Outgassing from internal adhesive joints of vacuum devices

Kinetics of the formation of residual atmosphere in vacuum devices with internal adhesive joints and the application of the mass spectral and chromatographic methods to measure the specific outgassing rate of volatile compounds from the cured adhesives are considered in this paper.The outgassing comparison data for the various types of adhesives are given and the effectiveness of the outgassing of adhesive joints is demonstrated.The possible options to provide vacuum in the various devices are considered.At moderate requirements to the residual pressure(about10-2Pa),it is enough to degass the adhesive joints during a few hours.It is much more difficult to provide vacuum in devices with internal adhesive joints at the level of about10-4Pa.This requires the use of the built-in getter and the high temperature degassing.It is expedient to provide deep vacuum(10-5-10-4Pa)in the rare-used or once-used devices by short(a few minutes)activation the built-in getters before operating the vacuum devices.This allows to remove the main residual gas hydrocarbons component from the vacuum house and provide the necessary level of vacuum for a certain interval of time.

Anti-lysyl oxidase combined with a vacuum device induces penile lengthening by remodeling the tunica albuginea

This study aimed to explore whether and how anti-lysyl oxidase(anti-LOX)combined with a vacuum device(VD)could promote penile lengthening and to evaluate the effect on erectile function.This study was performed on four groups of adult rats:control,anti-LOX,VD(negative pressure value of-300 mmHg),and anti-LOX+VD.Penile length was measured by a modified VD method and verified on exposed length data.Intracavernous pressure(ICP)and maximum ICP/mean arterial pressure(MAP)ratio were recorded to assess erectile function.For corpus cavernosum,LOX activity and concentrations of pyridinoline,desmosine,hydroxyproline,and elastin were analyzed;transmission electron microscope and Hart’s elastin staining were performed to monitor microstructural changes.Anti-LOX and VD significantly lengthened the penis by 10.8%(3.75 mm)and 8.2%(2.48 mm)compared with the control group,respectively,while anti-LOX+VD achieved the longest penile size(40.58±0.40 mm)which was 17.4%longer than the control group(34.58±0.54 mm).After 1-week washout,no penile retraction was observed.Meanwhile,exposed penile length data confirmed that the penis in the anti-LOX+VD group was also significantly longer.Anti-LOX inhibited LOX activity to reduce pyridinoline level,which led the penile tunica albuginea remodeling.However,it had no effect on hydroxyproline,desmosine,and elastin levels.Moreover,anti-LOX had no impact on erectile function,which was determined by ICP and ICP/MAP ratio.These results suggest that anti-LOX elongates the penis by reducing pyridinoline,which induces tunica albuginea remodeling.This lengthening effect was more obvious when combined with a VD.All procedures had no impact on erectile function.

Intermetallic Getters Reactants for Vacuum Applications

The present work continues a series of publications devoted to the study of the sorption properties of reactive alloys based on IIA metals and the development of advanced getter materials for gas and vacuum technologies. This publication attempts to answer the current challenges in the field of gas sorption associated with the emergence of new vacuum products such as vacuum insulated glasses, electronic systems, cryogenic devices, etc. An analysis of the problems that arise here, as well as the results of sorption measurements, carried out with the participation of intermetallic phases of the composition CaLi2 and Ca0.33Li0.48Mg0.19, show that the best getter support for these new hermetically sealed products can be provided by intermetallic compounds formed in systems Li-IIA metals. Intermetallic phases of this family are easy to manufacture and demonstrate outstanding service characteristics: their specific sorption capacity is recorded high, exceeding traditional gas sorbents in this respect by at least an order of magnitude;the kinetics of gas capturing is set at the stage of alloy production, i.e., is adjustable;the temporary resistance of these phases to atmospheric gases allows to install the getter at its workplace in air, without further thermal activation. The sorption superiority of reactive intermetallics is explained by their special sorption mechanism: the gas/metal interaction is formed here as a combination of two processes, continuous growth of reaction products on a metallic surface and corrosion decay of brittle intermetallic phase under mechanical forces, which feeds the chemical reaction with a fresh surface. The advantages of sorption processes of this new type are undoubted and significant: compared with the conventional sorbents, an intermetallic getter reactant solves two important problems;it reduces production costs and increases the sorption yield.

Combination therapy for erectile dysfunction： an update review

The introduction of oral phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors （PDE51s） in the late 1990s and early 2000s revolutionized the field of sexual medicine and PDE51s are currently first-line monotherapy for erectile dysfunction （ED）. However, a significant proportion of patients with complex ED will be therapeutic non-responders to PDE51 monotherapy. Combination therapy has recently been adopted for more refractory cases of ED, but a critical evaluation of current combination therapies is lacking. A thorough PubMed and Cochrane Library search was conducted focusing on the effectiveness of combination therapies for ED in therapeutic non-responders to PDE51 therapy. Journal articles spanning the time period between January 1990 and December 2010 were reviewed. Criteria included all pertinent review articles, randomized controlled trials, cohort studies and retrospective analyses. References from retrieved articles were also manually scanned for additional relevant publications. Published combination therapies include PDE51 plus vacuum erectile device （VED）, intraurethral medication, intracavernosal injection （ICI）, androgen supplement, a-blocker or miscellaneous combinations. Based on this review, some of these combination treatments appeared to be quite effective in preliminary testing. Caution must be advised, however, as the majority of combination therapy articles in the last decade have numerous limitations including study biases and small subject size. Regardless of limitations, present combination therapy research provides a solid foundation for future studies in complex ED management.

