Search

Objective Falcotentorial meningioma occurs close to the falcotentorial edges and the confluence of the vein of Galen. The posterosuperior approach conventionally used to reach this site does not allow direct visualization of the tumor matrix, making detachment difficult. Meningiomas at this location are therefore among those that are not well amenable to radical resection. We devised an alternative anterolateral approach that, when used in addition to the posterosuperior approach, provides an operating field which allows to overview large, bilaterally extending tumors. We report this parieto-occipital interhemispheric transfalcine, trans-bitentorial approach, together with associated procedural modifications. Methods We used the approach in four patients with falcotentorial meningioma between February 2008 and July 2017. We began by extending a parieto-occipital craniotomy slightly beyond the midline, to pass across the most caudal bridging vein on the rostral side. We then created a fan-shaped fenestration as large as possible in the falx, between the superior sagittal sinus and the inferior sagittal and straight sinuses (window 1). We further performed wedge-shaped resections of both tentorial edges to the left and right of window 1 (windows 2 and 3). Tumor debulking was then carried out via these three windows (the triple-window method). Finally, we detached the tumor in the area of the falcotentorial edges and the confluence of the vein of Galen. To obtain a superorostral operating field as wide as possible from laterally, thereby exposing the potential blind spots, the operating surgeon used both hands while retracting the precuneus, and the assistant surgeon used both hands to turn over the falcotentorial edges (twosome four-hand retractorless microsurgery). Results The wide operating field provided by this parieto-occipital interhemispheric transfalcine, trans-bitentorial approach and twosome four-hand retractorless microsurgery provides a direct view of delicate structures at the falcotentorial edges and the confluence of the vein of Galen, a site that is most likely to be a blind spot in conventional approaches. Retraction of the precuneus on the nondominant side enabled radical resection with no neurologic deficit in any of the patients. Conclusions The parieto-occipital interhemispheric transfalcine, trans-bitentorial approach with the triple-window method opens an anterolateral operating field in addition to a posterosuperior operating field in large tumors located in the falcotentorial and pineal region, extending anteroposteriorly and bilaterally. The twosome four-hand retractorless technique via this approach enables visualization of the tumor matrix at sites, which are barely visible with the conventional approach. Thus, the tumor can be removed more radically and safely.

Objective To evaluate the effects of body weight-supported overground gait training (BWSOGT) on motor abilities, such as gait and balance, in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Design Retrospective case-controlled observational study with a 4-week follow-up. Setting Inpatient rehabilitation. Participants We selected 37 of 68 patients with PD. Inclusion criteria were (1) Hoehn & Yahr stage II–IV, (2) no medication adjustment during the study period, (3) at least 1 week since last medication adjustment, and (4) ability to walk more than 10 meters on their own. Exclusion criteria were (1) cerebrovascular disease or other complications affecting movement, (2) difficulty in measurement, (3) early discharge, (4) medication change during the study, and (5) development of complications. Interventions Patients were divided into two groups. Patients in Group I underwent 20 minutes of BWSOGT with a mobile hoist in addition to the standard exercises; Group II performed 20 minutes of gait training in place of BWSOGT. In both groups, training was performed for a total of 15 times/4 weeks. Main outcome measure(s) Participants were evaluated using the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale total, part II, and part III; 10-m walk test; velocity; stride length; 6-minute walk test; timed up and go test; Berg Balance Scale; and freezing of gait before and after the intervention. Results There were significant decreases in the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale total, part II, and part III in both groups; however, 6-minute walk test, timed up and go test, and freezing of gait results only improved in Group I. Conclusions BWSOGT for patients with PD improves gait ability and dynamic balance more than standard gait training.

