Improved mass relations of mirror nuclei

In this study,we revisit the previous mass relations of mirror nuclei by considering 1/N-and 1/Z-dependent terms and the shell effect across a shell.The root-mean-squared deviation is 66 keV for 116 nuclei with neutron number N≥10,as com-pared with experimental data compiled in the AME2020 database.The predicted mass excesses of 173 proton-rich nuclei,including 98 unknown nuclei,are tabulated in the Supplemental Material herein with competitive accuracy.

Unveiling sinus venosus atrial septal defect and partial anomalous pulmonary venous return in an elderly patient

Sinus venosus defect(SVD) accounts for 4%–11% of all atrial septal defects(ASD) and may present with dyspnea, heart failure(HF), palpitations, or angina.^[1] The malformation typically involves an interatrial communication due to a deficiency in the common wall connecting the right pulmonary veins and the superior vena cava(SVC) and often accompanies anomalous pulmonary venous connection of some or all of the pulmonary veins.

The breaking of spin symmetry in the single-particle resonances in deformed nuclei

The exploration of spin symmetry (SS) in nuclear physics has been instrumental in identifying atomic nucleus structures.In this study,we solve the Dirac equation from the relativistic mean field (RMF) in complex momentum representation.We investigated SS and its breaking in single-particle resonant states within deformed nuclei,with a focus on the illustrative nucleus168Er.This was the initial discovery of a resonant spin doublet in a deformed nucleus,with the expectation of the SS approaching the continuum threshold.With increasing single-particle energy,the splitting of the resonant spin doublets widened significantly.This escalating splitting implies diminishing adherence to the SS,indicating a departure from the expected behavior as the energy levels increase.We also analyzed the width of the resonant states,showing that lower orbital angular momentum resonances possess shorter decay times and that SS is preserved within broad resonant doublets,as opposed to narrow resonant doublets.Comparing the radial density of the upper components for the bound-state and resonant-state doublets,it becomes evident that while SS is well-preserved in the bound states,it deteriorates in the resonant states.The impact of nuclear deformation (β_(2)) on SS was examined,demonstrating that an increase in β_(2) resulted in higher energy and width splitting in the resonant spin doublets,which is attributed to increased component mixing.Furthermore,the sensitivity of spin doublets to various potential parameters such as surface diffuseness (a),radius (R),and depth (Σ0) is discussed,emphasizing the role of these parameters in SS.This study provides valuable insights into the behavior of spin doublets in deformed nuclei and their interplay with the nuclear structure,thereby advancing our understanding of SS in the resonance state.

Isolated Ventricular Septal Defect: Ultrasound, Therapeutic and Evolutionary Aspects of 85 Cases in the Cardiology Department of the Ignace Deen National Hospital in Conakry

Introduction: Ventricular septal defect (VSD) is the most common congenital heart disease of all congenital heart defects. The aim of this study was to investigate the echographic, therapeutic and evolutionary aspects of ventricular septal defects (VSD) in the general cardiology department of the Hôpital National Ignace Deen. Methods: A retrospective data collection was carried out from January 2018 to December 2023 including 85 cases of isolated IVC was performed. The variables studied were epidemiological, clinical, paraclinical, therapeutic and evolutionary. Results: Of the 320 patients seen during the study period for congenital heart disease, 85 (26.556%) were isolated IVCs. Age at diagnosis ranged from 3 months to 16 years, with an average age of 3.59 years. The most represented ethnic group was the Fulani (50.58%). The 8.24% came from consanguineous marriage versus 22.35%. 91.76% of children had a history of bronchitis. The most common clinical signs found were systolic murmur (90.58%), growth retardation (51.76%). Only 4 cases (4.70%) had a malformation associated with IVC represented by DiGeorges disease (2.35%) and trisomy 21 (2.35%). Nearly half the patients had type IIb VIC (44.71%). The other half were represented by type 1 (18.82%), type IIa (20%), type III (10.59%) and type IV (5.88%). According to site more than two-thirds of VICs (71.64%) were perimembranous in location, followed by infundibular (16.47%) and muscular (11.76%) VICs. In our study 55.29% presented an indication for both surgical intervention and medical treatment, while 16.47% required only medical treatment. In contrast, 28.23% were placed under exclusive surveillance. Of the 47 patients for whom surgery was indicated, 29 (61.17%) underwent surgical repair, while 18 (38.83%) were awaiting confirmation for surgery. Conclusion: VIC is the most common congenital heart disease. An early detection strategy and the establishment of specialized centers could improve the outcome of these children.

