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This investigation deals with a study of the friction, wear and corrosion behavior of vacuum plasma sprayed quasicrystalline (QC) Ti41.5Zr41.5Ni17 coatings. During pin on disc experiments, a change in the mode of wear has been found to occur with corresponding changes in normal load and sliding velocity. The low thermal conductivity of quasicrystals and its brittleness play a vital role in determining the friction and wear behavior of such materials. When these coatings are subjected to rubbing for a longer period of time, wear occurs by subsurface crack propagation and subsequent delamination within the coated layer. By comparing the QC to its polycrystalline counterpart during potentiodynamic measurements according to ASTM G 31, higher currents were found over the whole range of potentials for QC when immersed in 1MHCl solution.

Interventional treatment of venous insufficiency has been revolutionized by endovascular techniques. Some of these techniques, and particularly thermal ablation (endovenous laser, radiofrequency) are now recommended as first-line therapy in the latest international guidelines. This is because of less post-operative pain, a shorter leave from employment and similar or lower recurrence rate. Endovenous techniques allow safer and more efficient treatment of certain particular conditions : small saphenous vein, ulcers, and recurrent varicose veins. In addition to clinical history and examination, a duplex sonography of deep and superficial veins, performed by an angiologist, is the most important exam in order to determine proper indication and best treatment strategy for each patient.La prise en charge de l’insuffisance veineuse des membres inférieurs a été révolutionnée par l’avènement des techniques endoveineuses. En particulier, l’ablation thermique par laser endoveineux, ou radiofréquence des troncs saphéniens, a remplacé la chirurgie comme technique de référence dans les dernières guidelines publiées, notamment en raison d’une diminution des douleurs postinterventionnelles et de la durée d’incapacité de travail avec un taux de récidives identique, voire inférieur. Les techniques endoveineuses permettent, en outre, de traiter certaines indications avec un niveau d’efficacité et de sécurité accru : traitement de la petite veine saphène, ulcères et récidives de varices. Afin de déterminer l’indication et la meilleure stratégie de prise en charge, un bilan veineux par écho-Doppler par un angiologue est une étape obligatoire.

Obwohl sich die chronisch-venose Insuffizienz betrachtlich auf die Morbiditat und Lebensqualitat der betroffenen Patienten auswirkt, wird sie in vielen Fallen vernachlassigt. Um die optimale Behandlung festzulegen, ist eine sorgfaltige Dopplersonographie durch einen Angiologen oder Phlebologen erforderlich. In den letzten Jahren wurde das therapeutische Standardarsenal, zu dem die elastische Kompression und die klassische Varizenchirurgie zahlen, durch interventionelle endovenose Therapien erweitert.

cCabinet prive d’angiologie, Vevey; d Cabinet prive d’angiologie, Epalinges; e Cabinet prive d’angiologie, Nyon La maladie veineuse chronique est souvent negligee malgre un impact important sur la morbidite et la qualite de vie des patients aff ectes. Un bilan echo-Doppler approfondi par un angiologue/phlebologue est necessaire pour determiner la prise en charge optimale. Ces dernieres annees, l’arsenal therapeutique standard avec compression elastique et chirurgie de varice classique a ete enrichi par des therapies interventionnelles endoveineuses telle que les ablations thermiques ou la sclerotherapie echo-guidee a la mousse et permet une prise en charge individualisee pour chaque patient.

Chromated glycerin (CG) is an effective, although painful, sclerosing agent for telangiectasias and reticular leg veins treatment.To determine pain level and relative efficacy of pure or one-third lidocaine-epinephrine 1% mixed chromated glycerin in a prospective randomized double-blind trial.Patients presenting with telangiectasias and reticular leg veins on the lateral aspect of the thigh (C(1A) or (S) E(P) A(S) P(N1) ) were randomized to receive pure CG or CG mixed with one-third lidocaine-epinephrine 1% (CGX) treatment. Lower limb photographs were taken before and after treatment and analyzed by blinded expert reviewers for efficacy assessment (visual vein disappearance). Patients' pain and satisfaction were assessed using visual analogue scales.Data from 102 of 110 randomized patients could be evaluated. Patient pain scores were significantly higher when pure CG was used than with CGX (p.001). Patient satisfaction with treatment outcome was similar in the two groups. Objective visual assessment of vessel disappearance revealed no significant difference between the two agents (p=.07).Addition of lidocaine-epinephrine 1% to CG, in a ratio of one-third, significantly reduces sclerotherapy pain without affecting efficacy when treating telangiectasias and reticular leg veins.