Intracranial epidermoid cysts are rarely known to increase in size over a brief period. While malignant transformations of epidermoid cyst have been previously described, no reports to date have described rapid proliferation accompanied by mature hair follicles and sebaceous glands without malignant transformations. The present case involved a 71-year-old man who visited a local physician with disturbance of equilibrium. A mass lesion was detected at the left cerebellopontine angle and was subsequently removed. Histopathological diagnosis of this lesion was as an epidermoid cyst. Seventeen years after this initial surgery, worsened left hypoacusis, disorientation, eating disorder and gait disturbance appeared, and the patient visited the physician again. Local recurrence of the lesion was observed, and the patient was referred to our hospital for its removal. Intraoperative findings revealed a pearly white tumor, histopathologically diagnosed as an epidermoid cyst. Three years later, local recurrence was observed, and the cyst was again removed. Intraoperative findings revealed a partially pearly white tumor similar to the tumor observed during the second surgery, but the majority of the tumor was non-shiny, ochre-colored and suckable. Histopathological diagnosis was an epidermoid cyst with an epidermis-like structure. Postoperative activities of daily living were independent thereafter, but from March of the following year, he began to experience increasing difficulty in walking and subsequently visited our hospital again. Tumor recurrence was observed and was removed again in November of the same year. Intraoperative findings revealed a tumor that was primarily ochre-colored, non-shiny, brittle and suckable. The histopathological diagnosis was folliculosebaceous epithelial proliferative lesion accompanied by an epidermis-like epithelium and a differentiation into hair follicles and sebaceous gland,s and the tumor was determined to be an epidermoid cyst with proliferative folliculosebaceous epithelium.

[Purpose] The importance and effect of hip joint geometry on hip abductor muscle strength are well known. In addition, other perioperative factors are also known to affect hip abductor muscle strength. This study examined the relative importance of factors affecting hip abductor muscle strength after total hip arthroplasty. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 97 females with osteoarthritis scheduled for primary unilateral THA. The following variables were assessed preoperatively and 2 and 6 months after surgery: isometric hip abductor strength, radiographic analysis (Crowe class, postoperative femoral offset (FO)), Frenchay Activities Index, compliance rate with home exercise, Japanese Orthopaedic Association Hip-Disease Evaluation Questionnaire (JHEQ), and demographic data. Factors related to isometric hip abductor muscle strength 2 and 6 months after surgery were examined. [Results] Significant factors related to isometric hip abductor muscle strength at 2 and 6 months after surgery were, in extraction order: 1. isometric hip abductor muscle strength in the preoperative period; 2. BMI; and 3. the JHEQ mental score at 2 and 6 months after surgery. [Conclusion] Preoperative factors and postoperative mental status were related to postoperative isometric hip abductor strength. FO was not extracted as a significant factor related to postoperative isomeric hip abductor strength.

Fibrous or transitional meningioma and solitary fibrous tumor (SFT) are frequently difficult to differentiate from each other on the basis of histopathology. It is extremely unusual for a meningioma to exhibit diffuse, strongly positive immunoreactivity for cluster of differentiation 34 (CD34), and this has never been previously reported from a histopathological specimen. A patient with transitional meningioma that exhibited strongly positive for CD34, which has been regarded as characteristic of SFT and is considered to be useful for distinguishing the latter from meningioma, is reported.

We aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of monotherapy with alendronate and combined therapy with alendronate and menatetrenone (vitamin K2 [VitK2]) in postmenopausal rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with osteoporosis or osteopenia. Sixty-two postmenopausal RA patients with untreated osteoporosis or osteopenia (lumbar spine bone density ≤80 % of young adult mean [YAM]) were enrolled: 39 had abnormal serum undercarboxylated osteocalcin (ucOC) levels (>4.5 ng/mL) and received combined therapy with alendronate (35 mg/week) and VitK2 (45 mg/day) (ALN + K group); 23 had normal ucOC levels (≤4.5 ng/mL) and received alendronate monotherapy (35 mg/week) (ALN group). The clinical results for the 57 patients in both groups were evaluated after 1-year treatment. The mean baseline/follow-up (FU) lumbar spine bone density (%YAM) values were 73.0/76.8 % (P