Surgical Repair of Ventricular Septal Defect in Neonates: Indications and Outcomes

Background:The optimal surgical timing and clinical outcomes of ventricular septal defect(VSD)closure in neo-nates remain unclear.We aimed to evaluate the clinical outcomes of VSD closure in neonates(age≤30 days).Methods:We retrospectively reviewed 50 consecutive neonates who underwent VSD closure for isolated VSDs between August 2003 and June 2021.Indications for the procedure included congestive heart failure/failure to thrive and pulmonary hypertension.Major adverse events(MAEs)were defined as the composite of all-cause mortality,reoperation,persistent atrioventricular block,and significant(≥grade 2)valvular dysfunction.Results:The median age and body weight at operation were 26.0 days(interquartile range[IQR],18.8–28.3)and 3.7 kg(IQR,3.3–4.2),respectively.The median follow-up duration was 110.4 months(IQR,56.8–165.0).Seven patients required preoperative respiratory support,andfive had significant(≥grade 2)preoperative valvular dysfunction.One early mortality occurred due to irreversible cardiogenic shock;no late mortality was observed.One reopera-tion was due to hemodynamically significant residual VSD at 103.8 months postoperatively.The overall survival,freedom from reoperation,and freedom from MAE at 15-years were 98.0%,96.3%,and 94.4%,respectively.Pre-operative mechanical ventilation was associated with a longer duration of postoperative mechanical ventilation(p<0.001)and a longer length of intensive care unit stay(p<0.001).Conclusions:VSD closure with favorable outcomes without morbidities is feasible even in neonates.However,neonates requiring preoperative respiratory support may require careful postoperative management considering the long-term postoperative risks.Overall,surgical VSD closure might be indicated earlier in neonates with respiratory compromise.

Systematic study on heavy-particle radioactivity of superheavy nuclei ^(297–300)119

In the current study,we examined every possible cluster-daughter combination in the heavy-particle decay of isotopes ^(297-300)119 and computed the decay half-lives using the modified generalized liquid drop model(MGLDM)with the preformation factor depending on the disintegration energy.The predicted half-life of every heavy cluster(Z_(C)≥32)was within the experimentally observable limits.These results aligned with the predictions of Poenaru et al.[Phys.Rev.Lett.107,062503(2011)]that superheavy nuclei(SHN)with Z>110 will release heavy particles with a penetrability comparable to or greater than theα-decay.The half-lives predicted using the MGLDM for clusters^(89)Rb,^(91)Rb,and^(92)Rb from parents^(297)119,^(299)119,and^(300)119,respectively,agreed with the predictions of Poenaru et al.[Eur.Phys.J.A 54,14(2018)].It was found that the isotopes of heavy clusters Kr,Rb,Sr,Pa,In,and Cd had half-lives comparable to theαhalf-life;and isotopes of clusters I,Xe,and Cs had the minimum half-life(10^(-14)s).These observations revealed the role of the shell closure(Z=82,N=82,and N=126)of the cluster and daughter nuclei in heavy-cluster radioactivity.We predicted that isotope ^(297,299)119 decayed by 4αdecay chains and isotope^(300)119 decayed by 6αdecay chains,while^(298)119 decayed by continuousαdecay chains.The predicted half-lives and modes of decay of the nuclei in the decay chains of^(297-300)119 agreed with the experimental data,proving the reliability of our calculations.The present study determined the most favorable heavy-cluster emissions from these nuclei and provided suitable projectile-target combinations for their synthesis.

