bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Synthesis and application of pendant phenyl cyclopentadienyl lanthanide chlorides as catalyst precursors for methyl methacrylate polymerization
Authors: Xie Xiaomin , Huang Jiling 
Published: May 2004

AbstractThe synthesis and characterization of a series of new pendant phenyl substituted cyclopentadienyl lanthanide chlorides are reported. The analytical data of 3a–3e point to the formation of monomeric and unsolvated complexes, (PhCMe2C5H4)2LnCl (Ln = Er (3a), Sm (3b), Gd (3c), Y (3d), Nd (3e)); and the analytical data of 4a–4d point to the formation of the dimeric and unsolvated complexes, [(PhCH2CMe2C5H4)2LnCl]2 (Ln = Gd (4a), Y (4b), Sm (4c), Er (4d)). The X‐ray crystallographic structure of 4d indicates that the pendant phenyl substituent is not coordinated to the central metal. The nine complexes are efficient catalysts for the polymerization of methyl methacrylate in conjunction with Al(Et)3 or NaH. As NaH was used as a new co‐catalyst, the catalytic systems show highly catalytic activity at room temperature. In the [(PhCH2CMe2C5H4)2ErCl]2/Al(Et)3 catalyst system, the effects of the concentration of catalyst, and the temperature and time of polymerization were studied. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Epidural analgesia in gastrointestinal surgery
Authors: Fotiadis R J , Badvie S , Weston M D , Allen-Mersh T G 
Published: May 2004

Abstract

Background
The ideal perioperative analgesia should provide effective pain relief, avoid the detrimental effects of the stress response, be simple to administer without the need for intensive monitoring, and have a low risk of complications.

Methods
This review defines the physiological effects of epidural analgesia and assesses whether the available evidence supports its preferential use in gastrointestinal surgery. All papers studied were identified from a Medline search or selected by cross-referencing.

Results
Epidural analgesia is associated with a shorter duration of postoperative ileus, attenuation of the stress response, fewer pulmonary complications, and improved postoperative pain control and recovery. It does not reduce anastomotic leakage, intraoperative blood loss, transfusion requirement, risk of thromboembolism or cardiac morbidity, or hospital stay compared with that after conventional analgesia in unselected patients undergoing gastrointestinal surgery. Thoracic epidural analgesia reduces hospital costs and stay in patients at high risk of cardiac or pulmonary complications.

Conclusions
Epidural analgesia enhances recovery after gastrointestinal surgery. The results support the development of structured regimens of early postoperative feeding and mobilization to exploit the potential for thoracic epidural analgesia to reduce hospital stay after gastrointestinal surgery.
Randomized comparison of rapid ambulation using radial, 4 French femoral access, or femoral access with AngioSeal closure
Authors: Reddy Bhagat K. , Brewster Pamela S. , Walsh Thomas , Burket Mark W. , Thomas William J. , Cooper Christopher J. 
Published: May 2004

AbstractRadial access and closure devices are associated with improved quality of life (QOL) after cardiac catheterization. Whether this is related to the access site or time to ambulation is unknown. Seventy‐five patients undergoing cardiac catheterization were randomized to femoral 6 Fr with AngioSeal closure (F+C), femoral 4 Fr without closure, and radial (R) access. All patients were ambulated at 1 hr. QOL was measured utilizing visual analogue scales and Short Form‐36 at baseline, 1 day, and 1 week. Time to ambulation and discharge were equivalent, as was postprocedure QOL. However, angiographic quality was lower in the 4 Fr group (P < 0.0001) and catheterization costs were higher in the F+C group (P < 0.0001). Ambulation 1 hr after catheterization can be accomplished utilizing radial, femoral 6 Fr with closure device, or femoral 4 Fr access with equivalent outcomes and QOL. However, this is achieved at a higher cost with a closure device, or lesser angiographic quality with 4 Fr catheters. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv 2004;62:143–149. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Bioptome‐assisted coil occlusion of moderate‐large patent ductus arteriosus in infants and small children
Authors: Kumar Raman Krishna , Anil Sivadasan Radha , Kannan Bhava R.J. , Philip Ancil , Sivakumar Kothandam 
Published: May 2004