Purpose: To evaluate the incidence, character, and prognosis of ovarian tumors diagnosed as benign before laparoscopic surgery but identified as malignant or of borderline malignancy by postoperative histopathology.Subjects: Of 1,066 laparoscopic ovarian tumor resections at Tohoku Kosai Hospital from April 2001 to May 2010, a total of 22 patients were postoperatively confirmed as having overt or borderline malignancies. Methods: For this patient subset, the following factors were analyzed: postsurgical histopathology, patient age, tumor size, solid tumor component, CA125 and CA19-9 markers, laparoscopic technique, tumor capsule status, adjunctive therapy, and prognosis.Results: The rate of preoperative diagnostic error was 2.2% (22/1,066). Of the 22 misinterpreted tumors, five were clearly malignant, and 17 were of borderline malignant potential. Although no specific tendencies were evident, based on analysis of preoperative features, malignant lesions were more likely in older patients or in those with large sized cysts. For two of the five patients with malignancies, definitive cancer surgery was performed, followed by chemotherapy, while the other three received chemotherapy alone. Three of the 17 patients with borderline malignancy also opted for surgery. Endometrial carcinoma was found in one patient with malignancy, and recurrent mucinous cysts occurred in two patients with borderline tumors, but the long-term prognosis for these patients in close follow-up was fairly good.Conclusion: Preoperative misdiagnosis of ovarian malignancies may be unavoidable, despite thorough assessment. However, even with laparoscopic resection, the prognosis of such tumors is not poor, given adequate adjunctive therapy and/or careful clinical follow-up.

1972年，英国のハンスフィールドにより開発されたX線CT装置は，今日までその進展を止めることなく変遷を遂げており，マルチスライスCT装置 (MSCT) の開発と更なる多列化により飛躍的にスキャン時間が短縮され，画質が向上してきた。これにより病態の把握や手術支援，患者への説明におけるボリュームレンダリング (VR) や最大値投影法 (MIP)，Multi Planar Reformation (MPR)，Curved Planar Reconstruction (CPR) 等の有用性は今まで以上に大きくなったといえる。

Experimental procedures and standard specimens for characterizing and evaluating TiO2-SiO2 ultra-low expansion glasses with periodic striae using the line-focus-beam (LFB) ultrasonic material characterization system are discussed. Two types of specimens were prepared, with specimen surfaces parallel and perpendicular to the striae plane using two different grades of glass ingots. The inhomogeneities of each of the specimens were evaluated at 225 MHz. It was clarified that parallel specimens are useful for accurately measuring velocity variations of leaky surface acoustic waves (LSAWs) excited on a water-loaded specimen surface associated with the striae. Perpendicular specimens are useful for obtaining periodicities in the striae for LSAW propagation perpendicular to the striae plane on a surface and for precisely measuring averaged velocities for LSAW propagation parallel to the striae plane. The standard velocity of Rayleigh-type LSAWs traveling parallel to the striae plane for the perpendicular specimens was numerically calculated using the measured velocities of longitudinal and shear waves and density. Consequently, a reliable standard specimen with an LSAW velocity of 3308.18 +/- 0.35 m/s at 23 degrees C and its temperature coefficient of 0.39 (m/s)/degrees C was obtained for a TiO2-SiO2 glass with a TiO2 concentration of 7.09 wt%. A basis for the striae analysis using this ultrasonic method was established.

Striae configurations in TiO2–SiO2 ultra-low-expansion glasses caused by variations in TiO2 concentration were investigated through measurement of leaky surface acoustic wave (LSAW) velocities by the line-focus-beam (LFB) ultrasonic material characterization system. LSAW velocity distributions were measured on the surface of a specimen substrate prepared from a large circular plate glass ingot produced by the direct method using a flame hydrolysis process. A subsequent procedure that included polishing the surface of the specimen to reduce the specimen thickness by 40 µm and measuring the LSAW velocity distributions on the surface was repeated five times in order to examine at least one period of the striae. TiO2 concentration variations were clearly observed in the deposit direction of the glass ingot and in its radial direction. The maximum LSAW velocity difference over the whole examined region was 11.7 m/s, corresponding to 0.70 wt % TiO2 concentration. The three-dimensional striae structure revealed that the striae plane in the examined region was almost parallel to the substrate surface but gently curved down in the radial direction. The plane had a slightly convex-shaped cross section layered with a striae periodicity of about 0.16 mm and a curvature radius of about 440 mm, and also existed in a circular form with a curvature radius of about 450 mm. The ultrasonic method will contribute to improvement of characteristics and homogeneity of glass associated with production-process conditions.