Reliability of Echocardiographic Pulmonary Vascular Resistance to Screen for the New Definition of Precapillary Pulmonary Hypertension in Uncorrected Secundum Atrial Septal Defect

Background and Objective:The most feared complication of uncorrected secundum Atrial Septal Defect(ASD)is pulmonary arterial hypertension(PAH).Pulmonary vascular resistance(PVR)is crucial in detecting precapil-lary pulmonary hypertension(PH)to guide the need for PAH-specific therapy.There is a change in the cut-off value of PVR according to the recently updated PH guideline.How echocardiographic PVR(PVRecho)correlates to PVR by right heart catheterization(RHC)(PVRcath)according to the new guidelines has not been known.The aim of this study is to determine the reliability of PVRecho in detecting PAH in Uncorrected Ostium Secundum ASD based on the current updated guideline and to help screen the high PVR group.Methods:429 ostium secun-dum ASD in the COngenital HeARt Disease in Adult and Pulmonary Hypertension(COHARD-PH)registry was divided into three groups according to the PVR.PVRecho was calculated using Abbas’Formula and compared the its gold standard,the PVRcath.The correlation between the two methods was analyzed.The Bland-Altman plot was used to analyze the agreement between the two methods.Receiver operating characteristics(ROC)analysis was used to determine the PVRecho cut-off value for high PVR.Results:The majority of the population(63.5%)had high PVR.Female gender dominated the study population(84%).PVR_(echo) was significantly correlated with PVRcath(r=0.6225,p<0.0001).Bland-Altman plot among all groups and in subgroups analysis showed a wide range of agreement.PVRecho underestimated PVRcath 5.124 WU.In subgroup analysis,PVRecho overestimated PVRcath 0.35 WU in those with PVR<2 WU.In the second and third groups,PVR_(echo) underestimated PVRcath 0.52 and 10.77 WU,respectively.Conclusion:PVRecho is reliable in predicting high PVR in uncorrected secun-dum ASD.However,there is a wide range of agreement.PVR_(echo) cut-off value of>1.62 WU showed good dis-criminatory power in determining high PVR.

On joint analysing XMM-NuSTAR spectra of active galactic nuclei

A recently released XMM-Newton note revealed a significant calibration issue between nuclear spectroscopic telescope array(NuSTAR)and XMM-Newton European Photon Imaging Camera(EPIC)and provided an empirical correction to the EPIC effective area.To quantify the bias caused by the calibration issue in the joint analysis of XMM-NuSTAR spectra and verify the effectiveness of the correction,in this work,we perform joint-fitting of the NuSTAR and EPIC-pn spectra for a large sample of 104 observation pairs of 44 X-ray bright active galactic nuclei(AGN).The spectra were extracted after requiring perfect simultaneity between the XMM-Newton and NuSTAR exposures(merging good time intervals(GTIs)from two missions)to avoid bias due to the rapid spectral variability of the AGN.Before the correction,the EPIC-pn spectra are systematically harder than the corresponding NuSTAR spectra by■subsequently yielding significantly underestimated cutoff energy E_(cut)and the strength of reflection component R when performing joint-fitting.We confirm that the correction is highly effective and can commendably erase the discrepancy in best-fitΓ,E_(cut),and R.We thus urge the community to apply the correction when joint-fitting XMM-NuSTAR spectra,but note that the correction is limited to 3–12 keV and therefore not applicable when the soft X-ray band data are included.Besides,we show that as merging GTIs from two missions would cause severe loss of NuSTAR net exposure time,in many cases,joint-fitting yields no advantage compared with utilizing NuSTAR data alone.Finally,We present a technical note on filtering periods of high background flares for XMM-Newton EPIC-pn exposures in the small window(SW)mode.