AbstractCoil occlusion of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), although inexpensive, is technically challenging for the moderate‐large ducts in small children. Bioptome assistance allows better control and precision. We describe case selection strategies, technique, immediate and short‐term results of bioptome‐assisted closure of moderate‐large (≥ 3 mm) PDA in 86 infants and children ≤ 10 kg (age, 18 days to 3 years; median, 8 months; weight, 6.6 ± 1.9 kg; duct size, 3.6 ± 0.8 mm; pulmonary artery mean pressures, 33 ± 12 mm Hg). Patients with PDA > 6 mm (> 4 mm for children under 5 kg) and/or shallow ampullae (by echocardiography) underwent operation (n = 41). Specific technical modifications included use of long sheaths (5.5–8 Fr) for duct delineation and coil delivery, cutting of coils turns (51 patients) to accommodate the coils in the ampulla, and simultaneous delivery of multiple coils (n = 43). As far as possible, coils were deployed entirely in the ampulla. Median fluoroscopy time was 7.3 min (1.2–42 min). Successful deployment was feasible in all (final pulmonary artery mean pressures, 20 ± 4.6 mm Hg). Coils embolized in 14 (16%) patients (all retrieved). Complete occlusion occurred immediately in 63 patients (73%) and in 77 patients (89%) at 24 hr. Three patients had new gradients in the left pulmonary artery. Follow‐up (62 patients; median duration, 13 months) revealed small residual Doppler flows in 11 patients (18%) at the most recent visit. Bioptome‐assisted coil occlusion of moderate‐large PDA in selected infants and small children is feasible with encouraging results. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv 2004;62:266–271. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Percutaneous closure of atrial septal defect via transjugular approach with the Amplatzer septal occluder after unsuccessful attempt using the CardioSEAL device
Authors: Sullebarger J. Thompson , Sayad Dany , Gerber Lowell , Ettedgui Jose , Jimmo‐Waumans Sonia , Alcebo Patricia C. 
Published: May 2004

AbstractPercutaneous closure of a secundum atrial septal defect was performed successfully via the jugular approach in a 77‐year‐old patient with heparin‐induced thrombocytopenia and total occlusion of the inferior vena cava using the Amplatzer septal occluder after an unsuccessful attempt using the CardioSEAL septal occluder. This case demonstrates the advantages of the jugular approach in the patient with difficult anatomy and the advantage of the Amplatzer over the CardioSEAL device in this situation. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv 2004;62:262–265. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Variability in quantitative measurement of the same segment with two different intravascular ultrasound systems: In vivo and in vitro studies
Authors: Li Yuxin , Honye Junko , Saito Satoshi , Takayama Tadateru , Yokoyama Shin‐Ichiro , Saruya Tadahiro , Kotani Motoko , Harasawa Kazuo , Ando Hideyuki , Endo Masayoshi , Kanmatsuse Katsuo 
Published: May 2004

AbstractWe evaluated two different intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) systems, Atlantis and Intrafocus, to verify their accuracy and reproducibility. In an in vivo study on 20 consecutive patients with coronary artery diseases, the minimum lumen diameter (MLD), vessel diameter, lumen area (LA), vessel area, plaque area, and area stenosis rate (% AS) were respectively measured. In an in vitro study, MLD and LA were measured in four metal tubes with different diameters. All of the measured values except for % AS by Atlantis were significantly larger than the values obtained with Intrafocus. Nonuniform rotational distortion (NURD) was estimated as 34% in Atlantis and 1% in Intrafocus. The measurements by Atlantis were larger than the true values while the measurements by Intrafocus were less than the true values in all four metal tubes. These findings suggest that we should clearly avoid the use of different IVUS systems in the same study. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv 2004;62:175–180. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Concomitant coronary and subclavian steal caused by ipsilateral subclavian artery stenosis and arteriovenous fistula in a hemodialysis patient
Authors: Lee Pui‐Yin , Ng William , Chen Wai‐Hong 
Published: May 2004