We obtained an accurate relationship between the leaky surface acoustic wave (LSAW) velocities and TiO2 concentrations. Such a relationship is needed for the line-focus-beam ultrasonic material characterization (LFB-UMC) system as a new technology for evaluating the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of ultra-low-expansion glasses with extremely high precision. Using commercially available TiO2–SiO2 glass with periodic striae, averaged velocities for LSAW propagation parallel to the striae plane at 225 MHz and averaged TiO2 concentrations by X-ray fluorescence analysis were measured on the surface of seven specimen substrates prepared perpendicular to the striae plane. The obtained sensitivity of LSAW velocity to TiO2 concentration was -0.0601 wt %/(m/s), and the measurement resolution was estimated to be ±0.0084 wt % for ±2 σ (σ: standard deviation) from the LSAW velocity measurement resolution of ±0.14 m/s. The TiO2 concentration for the standard TiO2–SiO2 glass specimen with a LSAW velocity of 3308.18 m/s for system calibration was determined to be 7.09 wt %. This ultrasonic technology will contribute greatly to the development of the ultra-low-expansion glasses needed for extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) systems.

腹部動脈瘤の手術のさいに偶然指摘される小さな嚢胞も含めると,腎嚢胞を合併する腹部動脈瘤は希ではないと思われるが,本邦での腎嚢胞あるいは嚢胞腎を伴った腹部大動脈瘤手術の報告はきわめて少ない.大きな腎嚢胞は動脈瘤の手術中に腎嚢胞が破裂・出血の報告もあり,さらに手術操作に支障をきたすこともあり,なんらかの対策が必要である.今回,77歳,男性の腹腔を圧迫する両側巨大多発性腎嚢胞を合併した腹部動脈瘤に対して,術前に巨大な両側腎嚢胞を超音波ガイド下に経皮的に穿刺吸引を行い約1,550mlを除去した.3日後,5.2cmの大動脈瘤と3.0cmの左総腸骨動脈瘤,2.6cm右総腸骨動脈瘤に対して腹部正中切開,腹膜外到達法で動脈瘤切除+Y字型人工血管置換術を施行した.術後経過は順調で,巨大な嚢胞性腎疾患を合併する腹部動脈瘤に対し経皮的穿刺内容液吸引は有用な方法であった.

高感度，高選択性を有する検知タブを用いた作業環境測定用のポータブルホルムアルデヒド検知器を開発した．検知タブはKD-XA01試薬とリン酸緩衝液をメタノールに溶解して調製した発色液で処理した試験紙から成る．ホルムアルデヒドガスが検知タブに接触すると，試験紙は黄色に発色する．発色の度合いはサンプリング時間とガス濃度に比例した．測定時間3分，流量250 ml/minでホルムアルデヒド0.3 ppmを検出できた．ホルムアルデヒド0.3 ppmの応答の再現性は標準偏差パーセントで表すと2.1％ であった．本検知器は簡便性に優れており，作業環境測定に有用であるといえる．

Purpose: To study the effect of cyclosporin (CsA) on steroid-induced cataracts in patients following renal transplantation. Methods: The subjects comprise 140 patients who had undergone renal transplantation at Kanazawa Medical Hospital. These subjects had received ophthalmologic examinations prior to their surgery and subsequently over the span of 12 months following surgery. The charts of these patients were re-examined for this study. The subjects were divided into two groups: the conventional therapy group (Group C) that received azathioprine and methylprednisolone; and the triple therapy group (Group T) that received azathioprine, methylprednisolone, and CsA. There were 73 and 67 patients in Groups C and T, respectively. The cataracts were classified according to Crews' classification. Steroid-induced cataract was diagnosed when vacuoles were observed or opacity was evident in the posterior subcapsular region. Subjects who exhibited any lens opacity before renal transplantation were excluded from this study. Results: The total amounts of systemic steroid administered during the first year and at the final observation period were significantly lower in Group T than in Group C. The prevalence of steroid-induced cataracts of grade 1 and above was 55% and 63% for the first year, 73% and 89% for the second year, 74% and 92% for the third year, and 83% and 96% for the fifth year in Groups C and T, respectively. By the third year, the percentage of subjects exhibiting corrected visual acuity

