BACKGROUND Robotic mitral valve repair with the da Vinci robotic surgical system has been performed in more than 70 patients at our institution. This procedure reduces the need for blood transfusions, shortens hospital stay, and hastens return to normal activities. However, the robot-assisted repair also requires longer cardiopulmonary bypass and arrested-heart times than conventional open repa...

A significant BN-to-graphene charge donation is evident in the electronic structure of a graphene/h-BN(0001) heterojunction grown by chemical vapor deposition and atomic layer deposition directly on Ru(0001), consistent with density functional theory. This filling of the lowest unoccupied state near the Brillouin zone center has been characterized by combined photoemission/k vector resolved inv...

BACKGROUND A recently published prospective series has demonstrated that weight loss ceases 18 to 24 months following Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) and that, by 48 months, there is significant weight regain in 50% of patients. METHODS We report the case of a 38-year-old male patient who developed significant weight regain 42 months following laparoscopic (RYGB) and underwent la...

Motivated by the increasing importance of hyperspectral remote sensing data, this study sought to determine whether current-generation narrow-band hyperspectral remote sensing data could better track vegetation leaf area index (LAI) than traditional broad-band multispectral data. The study takes advantage of a unique dataset, wherein field measurements of LAI were acquired at the same general t...

In this paper, we have presented a simple method in order to solve the pole placement problem of linear output feedback systems with state space models. Pole placement is a control method assigned to arbitrary closed loop poles by state or output feedback. In linear systems, poles have influence on stability, system response, transient response, and band width. Pole placement methods are used i...

Introduction: One of the most common problems we confront in orthodontic therapy is periodontal diseases. Initial factor which causes these diseases is colonization of anaerobic microorganisms in subgingival plaque. Technically, local environmental changes related to orthodontic band and brackets may influence the bacterial species in periodontal plaque. However, it seems necessary to assess va...

BACKGROUND The EEG is considered as building block of functional signaling in the brain. The role of EEG oscillations in human information processing has been intensively investigated. PURPOSE To study the quantitative EEG correlates of short term memory load as assessed through Sternberg memory test. METHODS The study was conducted on 34 healthy male student volunteers. The intervention co...

BACKGROUND Laparoscopic insertion of a gastric band for weight reduction is increasingly performed in obese and morbidly obese patients. Complication rates after gastric band insertion are reduced by using certain techniques. PATIENTS AND METHODS This was a prospective study of all patients who underwent laparoscopic adjustable gastric band (LAGB) insertion at our unit. This procedure is perf...

BACKGROUND Intragastric migration is a late and rare postsurgical complication in patients with gastric band placement. Gastric band erosion rate has previously been described to be 1.46%. In this report, we present the case of a 43-y-old male with gastric band erosion undergoing a laparoendoscopic retrieval of the gastric band, due to intragastric migration. METHOD A hybrid procedure was per...

INTRODUCTION Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding is an effective and safe surgical modality for the treatment of morbid obesity. Erosion of the band into the stomach has been reported. No reports are available on erosion of the Lap-Band following diverticulitis of the colon. CASE REPORT A 31-year-old female with a body mass index (BMI) of 52 underwent an uneventful laparoscopic Lap-Band p...