Characterisation of the RNA Virome of Nine Ochlerotatus Species in Finland

RNA viromes of nine commonly encountered Ochlerotatus mosquito species collected around Finland in 2015 and 2017 were studied using next-generation sequencing. Mosquito homogenates were sequenced from 91 pools comprising 16–60 morphologically identified adult females of Oc. cantans, Oc. caspius, Oc. communis, Oc. diantaeus, Oc. excrucians, Oc. hexodontus, Oc. intrudens, Oc. pullatus and Oc. punctor/punctodes. In total 514 viral Reverse dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) sequences of 159 virus species were recovered, belonging to 25 families or equivalent rank, as follows: Aliusviridae, Aspiviridae, Botybirnavirus, Chrysoviridae, Chuviridae, Endornaviridae, Flaviviridae, Iflaviridae, Negevirus, Partitiviridae, Permutotetraviridae, Phasmaviridae, Phenuiviridae, Picornaviridae, Qinviridae, Quenyavirus, Rhabdoviridae, Sedoreoviridae, Solemoviridae, Spinareoviridae, Togaviridae, Totiviridae, Virgaviridae, Xinmoviridae and Yueviridae. Of these, 147 are tentatively novel viruses. One sequence of Sindbis virus, which causes Pogosta disease in humans, was detected from Oc. communis from Pohjois-Karjala. This study greatly increases the number of mosquito-associated viruses known from Finland and presents the northern-most mosquito-associated viruses in Europe to date.     

Assessment of the Fundamental Flexural Guided Wave in Cortical Bone by an Ultrasonic Axial-Transmission Array Transducer

The fundamental flexural guided wave (FFGW), as modeled, for example, by the A0 Lamb mode, is a clinically useful indicator of cortical bone thickness. In the work described in this article, we tested so-called multiridge-based analysis, based on the crazy climber algorithm and short-time Fourier transform, for assessment of the FFGW component recorded by a clinical array transducer featuring a limited number of elements. Methods included numerical finite-element simulations and experiments in bone phantoms and human radius specimens (n = 41). The proposed approach enabled extraction of the FFGW component and determination of its group velocity. This group velocity was in good agreement with theoretical predictions and possessed reasonable sensitivity to cortical width (r² = 0.51, p < 0.001) in the in vitro experiments. It is expected that the proposed approach enables related clinical application. Further work is still needed to analyze in more detail the challenges related to the impact of the overlying soft tissue.     

Spinal hyperbaric ropivacaine-fentanyl for day-surgery

BACKGROUND: Adequate intraoperative analgesia combined with faster mobilization might be achieved by replacing hyperbaric ropivacaine partly with fentanyl. METHODS: Sixty spinal anesthesia patients were randomized into 2 groups of either fentanyl 20 microg mixed with hyperbaric ropivacaine 10 mg (group FR10) or hyperbaric ropivacaine 15 mg (group R15). Forty-five patients underwent inguinal hernia repair and 15 patients had lower extremity surgery. Sensory block was tested by pinprick, and motor block was tested by use of a modified Bromage scale at 5-minute intervals for 30 minutes, 15-minute intervals for 60 minutes, and at 30-minute intervals until full recovery. RESULTS: The groups did not differ significantly regarding success (27 of 30 [group FR10] and 29 of 30 [group R15]), median onset time (10 [5 to 25] v 10 [5 to 20] minutes) or median duration of T10 sensory block (55 [20 to 115] v 80 [5 to 170] minutes), respectively. Recovery from spinal block was significantly quicker in group FR10 than in group R15, recorded in ability to walk (2.5 hours v 3 hours [P=.017]), full motor recovery (1 hour v 1.5 hour [ P <.001]), and sensory recovery to S1 (2.5 hours v 3.3 hours [ P=.026]). Pruritus occurred in 18 (60%) of group FR10 v 0 of group R15 patients ( P <.001). This symptom was mild in all except 1 patient, who received ondansetron 8 mg IV. In the OR, the groups did not differ hemodynamically: 9 (30%) of the group FR10 and 10 (33%) of the group R15 patients, respectively, required medication for hypotension and/or bradycardia. Full motor block (Bromage 3) developed less frequently (P <.001) in group FR10 patients than in group R15 patients (1 [3%] v 14 [47%]), and the group FR10 patients recovered faster in a median time of 60 v 90 minutes (P <.001). In both groups, sensory and motor blocks were more extensive on the operative side compared with the nonoperative side ( P <.001). CONCLUSION: Faster mobilization but equal onset and duration of analgesia were achieved with intrathecal hyperbaric ropivacaine 10 mg plus fentanyl 20 microg as compared with hyperbaric ropivacaine 15 mg.     

Navigated transcranial magnetic stimulation and computed electric field strength reduce stimulator-dependent differences in the motor threshold

The motor threshold (MT) is a fundamental parameter for evaluating cortical excitability in transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) despite remarkable variation, both within, and between subjects. We intended to test whether the variation could be reduced by targeting the stimulation on-line and modeling the TMS-induced electric field on individual MR images. Navigated TMS was used to map the primary motor cortex for the representation area of the thenar muscles (abductor pollicis brevis) and to determine the MT. Thirteen healthy subjects participated in the study. To determine the between-subject variation, the MTs of nine subjects were measured with two different stimulators (comparison study). To study the individual variation, the MT measurement was repeated 20 times in four subjects always using the same stimulator (longitudinal study). In the comparison study, the MTs differed significantly between the two stimulators over all subjects (p<0.001), whereas the electric field strengths did not exhibit significant difference between the stimulators. Both, the MTs, and the electric field strengths showed similar variations, which were greater between subjects (comparison study) than within subjects (longitudinal study). In the comparison study, the distance between the locations of the two different coils on the scalp was significantly greater than the distance between the induced electric field maxima in the brain (p<0.001). We conclude that on-line navigation can be used to reduce the variation caused by different stimulator types and individual subject anatomy. In addition, cortical excitability can be evaluated by using computed electric field strength as well as stimulator-dependent MT.