An 85-year-old woman was hospitalized with severe melena of unknown origin. Upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy and lower GI endoscopy did not detect the origin and we could not establish any diagnosis. To explore the bleeding site, 99mTc-HSA blood loss scintigraphy was performed and a tumor of the small intestine was suspected. Fluoroscopic examination of the small intestine and abdominal CT scan confirmed an ileal tumor measuring 4×3 cm. The mass was a well-demarcated tumor about 80 cm proximal to Bauhin's valve. Partial resection of the ileum was carried out and the tumor was histologically diagnosed as schwannoma. Thereafter, there has been no recurrence of melena nor metastasis of the tumor. It is thought that blood loss scintigraphy is a useful method for unexplained exacerbation of melena.(Internal Medicine 42: 1178-1182, 2003)

In order to establish an experimental method to evaluate resistance and running attitudes of planing craft using a very small-scale model, the scale effects on hydrodynamic forces (drag, lift and trim moment) acting on two model ships, a 0.45m model and a 0.9m model, are experimentally investigated by fully captured towing tests. The results demonstrate that the lift and the moment acting on the smaller model are smaller than those on the larger model. The predicted results of running attitudes using the modified hydrodynamic forces obtained for the smaller model, in which the scale effects on the lift and the moment are taken in to account, are in fairly good agreement with the measured running attitudes of the larger model. The residual resistances predicted for the two models based on Froude's hypothesis using Blasius and Plandtl-Schlichting formulae in the prediction of frictional resistance are in fairly good agreement with each other.

目的: いわゆる顎関節症患者のなかには, 顎口腔系の諸症状に加えて慢性的な頭痛や頭頸背部痛などを訴えるものが少なくない. しかしながら, これまで用いられてきた顎関節症の細病態分類に基づいて治療を進めた場合, ややもするとこれら随伴症状と呼ばれてきた患者の訴えに対する適切な対応がなおざりにされがちとなることは否めない. そこで本研究では, 顎関節症の細病態分類と患者の訴えた主要症状との関連を検討することにより, 現行の分類システムに望まれる改善点などについて考察した.方法: 対象者は, 1994年4月から1998年3月までに顎関節症状あるいは口腔顔面痛を主訴に岡山大学歯学部附属病院第1補綴科を受診した連続患者サンプル393例である. 対象者に対し, 顎関節症の細病態分類ならびに訴えの分類を行い, 両者をつき合わせ, その整合性について検討した.結果: 訴えの頻度を分析すると, 顎関節症の三大症状と呼ばれる「顎の痛み」が49.6%, 「開 (閉) 口障害」が32.6%, 「関節雑音」が30.8%と多くを占める一方, 「頭痛, 頭部の痛み」が6.9%, 「咀嚼障害, 咬合不全」が6.1%, 「首, 肩のこり・痛み」が5.9%と三大症状に含まれない訴えが各病態に少なからず存在した.結論: 顎関節症の三大症状以外の症状を訴えて来院する患者もけっして少なくないことが明らかとなった.顎関節症の細病態分類に加えてこれらの訴えにも適切に対応するためには, 複数診断を許す診断システムの確立が必要であると考えられた.

The authors have proposed an image-memory LCD using ferroelectric thin film for memory elements to achieve ultralow power consumption. Memory operation with gray-scale levels was confirmed by using an equivalent circuit model of the LCD consisting of a discrete ferroelectric device. The reduction in power consumption is related to hold time and the ferroelectric characteristics.

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) plays an important role in inflammation and immunity via autocrine/paracrine and endocrine routes. We examined the presence of MIF in the synovial fluids of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. The content of MIF in the synovial fluid was quantitated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay which revealed that the concentration of MIF for RA patients was 85.7±35.2 ng/ml (mean±SD) ( n =25). In comparison, the concentrations for osteoarthritis patients and normal volunteers were 19.5±5.3 ng/ml ( n =12) and 10.4±1.1 ng/ml ( n =5), respectively. The expression of MIF mRNA and presence of MIF protein in the synovial tissues of RA were demonstrated by Northern blot and Western blot analyses, respectively. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that positive staining was largely observed in the cytoplasm of infiltrating T lymphocytes, which might be the major source of MIF detected in the synovial fluids. The pathophysiological role of MIF in RA remains to be elucidated; however, the present results for the first time suggest the possibility that MIF is involved in the potentiation of inflammatory and immunological responses in rheumatoid joints.