For a better understanding of the oxide growth and final film properties upon anodization of titanium in sulfuric and phosphoric acid containing electrolytes, the electrochemical behavior as studied by a.c. impedance was correlated to microstructural analysis (TEM, Raman). Chemical depth profiling of the films was performed with glow discharge optical emission spectroscopy (GDOES), XPS and RBS. The fitted capacitances and resistances from a.c. impedance measurements were greatly influenced by the ongoing crystallization as well as by film porosity as a function of increasing anodization potential. GDOES revealed a small sulfur contamination (with its maximum before the oxide-metal interface) upon anodization in 1 M H 2 SO 4 and a significant phosphorus content throughout the oxides for films grown in 1 M H 3 PO 4 , showing an accumulation at the surface. Small impurities of carbon in all films as well as an accumulation of hydrogen at/after the interface oxide-metal were also observed. Quantification of the hydrogen content by elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA) indicated a peak concentration of 20-30 at%.

Ceramic oxide films like TiO 2 are used on medical implants to improve biocompatibility and corrosion behavior. Along with the chemical composition, the topography of implants with surface features in the tens of microns range is known to promote osteointegration. In this work, the prospective of anodically grown TiO 2 thin films as mask material for subsequent electrochemical micro/nanopatteming of medical implant surfaces sensitized by He-ion beam and YAG-laser irradiation is investigated. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was used to characterize resistance and capacitance of oxide films anodized under various conditions. The resistance obtained by fitting to an appropriate equivalent circuit was compared to the film stability in electrochemical pitting experiments. Film thickness, composition and microstructure were analyzed by glow discharge optical emission spectroscopy (GDOES), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning and transmission electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. An increasing film resistance of the porous part of the oxide was found to correlate to increasing pitting resistance. GDOES revealed a low carbon and sulfur concentration in the film as well as an accumulation of hydrogen at the oxide/metal interface. Based on the performance in pitting tests, suitable anatase TiO 2 films were used for laser micropatteming, and thinner mainly amorphous films were used for He-ion beam micropatterning experiments. YAG-laser treatment led to preferential dissolution of the irradiated sites during the subsequent etching step. Both preferential and reduced dissolution was observed in case of He-ion implantation. Potential physico-chemical mechanisms for observed micropatterning effects are discussed. if) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The continuous and rapid increase of areal density in magnetic data storage systems required a continuous increase of the coercivity of the storage media. In order to be able to record on these ever-higher-coercivity media, new soft magnetic materials for pole tips with increased magnetic moment had to be developed. Significant progress has been made during the last few years in electroplating alloys with high saturation magnetic flux density for use in writing heads. We review recent progress made in this area, with particular emphasis on the work done at IBM since the review paper on the subject was published in this journal in 1998 by Andricacos and Robertson. Reviewed here are the high-moment alloys of NiFe, particularly in the very high iron range [an extension of permalloy (Ni80Fe20) and Ni45Fe55]; very-high-cobalt CoFeCu alloys; ternary CoNiFe; and binary iron-rich CoFe alloys. With the latter binary alloy films, we have demonstrated that it is possible to reach by electroplating the saturation flux density limit of 2.4-2.5 T reported for cast alloys. Since the electroplating of good-magnetic-quality iron-rich CoFe alloys posed a considerable challenge, the behavior of the CoFe plating system was studied in detail, using in situ surface pH measurements and a rotating-cylinder Hull cell.

