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To compare the performance of two contrast agents, barium sulfate and lipiodol, in the performance of 3D CT-DCG. A prospective interventional radiological study was performed on 15 lacrimal drainage systems of 14 patients who clinically presented with nasolacrimal duct obstructions. All patients underwent CT-DCG, traditionally first using lipiodol and a week later by barium sulfate. CT-DCG data was used to construct 3D models as per standard published protocols. A 3D software was used to calculate the volume (which reflects the filling ability of the dye) and the number of details (counted by the number of different faces creating the object) of the 3D CT-DCG of the studied lacrimal drainage systems. The analysis was performed in R, version 4.3.2. The overall mean volume of the dye (filling feature) in the 3D CTDCG reconstructed models of the lacrimal system following lipiodol injection was 55.2 mm 3 vs. 244.2 mm 3 with barium sulfate (p < 0.001). A minimum of 94% gain was noted in volume with barium sulfate contrast (p < 0.001). The barium sulfate was superior to lipiodol for the same lacrimal drainage system and provided a better appreciation of lacrimal drainage details. The visualization of the stenosis and obstructions of the nasolacrimal duct were better delineated. The filling defects in cases of dacryoliths were more pronounced with barium sulfate with intricate visualization of the presumed shape and size of the dacryolith. The present study is the first to highlight the advantages of barium sulfate over the traditional contrast agent, lipiodol, for the acquisition of 3D CT-DCG images. Barium sulfate is a viable alternative and an economically more feasible option for performing 3D CT-DCG., Competing Interests: Declarations. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2025. The Author(s).)

Importance: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has the potential to be a sustainable treatment option in pediatric attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but rigorously controlled multicenter clinical trials using state-of-the-art stimulation techniques are lacking., Objectives: To determine effect sizes of changes in cognitive and clinical measures and to assess safety and tolerability in the course of optimized multichannel tDCS over prefrontal target regions in pediatric ADHD., Design, Setting, and Participants: In the sham-controlled, double-blind, parallel-group randomized clinical trial E-StimADHD (Improving Neuropsychological Functions and Clinical Course in Children and Adolescents With ADHD With Anodal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation of the Prefrontal Cortex: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Sham-Controlled, Parallel Group Trial Using an Uncertified Class IIa Device) with 2 independent study arms, participants were enrolled from September 15, 2018, to August 10, 2021, and follow-up was completed October 4, 2021. Data were analyzed January 26, 2022, to November 8, 2023. The trial was conducted at the departments of child and adolescent psychiatry or pediatrics of 5 university hospitals in Portugal and Germany. Youths 10 to 18 years of age with ADHD according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (all presentations), an IQ of at least 80, and the ability to refrain from stimulant medication during participation in the trial were eligible., Interventions: Optimized multichannel anodal tDCS or sham stimulation (1 mA, 20 minutes) targeting the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (lDLPFC; study A) or the right inferior frontal gyrus (rIFG; study B) was applied in 10 sessions, concurrent with performance on a cognitive target task (study A, working memory assessed in the n-back task; study B, interference control assessed in the flanker task)., Main Outcomes and Measures: Effect sizes for changes in accuracy measures (d-prime or flanker effect) in the target tasks assessed after the intervention. Primary analyses were based on the modified intention-to-treat set., Results: This study included 69 youths (54 [78%] male) with a median age of 13.3 years (IQR, 11.9-14.9 years). Compared with sham tDCS, verum stimulation of the lDLPFC led to significantly lower working memory accuracy (effect size, -0.43 [95% CI, -0.68 to -0.17]; P = .001). Stimulation of the rIFG significantly improved interference control (effect size, 0.30 [95% CI, 0.04-0.56]; P = .02). Adverse events were mostly mild and transient and did not occur more often in the verum group. For example, the most frequent adverse events were headache (sham, n = 30; verum, n = 20), nasopharyngitis (sham, n = 11; verum, n = 5), and feeling of electric discharge (sham, n = 5; verum, n = 3)., Conclusions and Relevance: In this randomized clinical trial, prefrontal anodal tDCS induced small- to medium-sized effects in youths with ADHD, with only mild and transient adverse events. The optimized multichannel montage chosen to target the lDLPFC, however, decreased working memory performance. This unexpected finding stresses the importance of incorporating insights from basic research on the mechanisms and preconditions of successful tDCS in future study designs to advance application of tDCS in pediatric ADHD., Trial Registration: German Clinical Trials Register ID: DRKS00012659.

The ubiquitous nature of thermal fluctuations poses a limitation on the identification of crystal structures. However, the trajectory of an atom carries a fingerprint of its surroundings. This rationalizes the search for a method that can determine the local atomic configuration via the analysis of the movement of an individual atom. Here, we report, while using molecular modeling, how a statistical analysis of a single-atom speed trajectory, represented by ordinal patterns, distinguishes between actual crystal structures. Using the Shannon entropy of ordinal patterns enabled discernment of the studied high-pressure silicon phases. Identification of the atoms occupying the 2(c) and 6(f) Wyckoff positions of the r8 crystal revealed an increase in the developed method's accuracy with trajectory length. The proposed concept of studying the structure of crystals offers new opportunities in solid-solid phase transformation studies.

Biosensors are transforming point-of-care diagnostics by simplifying the detection process and enabling rapid, accurate testing. This study introduces a novel, reusable biosensor designed for direct viral RNA detection from unfiltered saliva, targeting SARS-CoV-2. Unlike conventional methods requiring filtration, our biosensor leverages a unique electrode design that prevents interference from saliva debris, allowing precise measurements. The biosensor is based on electrochemical principles, employing oligonucleotide probes immobilized on a hydrophobic-coated electrode, which prevents air bubbles and salt crystal formation. During validation, the biosensor demonstrated a sensitivity and specificity of 100%, accurately identifying SARS-CoV-2 in saliva samples without false positives or negatives. Cross-validation with RT-qPCR, the gold standard for COVID-19 diagnostics, confirmed the reliability of our device. The biosensor's performance was tested on 60 participants, yielding 12 true positive results and 48 true negatives, aligning perfectly with RT-qPCR outcomes. This reusable, easy-to-use biosensor offers significant potential for point-of-care applications in various healthcare settings, providing a fast, efficient, and cost-effective method for detecting viral infections such as COVID-19. Its robust design, minimal sample preparation requirements, and multiple-use capability mark a significant advancement in biosensing technology.