Aims: Primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) is the recommended treatment for patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Despite substantial evidence of its effectiveness, a 2007 study reported that only 40-45% of European STEMI patients were treated with PPCI, with large variations in treatment availability between countries. In 2008, the Stent for Life (SFL) initiative was launched by the European Association of Percutaneous Cardiovascular Interventions and EuroPCR in partnership with the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Working Group on Acute Cardiac Care and country-specific national cardiac societies. The aim is to promote the prioritisation of percutaneous coronary intervention treatment towards those who will benefit most, namely STEMI patients. The following countries are currently participating: Bulgaria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Spain and Turkey. Methods and results: Since SFL was launched, several activities have been initiated in the participating countries. Preliminary reports suggest that major increases have been seen in the numbers of PPCI performed, with some countries reporting very significant increases in PPCI use from 2008-2010. Improvements in STEMI mortality rates have also been observed. Conclusions: This report summarises the progress of the SFL initiative in the 10 target countries.

Teak (Tectona grandis) is one of the most valuable timbers in international trade and an important species for tropical forestry. Teak is found on the island of East Timor but no information is available on teak growth from this region. A pure stand planted in 1940-50 in the North of East Timor and left unmanaged was studied. Fifteen trees were sampled in October-November 2003 and stem discs taken at three height levels of its height (1.7m, 9.5m and 18.7m), and cores were collected at DBH. Transverse surfaces of the discs and cores were polished for ring identification. Core cross sections were first digitized and disc cross sections were observed under the microscope. Three randomly selected radii were analyzed in each disc. Ring width measurement and ring counting were done using image analysis software. The distinction between heartwood and sapwood was performed macroscopically by colour difference, and heartwood radius and sapwood width were measured. The relationship between stem and heartwood radius was studied for each disc and heartwood percentage by radius was determined. Radial ring width curves are presented for the different axial positions within the stem, and ring width variability was analyzed. Growth rates were calculated and age-radius relationships were estimated using cumulative growth curves. Growth rings were large and well defined in the juvenile phase, reflecting the specie's fast-growing character. The year-to-year variation of ring width showed a similar pattern among trees. Mean ring width ranged between 4.3-7.3mm for the first 20 years and 3.3-5.1mm for 30 to 45 years. Pith eccentricity was evident in the lower part of the stem and ring wedging occurred. On average, heartwood represented 84% of the radius and sapwood contained 6 to 11 rings. The age-related variation of ring width and the occurrence in the lower part of the tree stems of eccentricity and wedging rings, highlights the importance of appropriate stand management, particularly regarding basal density distribution over time, whenever optimized timber production is envisaged.

Carbon distribution in the stem of 2-year-old cork oak plants was studied by (14)CO(2) pulse labeling in late spring in order to trace the allocation of photoassimilates to tissue and biochemical stem components of cork oak. The fate of (14)C photoassimilated carbon was followed during two periods: the first 72 h (short-term study) and the first 52 weeks (long-term study) after the (14)CO(2) photosynthetic assimilation. The results showed that (14)C allocation to stem tissues was dependent on the time passed since photoassimilation and on the season of the year. In the first 3 h all (14)C was found in the polar extractives. After 3 h, it started to be allocated to other stem fractions. In 1 day,(14)C was allocated mostly to vascular cambium and, to a lesser extent, to primary phloem; no presence of (14)C was recorded for the periderm. However, translocation of (14)C to phellem was observed from 1 week after (14)CO(2) pulse labeling. The phellogen was not completely active in its entire circumference at labeling, unlike the vascular cambium; this was the tissue that accumulated most photoassimilated (14)C at the earliest sampling. The fraction of leaf-assimilated (14)C that was used by the stem peaked at 57% 1 week after (14)CO(2) plant exposure. The time lag between C photoassimilation and suberin accumulation was ∼8 h, but the most active period for suberin accumulation was between 3 and 7 days. Suberin, which represented only 1.77% of the stem weight, acted as a highly effective sink for the carbon photoassimilated in late spring since suberin specific radioactivity was much higher than for any other stem component as early as only 1 week after (14)C plant labeling. This trend was maintained throughout the whole experiment. The examination of microautoradiographs taken over 1 year provided a new method for quantifying xylem growth. Using this approach it was found that there was more secondary xylem growth in late spring than in other times of the year, because the calculated average cell division time was much shorter.

As part of the CERN accelerator complex upgrade, a new linear accelerator for H(-)(Linac4) is under construction. The ion source design is based on the non-caesiated DESY RF-driven ion source, with the goal of producing an H(-) beam of 80 mA beam current, 45 keV beam energy, 0.4 ms pulse length, and 2 Hz repetition rate. The source has been successfully commissioned for an extraction voltage of 35 kV, corresponding to the one used at DESY. Increasing the extraction voltage to 45 kV has resulted in frequent high voltage breakdowns in the extraction region caused by evaporating material from the electron dump, triggering a new design of the extraction and electron dumping system. Results of the ion source commissioning at 35 kV are presented as well as simulations of a new pulsed extraction system for beam extraction at 45 kV.

CERN's superconducting proton Linac (SPL) study investigates a 50 Hz high-energy, high-power Linac for H(-) ions. The SPL plasma generator is an evolution of the DESY ion source plasma generator currently operated at CERN's Linac4 test stand. The plasma generator is a step towards a particle source for the SPL, it is designed to handle 100 kW peak RF-power at a 6% duty factor. While the acquisition of an integrated hydrogen plasma optical spectrum is straightforward, the measurement of a time-resolved spectrum requires dedicated amplification schemes. The experimental setup for visible light based on photomultipliers and narrow bandwidth filters and the UV spectrometer setup are described. The H(α), H(β), and H(γ) Balmer line intensities, the Lyman band and alpha transition were measured. A parametric study of the optical emission from the Linac4 ion source and the SPL plasma generator as a function of RF-power and gas pressure is presented. The potential of optical emission spectrometry coupled to RF-power coupling measurements for on-line monitoring of short RF heated hydrogen plasma pulses is discussed.