AbstractPatients with chronic renal failure, because of concomitant conventional cardiovascular and uremia‐associated risk factors, are at risk of developing diffuse and accelerated atherosclerosis involving both the coronary and peripheral territories. We report an end‐stage renal failure patient with a history of coronary artery bypass surgery who developed both angina and dizziness during hemodialysis via a left forearm arteriovenous fistula. Magnetic resonance imaging diagnosed the presence of significant subclavian artery stenosis. The patient then underwent successful percutaneous stenting of the left subclavian artery. His angina and dizziness symptoms resolved subsequently. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv 2004;62:244–248. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Point‐of‐care testing shows clinically relevant variation in the degree of inhibition of platelets by standard‐dose abciximab therapy during percutaneous coronary intervention
Authors: Ray Michael J. , Walters Darren L. , Bett Nicholas , Cameron James , Wood Peter , Aroney Con 
Published: May 2004

AbstractAdministration of GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has proven clinical benefit, but is administered at a dose allowing for the patients' weight but not other variables. This study of 75 patients evaluated platelet inhibition achieved by standard‐dose abciximab therapy during PCI as measured by two point‐of‐care (POC) instruments, Plateletworks (PW) and whole blood aggregation (WB). Results were related to the decrease of platelet activation produced as well as patients' return of angina within 30 days. Flow cytometric measurement showed abciximab suppressed platelet‐monocyte aggregates (P < 0.001) and activated glycoprotein IIb/IIIa (P < 0.001) but not P‐selectin. Greater POC‐measured inhibition corresponded to less postabciximab expression of platelet‐monocyte aggregates (P < 0.01). Patients above the lowest quartile of POC inhibition with PW demonstrated a relative risk of experiencing return of angina within 30 days of 0.48 (0.23–0.99). In conclusion, POC measurements reflect platelet activation suppression, higher PW measurements being associated with a decreased risk of return of angina. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv 2004;62:150–154. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
First human experience with stent‐based ventricle‐to‐coronary artery bypass
Authors: Boekstegers Peter , Steinbeck Gerhard , Bengel Frank M. , Reichart Bruno , Vicol Calin 
Published: May 2004

AbstractStent‐based ventricle‐to‐coronary artery bypass (VSTENT) has been shown experimentally to provide systolic instead of physiological diastolic blood flow directly from the left ventricle to a coronary artery distal to a high‐grade stenosis. We report on the first successful surgical implantation of a VSTENT in a patient with coronary artery disease. At 3‐month follow‐up, the VSTENT was patent and showed sufficient regional blood flow at rest with a significant flow reserve. In addition, the patient was asymptomatic during exercise testing. Though encouraging, these observations have to be confirmed and are the subject of an ongoing multicenter study. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv 2004;62:198–200. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Early prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) kinetics following prostate carcinoma radiotherapy
Authors: Cavanaugh Sean X. , Kupelian Patrick A. , Fuller Clifton D. , Reddy Chandana , Bradshaw Patrick , Pollock Brad H. , Fuss Martin 
Published: May 2004

