that the normalized strength of PL is strongly correlated with that of cell V oc in principle. The normalized strength of PL obtained by the analysis has the closest correlation with the quality of multicrystalline silicon wafers, which can be better used to guide the quality improvement of multicrystalline silicon wafers.

Clinical and experimental Study to evaluate the effect of Biphasic calcium phosphate collagen composite (cpcc) on healing of bone defects after oral surgical procedures

Background: A recent discoveries used for reconstruction in maxillofacial surgery is the composite bone graft materials. The availability of collagen I matrix make our choice to use this material in surgery .It is biomaterials that its structure could be modified by simple techniques. Studies to find a new materials use for bone reconstruction is to overcome the disadvantages of autogenous bone and the synthetic resorbable bone substitutes.&#x0D; Objectives: This study was done to evaluate the effect of biphasic calcium phosphate collagen composite (ccpc) on healing of bone defects after oral surgical procedures.&#x0D; Type of the study: A cross sectional study.&#x0D; Method: It involved 60 patients, 35 male and 25 female, age (15-40) yearsand experimental animals study involved sixty rabbits.The study was done in Department of Maxillofacial surgery in Al anbarCollege of Dentistry (2015-2016).These patients were received tooth extraction, and other minor surgical procedures .Clinical and radiographical examination and patients consents are done before surgery. The surgery was done under local anesthesia.The resulting bone cavities are filled with composite bone graft material composed from combination of lyophilized hydrolysed collagen sponge (Hemospon),Brasil and Osteon II bone graft material,Korea .The area is closed with 3/0 block silk suture .Antibiotic cover (Ampicillin 500mg ×4) for 1 week was prescribed. The patients were followed up by careful clinical examination with radiograph 15-30 days after surgery. .Sixty New Zeleandi White rabbit were used in our study for histopathologicalexamination.Intraperitoneal injection of ketamine 10 mg with XYL-M2 solution 20 mg xylazine base used to anesthetize the animals. (5mm diameter) bone defects were made using straight surgical hand piece and bur in anterior mandibular region and filled with each material. The study design involve the following groups: group 1( involve 15 rabbit; the defect was made and filled with blood clot only (control group),group 2( involve 15 rabbit, the defect was made and filled with collagen sponge only),group 3(Involve 15 rabbit, the defect was made and filled with Osteon II bone graft only),group4( involve 15 rabbit, the defect was made and filled with Osteon II bone graft +collagen (Composite bone graft).The flap were closed 3/0 black silk suture. The rabbits were killed after 30 days. 10 cmexcisional biopsy specimen was taken from the paramandibular area and placed in 10%formalin then send histopathologicalexamination.&#x0D; Results: Clinically, the treated area show good healing with absence of infection .Radiographs during follow up period show radiopacity indicating new bone formation .The results of experimental animals (Rabbits) indicategrowth new bone . In group 1 and group2, the center of the defects was depressed by surrounding tissues Eung et al, While, in group 3&amp;group 4, the graft materials maintained the space and the center of the defect did not depress. Statistical analysis indicates that during 4 th week ,the highest healing % is (100%) in group 3 &amp;group4 in compared to control group (50%)..A significant difference in healing % was found among the treated groups.&#x0D; Conclusion:The result indicates that biphasic calcium phosphate collagen composite can be efficiently utilized clinically.

Elizabeth Gaskell’s Cranford: Performing Masculinity

Elizabeth Gaskell’s Cranford: Performing Masculinity Carolyn Lambert (bio) Cranford (1853) is difficult to define in terms of genre. It began, as Elizabeth Gaskell notes, as “one paper in Household Words” (Chapple and Pollard 535), and she had no intention of writing further pieces.1 The nine instalments that make up Cranford appeared irregularly, yet the whole is a remarkably coherent narrative, although falling far short of the length of [End Page 177] the three-volume novel. Various terms were used in the nineteenth century to describe shorter fiction, such as “sketch,” “tale,” and “story.” The volatility of the genre is further complicated by the inclusion of semi-fictionalized travel accounts, reworkings of oral or folk tales, and translations and adaptations of French and German stories. The length of these pieces also varied widely, leading Henry James to describe the Victorian short story disparagingly as a Gladstone bag into which anything could be crammed. This “notoriously slippery form,” as Jenny Bourne Taylor notes (240), nevertheless became a vital crucible for the forging of narrative technique and experimentation. For the purposes of this essay, Cranford is considered a piece of shorter fiction in which Gaskell used the lack of critical attention paid to the short story to try out narrative themes; to experiment with form, tone, and the mixing of genres; and to explore issues on the cultural and social margins—in particular, her interest in issues of gender. Cranford is replete with images that subvert and disrupt conventional nineteenth-century concepts of masculinity. The Industrial Revolution, which destabilized social and cultural norms, precipitated a complex set of debates about what constituted masculinity, manliness, and gentlemanliness within a patriarchal context that sought to establish clarity around struggles for self-definition. In Cranford, Gaskell uses Peter Jenkyns, the rector’s son, to expose how confining behaviour within rigid cultural rules distorts and damages both individuals and wider society. The text traces the effects of excessively constrained expectations across the lifetime of members of the Jenkyns family, offering, as Caroline Jackson-Houlston notes, “a critique of Victorian gender ideology through a unique combination of social observation and authorial irony” (17). Images of cross-dressing appear early in the narrative, on the third page of the first instalment of Cranford, which opens Household Words for 13 December 1851—the instalment that Gaskell had planned as a single, stand-alone story without the expectation of a sequel. Miss Betsy Barker’s Alderney cow falls into a lime-pit and loses all her hair. Captain Brown, who has flustered the ladies of Cranford by his “invasion of their territories” (167), facetiously recommends dressing the cow in “a flannel waistcoat and flannel drawers” (168). Miss Betsy Barker is delighted with this suggestion, which she carries out without delay, thus cross-dressing her naked female cow as a Victorian male. Female authority is reasserted when Miss Deborah Jenkyns attends Captain Brown’s funeral dressed in a “hybrid bonnet, half-helmet, half-jockey cap,” transforming her feminine “little black silk bonnet” (179) into a masculinized form of headgear. The attendance of both Miss Jenkyns and Captain Brown’s daughter at the funeral also challenges gendered normality: females should not attend funerals since, as Cassell’s Household Guide notes, “being unable to restrain their emotions, they interrupt and destroy the solemnity of the ceremony with their sobs, and even by fainting” (344). The narrative tone darkens [End Page 178] in the extended episode of cross-dressing that follows, in which Peter Jenkyns twice dresses as a woman.2 On the first occasion, Peter dresses “himself up as a lady that . . . wished to see the Rector of Cranford, ‘who had published that admirable Assize Sermon’” (209). His masquerade is a direct challenge to his father’s patriarchal and spiritual authority. The lady visitor admires the rector’s sermons on Napoleon Bonaparte, placing the narrative in a masculine, historically specific context of war and invasion. Peter, the pseudo-female, invades male territory and, as Jean Fernandez notes, “offers sly resistance to patriotic rhetoric” (45). In doing so, he displays considerable courage. He is terrified of his autocratic father but persists in his challenges to both patriarchal authority and rigidly aligned constructs...