An advanced multi-field-driving method that reduces not only the dynamic power consumption, but also the static power consumption of LCD driving circuits has been developed. The applicability of this method was confirmed by using a 9.5″ VGA TFT-LCD. Total driving circuit power consumption was reduced to less than half that of a conventional 60 Hz driving method for all displayed images. In addition, the displayed images obtained were sufficient for practical use and had no visible image degradation, such as flicker and crosstalk.

A super-precise method of evaluating the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of ultra-low-expansion glasses was developed using the line-focus-beam ultrasonic material characterization (LFB-UMC) system and was demonstrated for TiO2-doped SiO2 glass. The sensitivity and resolution in the velocity measurement of leaky surface acoustic waves (LSAWs) in CTE were estimated to be 4.40 (ppb/K)/(m/s) and ±0.77 ppb/K for ±2σ (σ: standard deviation) at 225 MHz. LSAW velocity differences caused by different TiO2 concentrations and distributions or striae in the specimens were successfully detected and evaluated, providing two-dimensional information. This ultrasonic method is effective for evaluating ultra-low-expansion glasses needed for extreme ultra-violet lithography (EUVL) systems.

The characteristics of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a‐Si:H) thin‐film transistors are investigated as a function of the overlap of the source electrode Lovs on top of the passivation layer. The drain current is reduced by Lovs and the effect is dependent on drain voltage and a‐Si:H layer thickness. The effect is enhanced at high drain voltage and at thin a‐Si:H layer thickness. At high drain voltage, field‐effect mobility and threshold voltage decrease as Lovs increases. Numerical calculation of carrier concentration in a‐Si:H layer showed that the carrier is depleted under Lovs and that the effective channel length is shortened by the size of Lovs. The nonlinear resistance formed by Lovs is discussed in terms of drain voltage and a‐Si:H layer thickness.

Silicon nitride (SiNx) films of various quality were deposited on the back‐side of a‐Si:H thin film transistors (TFTs) as a passivation layer. Although the films were not deposited directly on the channel region, the N/Si ratio of the film affected the TFT performance. It changed the threshold voltage and the subthreshold slope. In the linear region, the effect of the passivation layer was explained by assuming fixed charges in the nitride layer. Furthermore, the current‐voltage characteristics in the saturation region were explained by a parasitic TFT model. It was determined that a nitrogen rich passivation film is preferrable for liquid crystal displays.

The transient off-currents of thin-film transistors (TFTs) have been characterized. The authors connected the TFT to a capacitor equivalent to an actual pixel capacitance and made accurate measurements of the voltage at the capacitor under a drive condition actually used for the TFT-LCDs. The currents were calculated from the measured voltages. Inverted staggered-type TFTs were used with the gate on-voltage Vgs = 20 V and the drain voltage Vsig = Vsigc ± 5 V (Vsigc = 4 ± 10 V). It has been found that the off-current shows an increase or decrease with a time delay of a few milliseconds. The change in the off-current has been characterized as a relation between the gate bias voltage Vgs and the off-current Ids. Comparing the results with the dc characteristics, it has been found that the Ids vs. Vgs curves approach the dc curves from the positive side of Vgs' i.e., the transient current curves shift from their dc curves in the positive direction of Vgs. The authors have verified that this behavior of the off-current with time delay can be explained by introducing a trap level inside the TFT.

A large-area high-resolution TFT-LCD is fabricated using a step-aligner, because it's screen size exceeds the photo-mask size A shot-block boundary is sometimes perceived and deteriorates picture quality. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the shot-block perceptibility and the influences to TFT-LCD pixel design, theoretically. A new model with a level-shift voltage induced by a TFT parasitic capacitance has been introduced and an estimation of the currently available step-aligners, which have a maximum pattern-discontinuity of 1.2-1.5μm, showed that they would cause the shot-block images. A generalized design rule related to the shot-block image has been introduced. Using this rule, the aperture ratio of high-resolution TFT-LCDs were estimated and the results showed that the aperture ratio would decrease, as the number of gate lines increased. Possible methods to improve this phenomenon have been summarized.