Intelligent diagnosis of atrial septal defect in children using echocardiography with deep learning

Background Atrial septal defect(ASD)is one of the most common congenital heart diseases.The diagnosis of ASD via transthoracic echocardiography is subjective and time-consuming.Methods The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and accuracy of automatic detection of ASD in children based on color Doppler echocardiographic static images using end-to-end convolutional neural networks.The proposed depthwise separable convolution model identifies ASDs with static color Doppler images in a standard view.Among the standard views,we selected two echocardiographic views,i.e.,the subcostal sagittal view of the atrium septum and the low parasternal four-chamber view.The developed ASD detection system was validated using a training set consisting of 396 echocardiographic images corresponding to 198 cases.Additionally,an independent test dataset of 112 images corresponding to 56 cases was used,including 101 cases with ASDs and 153 cases with normal hearts.Results The average area under the receiver operating characteristic curve,recall,precision,specificity,F1-score,and accuracy of the proposed ASD detection model were 91.99,80.00,82.22,87.50,79.57,and 83.04,respectively.Conclusions The proposed model can accurately and automatically identify ASD,providing a strong foundation for the intelligent diagnosis of congenital heart diseases.

Opportunities for production and property research of neutron-rich nuclei around N=126 at HIAF

The study of nuclide production and its properties in the N=126 neutron-rich region is prevalent in nuclear physics and astrophysics research.The upcoming High-energy FRagment Separator(HFRS)at the High-Intensity heavy-ion Accelerator Facility(HIAF),an in-flight separator at relativistic energies,is characterized by high beam intensity,large ion-optical acceptance,high magnetic rigidity,and high momentum resolution power.This provides an opportunity to study the production and properties of neutron-rich nuclei around N=126.In this paper,an experimental scheme is proposed to produce neutron-rich nuclei around N=126 and simultaneously measure their mass and lifetime based on the HFRS separator;the feasibility of this scheme is evaluated through simulations.The results show that under the high-resolution optical mode,many new neutron-rich nuclei approaching the r-process abundance peak around A=195 can be produced for the first time,and many nuclei with unknown masses and lifetimes can be produced with high statistics.Using the time-of-flight corrected by the measured dispersive position and energy loss information,the cocktails produced from 208 Pb fragmentation can be unambiguously identified.Moreover,the masses of some neutron-rich nuclei near N=126 can be measured with high precision using the time-of-flight magnetic rigidity technique.This indicates that the HIAF-HFRS facility has the potential for the production and property research of neutron-rich nuclei around N=126,which is of great significance for expanding the chart of nuclides,developing nuclear theories,and understanding the origin of heavy elements in the universe.

Impact of Atrial Septal Defect Closure on Mortality in Older Patients

Background:Atrial septal defect(ASD)is a common form of adult congenital heart disease that can lead to long-term adverse outcomes if left untreated.Early closure of ASD has been associated with excellent outcomes and lower complication rates.However,there is limited evidence regarding the prognosis of ASD closure in older adults.This study aims to evaluate the mortality rates in older ASD patients with and without closure.Methods:A retrospective cohort study was conducted on patients aged 40 years or older with ASD between 2001 and 2017.Patients were followed up to assess all-cause mortality.Univariable and multivariable analyses were performed to identify the predictors of mortality.A p-value of<0.05 was considered statistically significant.Results:The cohort consisted of 450 patients(mean age 56.6±10.4 years,77.3%female),with 66%aged between 40 and 60 years,and 34%over 60 years.Within the cohort,299 underwent ASD closure(201 with transcatheter and 98 with surgical closure).During the median follow-up duration of 7.9 years,51 patients died.The unadjusted cumulative 10-year rate of mortality was 3%in patients with ASD closure,and 28%in patients without ASD closure(log-rank p<0.001).Multivariable analysis revealed that age(hazard ratio[HR]1.04,95%confidence interval[CI]1.006–1.06,p=0.01),NYHA class(HR 2.75,95%CI 1.63–4.62,p<0.001),blood urea nitrogen(BUN)(HR 1.07,95%CI 1.03–1.12,p<0.001),right ventricular systolic pressure(RVSP)(HR 1.07,95%CI 1.003–1.04,p=0.01),and lack of ASD closure(HR 15.12,95%CI 5.63–40.59,p<0.001)were independently associated with mortality.Conclusion:ASD closure demonstrated favorable outcomes in older patients.Age,NYHA class,BUN,RVSP,and lack of ASD closure were identified as independent factors linked to mortality in this population.