A prospective randomized controlled study on scheduled PDE5i and vacuum erectile devices in the treatment of erectile dysfunction after nerve sparing prostatectomy

Cavernous nerve injury is an important cause of erectile dysfunction(ED).Although protective nerve technology has been widely used in nerve-sparing radical prostatectomy(nsRP),the incidence of ED is still very high after surgery.The purpose of our study was to evaluate erectile function(EF)and penile length in the non-erectile state(PLNES)following scheduled phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitor(PDE5i),vacuum erectile device(VED)treatment,and combination therapy after nsRP.One hundred patients with localized prostate cancer and normal EF were randomized to scheduled PDE5i group,VED treatment group,a combined treatment group,and the control group without any intervention.The International Index of Erectile Function-5(IIEF-5)scores and PLNES were evaluated after 6 months and 12 months of treatment.Sexual Encounter Profile(SEP-Question 2 and SEP-Question 3)were evaluated after 12 months of treatment.Ninety-one of the 100 randomized patients completed the study.We found that the 5 mg tadalafil once a day(OaD)combined with VED can help improve IIEF-5 scores in nsRP patients after both 6 months and 12 months.VED alone or combined with tadalafil OaD can help patients maintain PLNES.VED combined with tadalafil OaD can improve the rate of successful penetration(SEP-Question 2)after 12 months.There were no significant differences in the return to target EF after 12 months among the groups.No significant correlation was noted between the variables and return to target EF(IIEF≥17),and between the variables and effective shortening of the patient’s penis(shortening≥1 cm)after 12 months of intervention.

Plasma simulation to analyze velocity distribution characteristics of pseudospark-sourced electron beam

Pseudospark-sourced electron beam is a promising candidate for driving vacuum electronic devices to generate millimeter wave and terahertz wave radiation as it has a very high combined beam current density. However, the inherent velocity spread of the beam, which is difficult to measure in experiment, has a great influence on the operating frequency and efficiency of the vacuum electronic device. In this paper, the velocity distribution characteristics of the electron beam produced by a single-gap hollow cathode electron gun are numerically studied and a three-dimensional kinetic plasma simulation model of a single-gap hollow cathode electron gun is built by using particle in cell and Monte Carlo collision methods in Vorpal. Based on the simulation model, the time-dependent evolution of the plasma formation inside the hollow cathode and electron beam generation process are observed. It is demonstrated that the pseudospark-sourced electron beam has a relatively large velocity spread. The time-dependent velocity distribution of the beam is analyzed, and the dependence of the beam velocity distribution under various operating conditions such as anode–cathode potential difference, gas pressure, and cathode aperture size are also studied.

Value of phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors as a combination therapy for treating erectile dysfunction:A literature review

Erectile dysfunction(ED)is increasing in prevalence,with estimates that 50%of men between 40 and 70 years of age suffer from the disease.Due to a wide array of available medical interventions,significant focus has been put on combination therapies that can treat ED refractory to first-line treatments such as phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors(PDE5is).However,reviews evaluating monotherapy noninferiority and patient satisfaction of monotherapy versus combination therapy are lacking.A thorough PubMed search was performed to evaluate combination therapy in ED treatment.Articles published between January 2008 and June 2023 were reviewed,including randomized control trials,retrospective analyses,and cohort studies.Combination therapies included PDE5i plus another PDE5i,testosterone supplementation,α-blockers,vacuum erectile devices,intracavernosal injections,and low-intensity shockwave therapy.Based on this review,PDE5i monotherapy is not inferior to combination therapy and has increased satisfaction,convenience,and ease of use for patients with ED.Limitations of current literature on combination therapy include small sample size,limited data on patient satisfaction,possible biases,and limited follow-up time.Further studies will need larger randomized control trials with follow-up times greater than 1 year.

Vacuum therapy in penile rehabilitation after radical prostatectomy： review of hemodynamic and antihypoxic evidence

Generally, hypoxia is a normal physiological condition in the flaccid penis, which is interrupted by regular nocturnal erections in men with normal erectile function.1 Lack of spontaneous and nocturnal erections after radical prostatectomy due to neuropraxia results in persistent hypoxia of cavernosal tissue, which leads to apoptosis and degeneration of cavernosal smooth muscle fibers. Therefore, overcoming hypoxia is believed to play a crucial role during neuropraxia. The use of a vacuum erectile device （VED） in penile rehabilitation is reportedly effective and may prevent loss of penile length. The corporal blood after VED use is increased and consists of both arterial and venous blood, as revealed by color Doppler sonography and blood gas analysis. A similar phenomenon was observed in negative pressure wound therapy （NPWT）. However, NPWT employs a lower negative pressure than VED, and a hypoperfused zone, which increases in response to negative pressure adjacent to the wound edge, was observed. Nonetheless, questions regarding ideal subatmospheric pressure levels, modes of action, and therapeutic duration of VED remain unanswered. Moreover, it remains unclear whether a hypoperfused zone or PO2 gradient appears in the penis during VED therapy. To optimize a clinical VED protocol in penile rehabilitation, further research on the mechanism of VED, especially real-time PO2 measurements in different parts of the penis, should be performed.