BACKGROUND: Sclerotherapy of telangiectasias and reticular leg veins can be unpleasant and painful for some patients. OBJECTIVE: To determine pain level with two different sclerotherapy techniques in a prospective randomized trial. METHODS: Patients with symmetrical telangiectasias and reticular veins on both legs (C(1A) or (S)E(P)A(S)P(N1) were randomized to the standard (successive injections of chromated glycerin mixed with one-third lidocaine-epinephrine 1%) or two-step technique (first treating only reticular veins with a single injection at the base of each cluster of telangiectasias and then successively injecting all remaining telangiectasias a few minutes later. Pain was assessed using a 100-point visual analogue scale (0 = no pain, 100 = maximum pain). RESULTS: Data from 53 consecutive patients could be evaluated. The two-step technique was significantly less painful (28.2) than the standard technique (40.6, p < .001). CONCLUSION: The two-step technique with chromated glycerin mixed with one-third lidocaine-epinephrine 1% significantly reduces sclerotherapy pain. This may be a useful technique for patients who are particularly sensitive or afraid of sclerotherapy.

Research has devoted considerable attention to the contribution of cultural and creative industries (CCIs) to economic growth and innovation. Measuring and evaluative tools have played an increasingly important role in meeting the demand for the accountability of public money supporting this sector. Nevertheless, creativity remains an elusive subject for policy-makers. One of the major obstacles in adopting CCI policies is the difficulty in apprehending the value of support actions for cultural and creative enterprises. The present research is a first attempt to create a harmonised and simple set of indicators (the ‘benchmarking raster’) to assess local policies targeting economic development of CCIs. It has been completed in the framework of the INTERREG- funded CREA.RE network with the aim to encourage the authorities of small and medium-sized cities and regions to further invest Structural Funds in CCIs. It is also expected to contribute to CCI-focused economic development strategies (or Smart Specialisation Strategies).

Common activation mechanisms, which are responsible for infiltration in other non-wetting systems, play only a secondary role in the Ti activated Al 2 O 3 /X3CrNiMo13-4 system for pressureless alloy infiltration into porous ceramic preforms. Experiments with a model pore consisting of two juxtaposed parallel alumina plates with lithographically imprinted arrays of Ti-dots show that transport through the vapour phase and subsequent condensation of the steel components onto the activator are the key steps of the activation mechanism. The mechanism was additionally confirmed by infiltration experiments with porous alumina preforms consisting of alternating layers with and without Ti parallel to the infiltration direction. Only layers with activator particles were infiltrated.

Contrary to crystalline titanium oxide (TiO2), electrochemically deposited amorphous thin TiO2 films are found significantly more sensitive towards electron beam (e-beam) exposure. E-beam irradiation experiments were performed under scanning electron microscope conditions at 20 keV with well controlled beam current (IP), current density and exposure dose. As shown by atomic force microscopy and Micro-Raman spectroscopy, even moderate e-beam exposure immediately leads to oxide reduction due to electron stimulated oxygen desorption, while exposure with IP>1 micro-A and J>1 A/cm2 triggers localized crystallization into anatase phase already after seconds of irradiation. The mechanisms for oxide reduction and beam heating induced crystallization are discussed, and a temperature estimation in the beam center indicates that crystallization occurs at less than 150 °C. The well-defined volume loss upon oxygen desorption is shown to be attractive for precise topographical surface patterning, while the triggering local structural changes within a semi-conductive amorphous matrix opens interesting possibilities for tailoring of its local electrical or catalytic properties.

Superficial thrombophlebitis is a frequent complication of varicose veins that occurs rarely on normal veins. In the latter case, it may be associated with thrombophilia, cancer or inflammatory disease. Superficial thrombophlebitis is rarely complicated by deep vein thrombosis through extension in the deep vein system. Therefore, depending of its localisation, a venous ultrasound is indicated to evaluate its extension. Treatment is based on elastic compression, non steroid anti-inflammatory drugs and mobilisation. If thrombophlebitis approaches the saphenous junction with the deep vein systems or involves perforans veins anticoagulant treatment is indicated.