Effects of atrial septal defects on the cardiac conduction system

The case report presented in this edition by Mu et al.The report presents a case of atrial septal defect(ASD)associated with electrocardiographic changes,noting that the crochetage sign resolved after Selective His Bundle Pacing(S-HBP)without requiring surgical closure.The mechanisms behind the appearance and resolution of the crochetage sign remain unclear.The authors observed the dis-appearance of the crochetage sign post-S-HBP,suggesting a possible correlation between these specific R waves and the cardiac conduction system.This editorial aims to explore various types of ASD and their relationship with the cardiac con-duction system,highlighting the diagnostic significance of the crochetage sign in ASD.

RETRACTED: Nuclear Structure Study of Odd-Odd Yttrium Nuclei within Interacting-Boson Fermi-Fermion Model (IBFFM)

Short Retraction NoticeThe paper does not meet the standards of "Journal of Applied Mathematics and Physics". This article has been retracted to straighten the academic record. In making this decision the Editorial Board follows COPE's Retraction Guidelines. The aim is to promote the circulation of scientific research by offering an ideal research publication platform with due consideration of internationally accepted standards on publication ethics. The Editorial Board would like to extend its sincere apologies for any inconvenience this retraction may have caused.Editor guiding this retraction: Prof. Wen-Xiu Ma (EiC of JAMP)The full retraction notice in PDF is preceding the original paper, which is marked "RETRACTED".

Influence of interferon-gamma on the differentiation of cholinergic neurons in rat embryonic basal forebrain and septal nuclei

BACKGROUND： Interferon-gamma （IFN-γ） can make neurons in basal forebrain and septal nuclei differentiate into cholinergic neurons by treating the cells in cerebral cortex of newborn rats, without the inhibition from IFN-γ antibody. The important effect of IFN-γ on the development and differentiation of neurons has been found by some scholars. OBJ EClIVE：To investigate whether IFN-γ has differentiational effect on cholinergic neurons in basal forebrain and septal nuclei, and make clear that the increased number of cholinergic neurons is resulted by cell differentiation or cell proliferation. DESIGN ： Controlled observation trial SETTING： Department of Cell Biology, Medical School, Beijing University MATERIALS： Sixty-eight female Wistar rats at embryonic 16 days, weighing 250 to 350 g, were enrolled in this study, and they were provided by the Experimental Animal Center, Medical School, Beijing University. IFN-γ was the product of Gibco Company. METHODS： This study was carried out in the Department of Cell Biology, Medical School, Beijing University and Daheng Image Company of Chinese Academy of Sciences during September 1995 to December 2002. The female Wistar rats at embryonic 16 days were sacrificed, and their fetuses were taken out. Primary culture of the isolated basal forebrain and septal nuclei was performed. The cultured nerve cells were assigned into 3 groups： control group （nothing added）, IFN-γ group（1×10^5 U/L interferon）, IFN-γ＋ IFN-γ antibody group （1 ×10^5 U/L IFN-γ ＋ IFN-γ antibody）. The specific marker enzyme （choline acetyl transferase） of cholinergic neuron was stained with immunohistochemical method. Choline acetyl transferase positive cells were counted, and ^14C-acetyl CoA was used as substrate to detect the activity of choline acetyl transferase, so as to reflect the differentiational effect of IFN-γ on cholinergic neuron in basal forebrain and septal nuclei. Flow cytometry was used to analyze cell circle and detect the proliferation of nerve cells. Nerve cells were marked with MAP2 and counted to evaluate the neuronal proliferation in basal forebrain and septal nuclei. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES： Effect of interferon-γ on the number and activity of choline acetyl transferase-positive ceils in basal forebrain and septal nuclei as well as the effect on neuronal proliferation. RESULTS ： ① Nerve cells in the basal forebrain and septal nuclei of IFN-γ group grew well compared with control group.②The differentiation of cholinergic neurons： The number and activity of choline acetyl transferase positive cells in IFN-γ group were significantly higher than those in the control group [（49.30 ±4.92） /100 cells vs （7.50±1.58） /100 cells; （2 049.00±12.30） min^-1 vs （1 227.30±12.59） min^-1, p 〈 0.01], while there was no significant difference in the number and activity of choline acetyl transferase positive cells between IFN-γ ＋ IFN-γ antibody group and control group（P 〉 0.05）. ③The proliferation of cholinergic neurons： Cell percentage was 17.2% and 19.8% at S-stage, 6.2% and 6.1% at G2＋M stage in the control group and IFN-γ group respectively, without significant difference （P 〉 0.05）. CONCLUSION ： IFN-γ does not promote the neuronal proliferation in basal forebrain and septal nuclei, and the increased expression of cholinergic neurons is not resulted by the increase in the number of neurons, but its differentiation.