A super-precision evaluation method of the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of ultra-low expansion glasses was developed using the line-focus-beam ultrasonic material characterization (LFB-UMC) system. Evaluation was demonstrated for TiO2-SiO2 glass. The sensitivity and resolution in the velocity measurement of leaky surface acoustic waves (LSAWs) in CTE were estimated to be 4.40 (ppb/K)/(m/s) and ±0.77 ppb/K for ±2σ (σ: standard deviation) at 225 MHz. LSAW velocity differences caused by different TiO2 concentrations and distributions or striae in the specimens were successfully detected and evaluated, providing two-dimensional information under the nondestructive and noncontact measurement condition. This ultrasonic method is much more accurate than conventional methods, for evaluating CTE on the surface of ultra-low-expansion glass materials needed for extreme ultra-violet lithography (EUVL) systems.

Background: The present study was conducted to investigate how patients with clinically localized prostate cancer were treated in the Hokuriku District, Japan. Methods: Medical records of 536 patients with stage B prostate cancer were retrospectively reviewed. The patients were diagnosed and treated at four university hospitals and 32 collaborating hospitals in the Hokuriku District. Results: Because their medical records were incomplete and/or they not available for follow up, 79 cases were excluded from this study. Conservative treatment with hormone therapy was used for 248 cases. Radical prostatectomy was performed in 199 cases, only 27 of whom underwent surgical monotherapy. There was no significant difference in disease-specific survival rates between the hormone (69.0%) and surgery group (83.2%) after 110 months. Results of the analysis of disease-specific survival rates according to histologic grade showed that patients with poorly differentiated cancers treated with hormone therapy were the only subset with significant differences when compared against the other patients. Conclusion: The value of prostatectomy alone or added was marginal in terms of survival. Only patients with poorly differentiated cancer might benefit from prostatectomy.

Purpose To study the effect of cyclosporin on steroid-induced cataract in patients after renal transplantation. Subjects and methods 140 patients who received renal transplantation and ophthalmological examinations before and over 12 months after surgery at Kanazawa Medical University were investigated retrospectively. The subjects were divided into the following two groups: the conventional therapy group(Group C) who were administered azathioprin and methylprednisolone and the triple therapy group(Group T) who were administered azathioprin, methylprednisolone and cyclosporin. There were 73 subjects in group C and 67 in group T. Judgement of steroid cataract followed Crew's classification and steroid cataract was diagnosed when vacuoles or opacity were seen in the posterior subcapsular region. Subjects that had any lens opacity before renal transplantation were excluded. Results The total dose of systemic steroid during the first year and in the final observation period in group T was significantly higher than in group C. The prevalence of steroid cataract was 55% and 63% for the 1st year, 72% and 89% for the 2nd year, 74% and 92% for the 3rd year and 83% and 96% for the 5th year in groups C and T, respectively. By the third year, the rate of subjects whose corrected visual acuity was less than 0.8 or who received cataract surgery was significantly higher in group T than in group C. There was no significant difference in the total dose between the subjects with cataract over grade I and those of grade 0 and I in both groups C and T. In group C, the total dose of steroid pulse therapy was significantly higher in the subjects with steroid cataract over grade I than in those with grade 0 and I. Conclusions Using cyclosporin, although the total dose of systemic steroid was decreased, the rate of steroid cataract increased. Cyclosporin may accelerate the development of steroid cataract. Steroid pulse therapy is considered to be a risk factor for developing steroid cataract.

Hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is a rare but serious complication following renal transplantation. It usually develops early after transplantation, and ciclosporin treatment is the most common triggering factor. We report the case of a 35-year-old male with posttransplant HUS which developed 1 year after renal transplantation. He became febrile 4 days before the onset of HUS, and the significant rise in viral titer confirmed the diagnosis of influenza A virus infection. The association of ciclosporin treatment with HUS was unlikely, because of the late onset of HUS and the low ciclosporin trough levels. The patient was treated successfully without a dose reduction of ciclosporin. An etiologic relationship between influenza A virus and HUS was highly probable in our patient. We also review a total of 156 adult cases with HUS after renal transplantation described in the literature. The prognosis of posttransplant HUS differs according to the cause. The advent of ciclosporin has improved the graft survival rate and mortality of patients with rejection-induced HUS.

