The experience of eating for older nursing home residents with dysphagia: A qualitative descriptive study.

BACKGROUND: Understanding the experience of eating for nursing home residents with dysphagia is essential for developing effective and holistic compensatory intervention programmes for older adults with dysphagia. However, there is a lack of studies on the experience of eating for older adults with dysphagia, especially for individuals in Asian cultures. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to understand the experience of eating for older nursing home residents who have difficulty swallowing (dysphagia), which is often a problem for this population. METHODS: This qualitative descriptive study recruited older nursing home residents with dysphagia from facilities in central Taiwan. Residents were recruited by purposive sampling. Data were collected through individual in-depth semistructured face-to-face interviews. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed interview data were analysed with content analysis. RESULTS: A total of 20 residents participated in the study; the mean age was 78.7 years (standard deviation = 8.54 years); male and female residents were equally represented. The main core theme describing the experience of eating for nursing home residents with dysphagia was irregular coughing, which often occurred spontaneously. Three subthemes described how residents responded: making adjustments to eating and swallowing, receiving assistance from NH staff and fear of eating. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings can serve as an evidence-based reference for clinical care aimed at nursing home residents with dysphagia. Support programmes that provide safe swallowing skills and emotional support for managing dysphagia are recommended. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Nursing home residents with dysphagia should receive interventions focussed on self-supporting care, training in swallowing skills and emotional support.

Breaking Through the Multi-Mesa-Channel Width Limited of Normally Off GaN HEMTs Through Modulation of the Via-Hole-Length.

We present new normally off GaN high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) that overcome the typical limitations in multi-mesa-channel (MMC) width through modulation of the via-hole-length to regulate the charge neutrality screen effect. We have prepared enhancement-mode (E-mode) GaN HEMTs having widths of up to 300 nm, based on an enhanced surface pinning effect. E-mode GaN HEMTs having MMC structures and widths as well as via-hole-lengths of 100 nm/2 µm and 300 nm/6 µm, respectively, exhibited positive threshold voltages (V th) of 0.79 and 0.46 V, respectively. The on-resistances of the MMC and via-hole-length structures were lower than those of typical tri-gate nanoribbon GaN HEMTs. In addition, the devices not only achieved the E-mode but also improved the power performance of the GaN HEMTs and effectively mitigated the device thermal effect. We controlled the via-hole-length sidewall surface pinning effect to obtain the E-mode GaN HEMTs. Our findings suggest that via-hole-length normally off GaN HEMTs have great potential for use in next-generation power electronics.

Per-Substituted [8]Circulene and Its Non-Planar Fragments: Synthesis, Structural Analysis, and Properties.

The syntheses, structures, and physical properties of a full series of benzannulated tetraphenylenes are reported. The palladium-catalyzed annulation of tetraiodo-substituted 2,3,6,7,10,11,14,15-octamethyltetraphenylene with insufficient di(4-anisyl)ethyne yielded a mixture of per-substituted [8]circulene and its non-planar fragments, including mono-, para-di-, ortho-di-, and triannulated products. Their structures were unambiguously verified by X-ray crystallography. Successive benzannulations significantly affect the molecular geometries, dynamic behaviors, and physical properties of the compounds. In this series of compounds, [8]circulene is the most strained one, as reflected by the significant deplanarization of the phenanthrene moieties (ca. 63° in the bay region) and the fact that it has the highest strain energy (120.6 kcal mol(-1) ). The dynamic behaviors of these compounds were examined both experimentally and theoretically. The ring flipping of per-substituted [8]circulene is confirmed to proceed through pseudorotation with a barrier of around 21 kcal mol(-1) , whereas its non-planar fragments require much more energy for the ring inversion. The photophysical and electrochemical properties of the investigated compounds depend strongly on the extent of efficient π conjugation. The successive benzannulations red-shift both the absorption and the emission bands, and reduce the first oxidation potential.

Influence of patterned sapphire substrates with different symmetry on the light output power of InGaN-based LEDs.