Linac4 accelerator of Centre Européen de Recherches Nucléaires is under construction and a RF-driven H(-) ion source is being developed. The beam current requirement for Linac4 is very challenging: 80 mA must be provided. Cesiated plasma discharge ion sources such as Penning or magnetron sources are also potential candidates. Accelerator ion sources must achieve typical reliability figures of 95% and above. Investigating and understanding the underlying mechanisms involved with source failure or ageing is critical when selecting the ion source technology. Plasma discharge driven surface ion sources rely on molybdenum cathodes. Deformation of the cathode surfaces is visible after extended operation periods. A metallurgical investigation of an ISIS ion source is presented. The origin of the deformation is twofold: Molybdenum sputtering by cesium ions digs few tenths of mm cavities while a growth of molybdenum is observed in the immediate vicinity. The molybdenum growth under hydrogen atmosphere is hard and loosely bound to the bulk. It is, therefore, likely to peel off and be transported within the plasma volume. The observation of the cathode, anode, and extraction electrodes of the magnetron source operated at BNL for two years are presented. A beam simulation of H(-), electrons, and Cs(-) ions was performed with the IBSimu code package to qualitatively explain the observations. This paper describes the operation conditions of the ion sources and discusses the metallurgical analysis and beam simulation results.

In the framework of the superconducting proton linac (SPL) study at CERN, a new non-cesiated H(-) plasma generator driven by an external 2 MHz RF antenna has been developed and successfully operated at repetition rates of 50 Hz, pulse lengths of up to 3 ms, and average RF powers of up to 3 kW. The coupling efficiency of RF power into the plasma was determined by the cooling water temperatures and the analysis of the RF forward and reflected power and the antenna current and amounts to 50%-60%. The plasma resistance increases between 10 kW and 40 kW RF power from about 0.45 Ω to 0.65 Ω. Measurements of RF power dissipated in the ferrites and the magnets on a test bench show a 5-fold decrease of the power losses for the magnets when they are contained in a Cu box, thus validating the strategy of shielding the magnets with a high electrical conductivity material. An air cooling system was installed in the SPL plasma generator to control the temperatures of the ferrites despite hysteresis losses of several Watts.

The authors report the case of a 23-year-old girl with nonobstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy evaluated by resting echocardiography. The patient complained of syncope after playing basketball. The patient was submitted to treadmill exercise echocardiogram, and she exercised for 9 minutes in standard Bruce protocol. The left ventricular outflow gradient did not occur at peak workload; however she developed intraventricular gradient greater than 100 mmHg after exercise in orthostatic position. There was fall in arterial pressure, and the patient was then put in supine position. The authors suggest the possible role of exercise stress echo in symptomatic patients with no significant gradient at baseline, as well as maintenance in orthostatic position after exercise, as an important stress factor. This can disclose the occurrence of left ventricular outflow tract obstruction that should not be detected in other way and has potential relevance in the patient's symptoms understanding.

PURPOSE Objective evaluation of both antero-posterior translation and rotatory laxity of the knee remains a target to be accomplished. This is true for both preoperative planning and postoperative assessment of different ACL reconstruction emerging techniques. The ideal measurement tool should be simple, accurate and reproducible, while enabling to assess both ‘‘anatomy’’ and ‘‘function’’ during the same examination. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of a new in-house developed testing device, the so-called Porto-knee testing device (PKTD). The PKTD is aimed to be used on the evaluation of both antero-posterior and rotatory laxity of the knee during MRI exams. METHODS Between 2008 and 2010, 33 patients with ACLdeficient knees were enrolled for the purpose of this study. All patients were evaluated in the office and under anesthesia with Lachman test, lateral pivot-shift test and anterior drawer test. All cases were studied preoperatively with KT-1000 and MRI with PKTD, and examinations performed by independent observers blinded for clinical evaluation. During MRI, we have used a PKTD that applies antero-posterior translation and permits free tibial rotation through a standardized pressure (46.7 kPa) in the proximal posterior region of the leg. Measurements were taken for both knees and comparing side-to-side. Five patients with partial ruptures were excluded from the group of 33. RESULTS For the 28 remaining patients, 3 women and 25 men, with mean age of 33.4 ± 9.4 years, 13 left and 15 right knees were tested. No significant correlation was noticed for Lachman test and PKTD results (n.s.). Pivot-shift had a strong positive correlation with the difference in anterior translation registered in lateral and medial tibia plateaus of injured knees (cor. coefficient = 0.80; p\0.05), and with the difference in this parameter as compared to side-to-side (cor. coefficient = 0.83; p\0.05). Considering the KT-1000 difference between injured and healthy knees, a very strong positive correlation was found for side-to-side difference in medial (cor. coefficient = 0.73; p\0.05) and lateral (cor. coefficient = 0.5; p\0.05) tibial plateau displacement using PKTD. CONCLUSION The PKTD proved to be a reliable tool in assessment of antero-posterior translation (comparing with KT-1000) and rotatory laxity (compared with lateral pivotshift under anesthesia) of the ACL-deficient knee during MRI examination. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Therapeutic studies, Level IV.