Constraining nuclear symmetry energy with the charge radii of mirror-pair nuclei

The nuclear charge radius plays a vital role in determining the equation of state of isospin asymmetric nuclear matter.Based on the correlation between the differences in charge radii of mirror-partner nuclei and the slope parameter(L)of symmetry energy at the nuclear saturation density,an analysis of the calibrated slope parameter L was performed in finite nuclei.In this study,relativistic and nonrelativistic energy density functionals were employed to constrain the nuclear symmetry energy through the available databases of the mirror-pair nuclei^(36)Ca–^(36)S,^(38)Ca–^(38)Ar,and ^(54)Ni–^(54)Fe.The deduced nuclear symmetry energy was located in the range 29.89–31.85 MeV,and L of the symmetry energy essentially covered the range 22.50–51.55 MeV at the saturation density.Moreover,the extracted L_(s) at the sensitivity density p_(s)=0.10 fm^(-3) was located in the interval range 30.52–39.76 MeV.

Genetic Analysis of Variants of the MYH6 Gene Promoter in Congenital Atrial Septal Defects

Background:Atrial septal defect(ASD)is one of the common congenital heart diseases.The MYH6 gene has a critical role in cardiac development but the role of MYH6 promoter variants in patients with ASD has not been explored.Methods:In 613 subjects including 320 ASD patients,we investigated the MYH6 gene promoter variants and verified the effect on gene expression by using cellular functional experiments and bioinformatics analysis.Results:Eleven variants were identified in the MYH6 gene promoter,of which four variants were found only in ASD patients,and two variants(g.3434G>C and g.4524C>T)were identified for the first time.Cellular functional experiments indicated that all four variants reduced the transcriptional activity of the MYH6 gene promoter(p<0.05).Subsequent analysis through the JASPAR(A database of transcription factor binding profiles)suggests that these variants may alter transcription factor binding sites,which may in turn lead to changes in myocardin subunit expression and ASD formation.Conclusions:Our study for the first time focuses on variants in the promoter region of the MYH6 gene in Chinese patients with ASD and the discovered variants have functional significance.The study provides new insights in the role of the MYH6 gene promoter region to better understand the genetic basis of ASD formation and facilitates clinical diagnosis.

Nuclei Segmentation in Histopathology Images Using Structure-Preserving Color Normalization Based Ensemble Deep Learning Frameworks

This paper presents a novel computerized technique for the segmentation of nuclei in hematoxylin and eosin(H&E)stained histopathology images.The purpose of this study is to overcome the challenges faced in automated nuclei segmentation due to the diversity of nuclei structures that arise from differences in tissue types and staining protocols,as well as the segmentation of variable-sized and overlapping nuclei.To this extent,the approach proposed in this study uses an ensemble of the UNet architecture with various Convolutional Neural Networks(CNN)architectures as encoder backbones,along with stain normalization and test time augmentation,to improve segmentation accuracy.Additionally,this paper employs a Structure-Preserving Color Normalization(SPCN)technique as a preprocessing step for stain normalization.The proposed model was trained and tested on both single-organ and multi-organ datasets,yielding an F1 score of 84.11%,mean Intersection over Union(IoU)of 81.67%,dice score of 84.11%,accuracy of 92.58%and precision of 83.78%on the multi-organ dataset,and an F1 score of 87.04%,mean IoU of 86.66%,dice score of 87.04%,accuracy of 96.69%and precision of 87.57%on the single-organ dataset.These findings demonstrate that the proposed model ensemble coupled with the right pre-processing and post-processing techniques enhances nuclei segmentation capabilities.