This paper aims to investigate the light output power (LOP) of InGaN-based light-emitting diodes (LEDs) grown on patterned sapphire substrates (PSSs) with different symmetry. The GaN epitaxial layers grown on the hexagonal lattice arrangement PSS (HLAPSS) have a lower compressive strain than the ones grown on the square lattice arrangement PSS (SLAPSS). The quantum-confined Stark effect (QCSE) is also affected by the residual compressive strain. Based on the experimentally measured data and the ray tracing simulation results, the InGaN-based LED with the HLAPSS has a higher LOP than the one with the SLAPSS due to the weaker QCSE within multiple-quantum wells (MQWs).

Surface passivation of efficient nanotextured black silicon solar cells using thermal atomic layer deposition.

Efficient nanotextured black silicon solar cells passivated by an Al2O3 layer are demonstrated. The broadband antireflection of the nanotextured black silicon solar cells was provided by fabricating vertically aligned silicon nanowire (SiNW) arrays on the n(+) emitter. A highly conformal Al2O3 layer was deposited upon the SiNW arrays by the thermal atomic layer deposition (ALD) based on the multiple pulses scheme. The nanotextured black silicon wafer covered with the Al2O3 layer exhibited a low total reflectance of ∼1.5% in a broad spectrum from 400 to 800 nm. The Al2O3 passivation layer also contributes to the suppressed surface recombination, which was explored in terms of the chemical and field-effect passivation effects. An 8% increment of short-circuit current density and 10.3% enhancement of efficiency were achieved due to the ALD Al2O3 surface passivation and forming gas annealing. A high efficiency up to 18.2% was realized in the ALD Al2O3-passivated nanotextured black silicon solar cells.

Classification of the thyroid nodules based on characteristic sonographic textural feature and correlated histopathology using hierarchical support vector machines.

In this study, the ultrasound images of thyroid nodules were classified to facilitate clinical diagnosis and management. The hierarchical support vector machines (SVM) classification system was used to select the characteristic sonographic textural feature that represents the major histopathologic components of the thyroid nodules. Two ultrasound systems (LA39 and i12L mentioned in the Materials and Methods section) were used for comparison. Seventy-six thyroid nodular lesions and 157 regions-of-interest thyroid ultrasound image from each system were recruited in the study. The parameters affecting image acquisition were kept in the same condition for all lesions. Commonly used texture analysis methods were applied to characterize thyroid ultrasound images. Image features were classified according to the corresponding pathologic findings. To estimate their relevance and performance to classification, SVMs were used as a feature selector and a classifier. The thyroid nodules are first categorized as two main types, i.e., follicle base and fibrosis base nodule, by sum average. The follicle base nodules can be further and completely classified into follicles with few cells, follicles with follicular cells and follicles with papillary cancer cells by run length nonuniformity (RLNU). The fibrosis base nodules are further classified by sum square into fibrosis with few cells and fibrosis with dominant cells. The fibrosis base neoplasm with dominant cells can be separated into fibrosis with follicular cells and fibrosis with papillary cancer cells by entropy. The hierarchical SVM classification system achieves a diagnostic accuracy between 96.34% and 100%. Besides, the best sonographic textural feature can be selected by the system for the differentiation between the follicle and fibrosis base thyroid nodules or the cell types mixed in them. In follicle base thyroid nodules, papillary cancers show higher sonographic textural RLNU but less than follicular cells. In fibrosis base thyroid nodules, papillary cancers show increased sonographic textural variance and entropy.

Multiple complete ring-shaped enhanced MRI lesions in acute disseminated encephalomyelitis.

Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) lesions may or may not enhance with contrast material on contrast T1-weighted magnetic resonance images (T1WI). Enhancing ADEM lesions may show varying patterns of contrast enhancement, which include nodular, diffuse nodular, amorphous, gyral, spotty and incomplete ring-like. Multiple, complete ring-shaped enhanced lesions on contrast T1WI is a rare finding in ADEM. We report such a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) finding in a 36-year-old female patient with this disease.