AbstractBACKGROUNDThe goal of the current study was to analyze the prognostic value of early prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) kinetics, with PSA assessed as reaching or failing to reach discrete threshold values at fixed time points during follow‐up after external‐beam radiotherapy (EBRT) for prostate carcinoma.METHODSThe authors conducted a retrospective review of PSA follow‐up for 839 patients treated between May 1987 and December 2000 at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation (Cleveland, OH). They also assessed the impact on bRFS of PSA levels lower than defined threshold values at given time points during follow‐up.RESULTSDuring a median follow‐up of 74 months (range, 24–189 months), 540 patients (64.4%) maintained bRFS, whereas 299 patients (35.6%) did not maintain bRFS. The median nadir among patients with sustained bRFS was 0.4 ng/mL, with a median time to nadir of 28.9 months. Patients who did not maintain bRFS reached a median nadir of 1.3 ng/mL at a median of 15 months (P < 0.0001 for both nadir level and time to nadir). Reaching PSA thresholds of 3.0, 2.0, 1.0, 0.5, and 0.2 ng/mL at any time during follow‐up was correlated with improved bRFS (P < 0.0001, each threshold). Patients whose PSA levels crossed the appropriate thresholds within 3 and 6 months of follow‐up, irrespective of the time or level of eventual nadir, exhibited significantly improved bRFS when compared with patients whose PSA levels reached those thresholds at any time during follow‐up and patients whose PSA levels never reached those thresholds (all thresholds: P < 0.0001).CONCLUSIONSDespite previous conclusions that early PSA assessment may lack prognostic value, the data obtained in the current study suggest that the kinetics of early PSA decline is predictive of long‐term bRFS when assessed using a time‐and–PSA threshold model. After EBRT for prostate carcinoma, PSA levels below various discrete PSA thresholds were indicative of statistically meaningful long‐term outcome differences between experimental arms as early as 90 days after radiotherapy. If the time‐and–PSA threshold model is shown to be predictive of prostate carcinoma mortality as well, then it may allow the scientific community to evaluate promising treatment concepts and technologies at a highly accelerated pace. Cancer 2004. © 2004 American Cancer Society.
Spontaneous crystallization of potassium chloride from aqueous and aqueous‐ethanol solutions Part 1: Kinetics and mechanism of the crystallization process
Authors: Linnikov Oleg D. 
Published: May 2004

AbstractKinetics of spontaneous crystallization of potassium chloride from aqueous and aqueous‐ethanol solutions were studied. During the crystallization of the salt the electrical conductance and optical transmission of the supersaturated solutions were measured automatically. For monitoring of the total surface of growing potassium chloride crystals at the crystallization the turbidimetric method was used. The growth rate and activation energy of the crystals were determined. The crystal growth rate was proportional to supersaturation. When the volume fraction of ethanol in the solution increased from 0 to 25.76%, the activation energy of the growth process did not change and was about 60 kJ·mol‐1. Aggregation of the crystals was found. The aggregation kinetics of the crystals may be described approximately by the famous Smoluchowski equation for coagulation of colloidal particles. (© 2004 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Impurity adsorption mechanism of borax for a suspension growth condition: A comparison of models and experimental data
Authors: Al‐Jibbouri Sattar , Ulrich Joachim 
Published: May 2004

AbstractA fluidized bed crystallizer is employed to investigate the growth and dissolution rates of MgSO4·7H2O from aqueous solutions in the presence of borax as impurity at 25°C. By adding 0.5, 1, 2 and 5 wt % of impurity the pH value changes from 6.7 to 7.11, while the saturation temperature shifts to 24.8, 24.4, 24 and 23.1°C, respectively. The data on crystal growth rates from aqueous solutions as a function of impurity concentration are discussed from the standpoint of Cabrera and Vermileya, and Kubota and Mullin. The value of the impurity effect, αθeq, determined from analysis of the data on growth kinetics was found to be in good agreement with the value obtained from direct adsorption experiments. The estimated value of the average spacing between the adjacent adsorption active sites and the average distance between the neighbouring impurity‐adsorbed sites are also reported. (© 2004 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
A software pattern to check scenarios in a reactive system
Authors: Itoh Kiyohito , Kobayashi Hiromi 
Published: May 2004

AbstractIn the field of object‐oriented software, a great deal of research has addressed software patterns with the objective of developing software modules at the design level. However, we have found only little research on the patterns related to system safety. In this paper, we propose a mechanism related to the safety of reactive systems and the development of software patterns for its construction. First, we focus on the representation of a reactive system as event stimuli and reactions; a safety mechanism called the event checker that checks the scenario, that is, the event sequence and timing constraints, combines several existing patterns to form a pattern. Next, as application examples of this safety mechanism, we present implementation examples written in the Java language of two models related to railroads. Finally, we consider the improvements in safety due to the event checker and reliability of the software mechanism by using this pattern. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 3, 87(11): 11–19, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ecjc.10156
Control of variable structure elements in adaptive mathematical morphology for boundary enhancement of ultrasound images
Authors: Tsubai Masayoshi , Ito Masayasu 
Published: May 2004