Transcatheter Ventricular Septal Defect Closure with Nit-Occlud LêVSD Device—Five Years’Experience and Literature Review

Introduction:Transcatheter closure is an alternative to ventricular septal defect(VSD)occlusion surgery.Nit-Occlud LêVSD coil is a new device yet to be evaluated.The study aimed to evaluate immediate and midterm results after transcatheter closure with the Nit-Occlud LêVSD device.Methods:The retrospective analysis included 30 patients with VSD referred for closure during the period from October 2015 to December 2020.Results:At the time of intervention,the patients’mean age and body weights were 7.5±5.6 years and 29.3±19.1 kg.The majority of the defects had perimembranous location(24/30),four defects had muscular and two outlet subaortic position.The mean effective right-side diameter of the VSDs was 3.6±1.3 mm.Single ventricular fibrillation,device embolization,and hemolysis developed in different patients and were successfully treated.None of the patients had a complete atrioventricular block.The coil was successfully placed in 25/30(83.3%)patients.The majority of the devices were 10 mm×6 mm(11/25)and 12 mm×8 mm(8/25)in size.Two patients required the implantation of a second device.The follow-up period was 2.1±1.4 years.Complete VSD closure was achieved in 48%of cases immediately after the intervention,74%during 2.1±1.6 months after the procedure,and 81%over follow-up.The remaining patients had a trivial residual defect.During the follow-up,approximately one-third of patients developed trivial aortic and mitral valve regurgitation,and half of the patients acquired trace/mild tricuspid regurgitation.Standardized(z-score)left ventricular end-diastolic diameter(0.15±0.37 vs.0.92±0.82,p=0.005)and left atrium dimension(0.47±0.58 vs.1.89±1.11,p=0.005),as well as the left atrium to aortic root ratio(1.2±0.1 vs.1.4±0.2,p=0.005)showed a significant decrease over follow-up related to the period before intervention.Conclusion:Intervention with Nit-Occlud
LêVSD coil showed appropriate results regarding VSD closure rate,complications,and chamber remodeling.The introduction of this device into clinical practice is a significant step forward in transcatheter perimembranous VSD occlusion.

Ventricular Septal Crypts:Remnants of Spontaneous Interventricular Defect Closure?

Background:Ventricular crypts are quite a common finding during cardiac imaging,but their etiology is unclear.A possible final result of a spontaneous ventricular septal defect closure has been supposed but never investigated in earlier studies.Method:From January 1997 to December 2020,all newborns diagnosed to have a ventricular septal defect were prospectively entered in our database and those with an isolated defect were included in the study.Ventricular septal defects were classified into four types:perimembranous,trabecular muscular,inlet and outlet.A long-term follow up was performed in order to visualize the possible residual formation of a septal myocardial crypt.Results:A total of 376 isolated ventricular septal defects(314 muscular and 54 perimembranous,4 inlet,4 outlet)were detected.Follow up ranged from 1 to 23 years and showed that,among muscular type,a spontaneous closure occurred in 284(91%),26 did not close(8,28%),2 required surgical intervention(0,63%),3 were lost at follow up(0,95%).During this period,after spontaneous defect closure closure,20 crypts were found(6,4%).Conclusion:This study shows that a muscular ventricular septal defect may evolve in the 6.4%of cases in a residual septal crypt.Although septal crypts occur more frequently in patients affected by hypertrophic and hypertensive cardiomyopathy,they may also represent the evolution of a spontaneous closure of a muscular interventricular defect.

Stability of Nuclei Based on the New Proton and Neutron Model

According to the new proton and neutron nuclear picture described earlier, the structure of the nucleus will also be given a new interpretation. The role of the delocalized electrons detached from the outer shell of neutrons is shown in the binding energy value of the nucleus. It is pointed out that the spatial arrangement of nucleons is also very important for the stability of nuclei according to the analyzation of the magic numbers from a geometric point of view.