Background. A single-blind, randomized, comparative study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of pure chromated glycerin (CG), polidocanol (POL) 0.25% solution, and POL 0.25% foam (Monfreux technique) for treatment of telangiectasias and reticular leg veins. Objective. To determine the relative efficacy and safety of two sclerosing agents and foam. Method. Of 150 randomized patients presenting comparable areas (lateral face of thigh) of telangiectasias and reticular leg veins, 147 could be evaluated by photographic assessment, patients' satisfaction score, and pain at injection sites. Internal and external agreement for the photographic assessment was good for two independent blinded experts. Results. CG cleared vessels significantly better than POL solution or foam (p

We report local electron beam induced reduction and crystallization of electrolytic amorphous TiO2 films on steel at 20keV, varying beam currents from 10nAto24μA. In situ substrate temperature measurements and beam heating calculations demonstrate the formation of anatase (Raman) below 270°C, clearly beneath the crystallization temperature of nonirradiated films (≈440°C). The evolution of the sample current was correlated to oxide reduction via electron stimulated desorption. Atomic force microscopy revealed well defined cavities with Gaussian shape. The e-beam sensitivity of amorphous TiO2 allows for patterning of macroscopic films, inducing local changes in oxidation state and phase.

Background The efficacy of wearing compression stockings on clinical vessel disappearance following sclerotherapy of telangiectasias and reticular veins has been a matter of debate for half a century. Objective To determine the relative efficacy of compression following sclerotherapy and to determine its impact on general quality of life in a prospective randomized open-label trial. Methods Female patients seeking treatment of telangiectasias and reticular veins and presenting comparable areas of telangiectasias on the lateral aspect of the thigh (C 1A or S E P A S1 P N ) were randomized to wear medical compression stockings (23 to 32 mm Hg) daily for 3 weeks or no such treatment following a single session of standardized liquid sclerotherapy. Outcome was assessed by patient satisfaction analysis and quantitative evaluation of photographs taken from the lateral aspect of the thigh before and again at 52 days on the average after sclerotherapy by two blinded expert reviewers. Patients completed a quality of life questionnaire (SF-36) before treatment and again at the control. Results Data of 96 of 100 randomized patients could be evaluated. Patient satisfaction with the outcome of treatment was similar in the two groups. Objective assessment of clinical vessel disappearance revealed a benefit of wearing stockings ( P = .026) corresponding to a NNT (number needed to treat) of 4.7 patients to get a vessel disappearance score higher than 6. The interobserver agreement was very high (intraclass correlation coefficient=0.93). Compression was well tolerated with a low rate of discomfort claims (mean 17.5%). Micro-thrombi were rarely observed in either group, but still less prevalent in the compression group. The rate of pigmentation and matting was low and did not differ significantly between the two groups. Physical and mental quality of life scores in women seeking treatment of telangiectasias were similar to those of a healthy control population. Treatment had no impact on general quality of life. Conclusion Wearing compression stockings (23 to 32 mm Hg) for 3 weeks enhance the efficacy of sclerotherapy of leg telangiectasias by improving clinical vessel disappearance.

Ce travail de thèse se propose d'évaluer et améliorer la prise en charge de ladouleur traumatique au SAU de Verdun. Il s'articule autour de deux Evaluations des Pratiques Professionnelles encadrant la mise en place d'un protocole d'administration anticipée d'antalgique par l'Infirmier Organisateur de l'Accueil pour les patients de plus de quinze ans de la filière traumatologie. On démontre ainsi de manière significative que sa mise en place entraine une réduction du délai médian d'administration du premier antalgique de 20 minutes à 8 minutes (p=0.002) et une diminution du recours au médecin en salle de tri de 12% à 6% des cas ( p=0.001). Par ailleurs, un sondage sur dossiers informatiques, réalisé en amont et en aval de ce travail démontre une nette amélioration du taux de renseignement de l'évaluation de la douleur par l'échelle numérique. Le taux de dossiers contenant au moins deux EN passe ainsi de 1,6% avant l'étude à 18% après l'étude. Ces résultats incitent à proposer en réunion de service la mise en place définitive du protocole d'administration anticipée d'antalgique par l'IOA et encouragent à poursuivre la démarche d'amélioration de la qualité des soins en matière de prise en charge de la douleur