Among various requirements for the a-Si TFT-LCD gate electrode, low resistivity is becoming more emphasized with the increase of display size and information content as well as process feasibility. We have developed a low resistivity Mo-W alloy as a material for gate buslines.The Mo-W film was formed by DC magnetron sputtering using Ar or Kr as the working gas. The resistivity of the fabricated film was 16 μΩ-cm when deposited with Ar, and decreased to a value as low as 13 μΩ-cm with Kr, which was less than a half that of the conventional Mo-Ta film. Inverted staggered a-Si TFTs having Mo-W gate electrodes formed with Kr were fabricated, and good transfer performance with thermal- and electrical stability was obtained. The applicability of the new alloy to LCDs with large area and high resolution was shown.

The gate/source overlap distance (ΔLs) is an important factor in fabricating self-aligned TFT with passivating layer. Six types of TFT were fabricated using thin intrinsic a-Si layers such as 20 nm,50 nm and 100 nm and a n+:a-Si or a n+:μc-Si were used as the contact layer. The least required gate/source overlap distance, ΔLsC is the critical overlap where the TFT performance is not limited by the contact. This ΔLsc was determined experimentally. ΔLsC was found to be significantly affected by the intrinsic a-Si layer thickness and the ΔLsc can be small by depositing a thin intrinsic layer. The intrinsic layer thickness dependence of ΔLsC in the linear region can be explained from a existing model. However, the behavior in the saturation region suggests the need of another model, which will be discussed here. The variation of n'contact layer shown to have a small effect on ΔLsc. In order to determine appropriate ΔLs for self-alignment TFT, the magnitude of field effect mobility, threshold voltage and drain current as well as ΔLscmust be considered.

The evaluation of periodic striae layers in TiO2–SiO2 ultra-low-expansion glasses, formed during production, is discussed through the measurement of leaky surface acoustic-wave (LSAW) velocities by the line-focus-beam (LFB) ultrasonic material-characterization system. The averaging effect associated with an LSAW propagation region interacting with periodic striae on a specimen surface was examined at 225 MHz, taking several specimens prepared with inclination angles of θ=0, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 90° to the plane of striae layers with a periodicity of 0.16 mm. LSAW velocities corresponding to TiO2 concentrations in the glass were properly measured for the specimens with θ less than 10°, and the perpendicular specimen (θ=90°) was suitable for accurate determination of the striae periodicities for LSAW propagation perpendicular to the striae plane.

We have developed a multi-field driving method for TFT-LCDs in which a displayed image was divided into at least three interlaced sub-field images where visible flicker did not occur as the image refresh rate was decreased. This method made it possible not only to reduce driving-power consumption in the case of still images to less than half, compared to that of conventional methods, but also to ensure that large-area flicker and line flicker were invisible to the human eye.

— The repair of pixel defects on TFT-LCDs, which is generally carried out with laser processing or by adopting a redundant structure, is very effective for high-yield production. However, repair may result in abnormal pixel performance, usually due to the asymmetry of the applied pixel voltage. In this study, based on consideration of the dependence of the threshold contrast on the background luminance, the authors are able to determine the visibility of a repaired pixel. As a result, good agreement between measured and calculated visibility was obtained. Based on these results, we have proposed a new pixel design rule which enables complete repair of pixel defects that cannot be detected by the human eye. This design can also suppress the reduction of the aperture for TFT-LCD panels. Furthermore, we demonstrate a new redundant structure which reduces the change in pixel performance after repair to a lower level than is attainable with any other reported technique.

Resist pattern transformation by backside exposure, which is a key process for a self-alignment technique is investigated. The light intensity and a-Si:H thickness markedly affect the pattern transformation, while the effect of gate insulator thickness is small. Numerical simulations based on Fresnel diffraction showed fairly good agreement with the experimental results.

A fairly reliable capacity of 300 Mbytes has been achieved on a single side of a 90 mm high-density phase-change optical disk, using a 0.6-mm-thick disk and an optical head which had a 690 nm laser diode and a 0.6 numerical aperture objective lens. The carrier-to-noise ratio (CNR), erasability, and the bit error rate (BER) of the optical disk were investigated. It has been confirmed that these parameters have a wide laser power tolerance for most inner and outer tracks.