BACKGROUND Plain radiographic assessment of posterolateral fusion has been reported as accurate in only two thirds of patients who were found to be healed at surgical exploration. Plain radiographic techniques for fusion assessment of interbody fusion with radiolucent cages are reported to be accurate. A helical computed tomography (CT) scan shows a high sensitivity for pseudarthrosis compared ...

archaeological excavations on the western part of the central iranian plateau, known as the qazvin plain provides invaluable information about the sedentary communities from early occupation to the later prehistoric era. despite the past archeological data, chronological studies mostly rely on the relative use of the bayesian modeling for stratigraphically-related radiocarbon dates. the current...

Accurate estimates of groundwater recharge are essential for effective management of groundwater, especially when supplies are limited such as in many arid and semiarid areas. In the Hebei Plain, China, water shortage is increasingly restricting socioeconomic development, especially for agriculture, which heavily relies on groundwater. Human activities have greatly changed groundwater recharge ...

BACKGROUND This study sought to examine the impact of cigarette packaging on young women, including the impact of 'plain' packaging. METHODS Participants were randomised to view eight cigarette packs designed according to one of four experimental conditions: fully-branded female brands; the same brands without descriptors (eg, 'slims'); the same brands without brand imagery or descriptors (ie...

STUDY DESIGN Prospective study. PURPOSE The main purpose of this study was to clarify the range of magnification errors on digital plain radiographs and to determine if there is a correlation between the body mass index (BMI) of a patient and the magnification error. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE Most clinicians currently use digital plain radiography. This new method allows one to access images a...

The plain long-nosed squirrels, genus Dremomys, are high elevation species in East and Southeast Asia. Here we present a complete molecular phylogeny for the genus based on nuclear and mitochondrial DNA sequences. Concatenated mitochondrial and nuclear gene trees were constructed to determine the tree topology, and date the tree. All speciation events within the plain-long nosed squirrels (genu...

BACKGROUND Drinking plain water, such as tap or bottled water, provides hydration and satiety without adding calories. We examined plain water and sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption in relation to energy and nutrient intake at full-service restaurants. METHODS Data came from the 2005-2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, comprising a nationally-representative sample o...

BACKGROUND To evaluate the clinical value of plain magnetic resonance (MR) imaging (including magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography, MRCP) and coronal liver acquisition with volume acceleration (LAVA) technique in the diagnosis and preoperative assessment of malignant low-level biliary obstruction. METHODS Forty-one patients with confirmed malignant low-level biliary obstruction were ex...