AbstractThis paper discusses boundary enhancement function for adaptive morphology using variable structuring elements. The mechanism for boundary enhancement is quantitatively described. A method is proposed for setting the definition domain for the structuring elements and controlling their values, which is effective regarding boundary enhancement and speckle reduction in ultrasound images. It is shown that by controlling the value of the structuring element so that it is large near the boundary and small in other areas of the image, boundary enhancement and speckle elimination can be performed simultaneously, using the opening operation and closing operation. The spatial resolution and statistical properties of the speckle intensity in the ultrasound image are utilized to set these functions automatically on the basis of information on the object image. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated by a quantitative evaluation of a numerical phantom created in a computer simulation and in an application to boundary extraction from a real biological ultrasound image. It is shown that the performance of the proposed method in speckle reduction and boundary enhancement is better than that of the conventional method. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 3, 87(11): 20–33, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ecjc.20117
Motion generation of virtual human with hierarchical reinforcement learning
Authors: Mukai Tomohiko , Kuriyama Shigeru , Kaneko Toyohisa 
Published: May 2004

AbstractIn the key frame method, which is a general method of generating the motion of a virtual human, a large number of postures must be specified for the virtual human in each key frame. A tremendous effort is required if this process is performed by a manual operation. This paper proposes a method of efficiently constructing the motion of the virtual human by specifying the position of the end effector in each key frame. In this method, the posture of the virtual human in each key frame is efficiently extracted from a tremendous number of candidate postures through hierarchical reinforcement learning. The virtual human model to be used is hierarchically organized according to the learning structure, thus partitioning the search space. Each component of the body retains a posture template with discrete joint angles. By the proposed method, composite continuous motion can be generated automatically by specifying the locus points of the fingertip or the toe in motion. In addition, the motion is generated with overall optimization based on an arbitrary condition. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 3, 87(11): 34–43, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ecjc.20118
Automatic annotation of tennis action for content‐based retrieval by collaborating audio and visual information
Authors: Miyamori Hisashi 
Published: May 2004

AbstractIn this paper, the author proposes a scheme for automatically annotating tennis action for content‐based retrieval by using video and audio information collaboratively. Conventionally, annotation for content‐based retrieval had been associated with the action events to be recognized by analyzing information such as the locus or relative position and their transitions for each target object within the video. However, these methods have the drawback that when only video information is used, there are parts for which important times or positions basically cannot be identified because of tracking errors due to occlusion of the target object, which results in action events not being detected or detection errors occurring. The proposed method, which is applied to tennis video, uses audio information to extract the times when a player strikes the ball and recognizes basic actions of the player such as a forehand swing or overhead swing from the positional relationship between the player and ball at those times. The authors performed experiments to check the degree to which the recognition of the basic action of a player was affected by whether or not audio information was used to extract the ball impact time. The results verified the effectiveness of the approach by showing that the proposed scheme could prevent several action identification errors that could not be avoided by using only video information. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 3, 87(11): 57–72, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ecjc.20120
Configuration of a voltage sag compensator by use of a micro‐SMES and experimental results
Authors: Polmai Sompob , Ise Toshifumi , Kumagai Sadatoshi 
Published: May 2004

AbstractA voltage sag compensating using a micro‐SMES is presented. Based on previous works, we have carried out experiments for voltage sag compensation on the laboratory‐built system in order to validate the proposed minimum energy injection voltage sag compensation algorithm. To improve the compensating performance of the system, two‐degree‐of‐freedom voltage control is proposed. In this paper, the circuit configuration and feedback voltage control system of the compensator are described and the experimental results are reported. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 148(2): 84–92, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/eej.10267