Part of the functional benefit provided by lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) may be related to improvement in respiratory muscle function resulting from changes in diaphragm dimension and configuration. To study these changes, we obtained 3D reconstructions of the muscle using spiral computed tomography in 11 patients with severe emphysema before and 3 mo after surgery, and in 11 normal subj...

A modified indicator gas washout method was developed to measure functional residual capacity (FRC) during high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) without interruption of HFOV. A hot-wire flowmeter and medical gas analyzer measured the flow rate and argon concentration, respectively, at the expiratory end of the respiratory circuit. Upstream of the hot-wire flowmeter, two heat-and-moistur...

background and aim: this study investigated the reinforcing effect of silica nanoparticles when incorporated into the matrix phase of an experimental dental fiber reinforced composites (frc) through the evaluation of the flexural properties of the composites. materials and methods: in this experimental study frc samples were divided into two main groups (containing two or three bundles) either ...

introduction: application of light transmitting posts to restore greatly damaged endodontically treated teeth has been increased. it is suspected that light intensity decreases as it passes throughout different materials. this can reduce the degree of conversion required for adequate bond strength throughout the length of these posts. the objective of this study was to evaluate the amount of li...

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to determine bonding properties of two types of fibre-reinforced composite (FRC) posts cemented into root canals of molars. Serrated titanium posts served as reference. METHODS Prefabricated carbon/graphite FRC posts with cross-linked polymer matrix and individually formed glass FRC posts with interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) polymer matrix were compa...

A growing body of evidence suggests that the consumption of foods rich in polyphenolic compounds, particularly cocoa, may have cardioprotective effects. No review, however, has yet examined the effect of flavonoid-rich cocoa (FRC) on all major cardiovascular risk factors or has examined potential dose-response relationships for these effects. A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized,...

DNA vaccination offers a strategy to induce immune attack on cancer cells, but tumor Ags are often weak. Inclusion of a "foreign" protein increases immunogenicity, and we found previously that fusion of the fragment C (FrC) of tetanus toxin to the tumor Ag sequence promotes Ab and CD4(+) responses against B cell tumors. For CTL responses, use of the full two-domain FrC may be less helpful, beca...