Femtosecond laser fabrication of monolithic double volume phase-gratings in glass.

A diffractive optical element was fabricated by monolithically integrating two volume phase-gratings (VPGs) in the bulk of a single-piece transparent material. A computer model of the diffraction generated by the double volume phase-grating (DVPG) was made with a rigorous coupled wave analysis simulator. Simulations and experiments show that the diffractive behavior of a DVPG can be controlled by arranging the relative displacement and the distance between the VPGs according to Talbot self-imaging planes. In order to diffract the total incident light, the phase accumulation in the VPGs has to be π/2, which was achieved by single-scan femtosecond laser processing of a nanocrystal doped glass as the substrate material. Ex situ microscope images of the cross-sections are presented for laser processed lines in the form of VPGs and DVPGs. The far-field diffraction of DVPGs formed by selectively located VPGs was characterized with a monochromatic 633 nm and a supercontinuum white light. Functional designs of high diffraction efficiency with potential applications in photonics were successfully fabricated in a one-step and free of chemicals process.

Computerized registry of patients with hemorrhagic hereditary telangiectasia (RiHHTa Registry) in Spain: Objectives, methods, and preliminary results. / Registro informatizado de la telangiectasia hemorrágica hereditaria (Registro RiHHTa) en España: objetivos, métodos y resultados preliminares.

INTRODUCTION: Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is a rare disease with autosomal dominant inheritance that causes systemic vascular affectation. MATERIAL AND METHOD: After development a multicentric Spanish national registry, called RiHHTa, main clinical manifestations and diagnostic procedures of the first patients introduced are described. RESULTS: 141 patients were included, of which 91 (64.5%) were women. The mean age at diagnosis was 42 years. Mutations in the ACVRL1 gene predominated over the ENG gene. The initial symptom was recurrent epistaxis in 130 (92.2%) patients and in three (2.1%), brain abscess. Pulmonary arteriovenous (AV) fistula were detected in 36 (45%) of the 79 patients who underwent thoracic CT angiography. The contrast echocardiography detected very few bubbles (grade I) or none, in 36 (45%) of these 79 affected patients. In 43 (67.2%) of the 64 patients with an abdominal CT angiography, hepatic vascular malformations were detected, mostly telangiectasias, AV and arterio-portal fistula, and extrahepatic in 14 (10%) subjects. More than half of the patients were screened for the presence of brain arteriovenous malformations which was found in 3.9% of them. The upper part of the intestinal tube was the most (95%) affected region. CONCLUSION: The RiHHTa Registry allows improving the management of patients with HHT. An inadequate use of thoracic CT angiography and the usefulness of abdominal CT angiography has been detected in order to define subtypes of hepatic vascular involvement and detect extrahepatic vascular involvement.

Autoinflammatory diseases in adults. Clinical characteristics and prognostic implications. / Enfermedades autoinflamatorias en el adulto. Características clínicas e implicaciones pronósticas.

Autoinflammatory diseases are clinical conditions with inflammatory manifestations that present in a periodic or persistent manner and are caused by acquired or hereditary disorders of the innate immune response. In general, these diseases are more common in childhood, but cases have been reported in adults and are therefore important for all specialists. There are few references on these diseases in adults due to their low prevalence and underdiagnosis. The aim of this study is to review the scientific literature on these disorders to systematise their clinical, prognostic and treatment response characteristics in adults.

Current diagnosis and treatment of Castleman's disease.

Castleman's disease is not just a single disease but rather an uncommon, heterogeneous group of nonclonal lymphoproliferative disorders, which have a broad spectrum of clinical expression. Three histological types have been reported, along with several clinical forms according to clinical presentation, histological substrate and associated diseases. Interleukin-6, its receptor polymorphisms, the human immunodeficiency virus and the human herpes virus 8 are involved in the etiopathogenesis of Castleman's disease. The study of this disease has shed light on a syndrome whose incidence is unknown. Despite recent significant advances in our understanding of this disease and the increasing therapeutic experience with rituximab, tocilizumab and siltuximab, there are still difficult questions concerning its aetiology, prognosis and optimal treatment.

Profile of a fiber from backscattering measurements.

The angular positions of the light-scattering minima obtained from structures placed on flat substrates are closely related to the geometry of the scattering object. We show how the profile of a fiber can be determined, and possible irregularities located, by measurement of the backscattering patterns. An approximate double-interaction model is used to fit the results.

Scattering from particles on surfaces: visibility factor and polydispersity.

We have developed an experimental method based on the visibility factor of light-scattering minima to obtain size-polydispersity information from contaminants upon a flat substrate. We verify the method by using double-interaction-model calculations and use this technique to examine experimentally the radial variation of a micrometer-sized fiber and the size polydispersity of spherical particles upon a substrate.

Impact of pediatric traumatic brain injury on components of verbal memory.

This 3-month longitudinal study examined spared and impaired components of verbal learning and memory after pediatric traumatic brain injury (TBI), using the California Verbal Learning Test for Children. School-aged participants with severe or mild-to-moderate TBI were compared to traumatically injured control subjects without head trauma. Participants were initially evaluated approximately 1 month post injury, and again 3 months later. At Times 1 and 2, participants with severe TBI displayed deficits in immediate recall, delayed recall, and recognition accuracy, consistent with a mild encoding deficit. In both evaluations, participants with mild-to-moderate TBI performed similarly to controls. On average, mild verbal encoding deficits appear to be associated with severe, but not mild-to-moderate, pediatric TBI in the first several months post injury.