PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

K Sköld

Publications and source records attributed to K Sköld.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

An international dosimetry exchange for boron neutron capture therapy. Part I: Absorbed dose measurements.

An international collaboration was organized to undertake a dosimetry exchange to enable the future combination of clinical data from different centers conducting neutron capture therapy trials. As a first step (Part I) the dosimetry group from the Americas, represented by MIT, visited the clinical centers at Studsvik (Sweden), VTT Espoo (Finland), and the Nuclear Research Institute (NRI) at Rez (Czech Republic). A combined VTT/NRI group reciprocated with a visit to MIT. Each participant performed a series of dosimetry measurements under equivalent irradiation conditions using methods appropriate to their clinical protocols. This entailed in-air measurements and dose versus depth measurements in a large water phantom. Thermal neutron flux as well as fast neutron and photon absorbed dose rates were measured. Satisfactory agreement in determining absorbed dose within the experimental uncertainties was obtained between the different groups although the measurement uncertainties are large, ranging between 3% and 30% depending upon the dose component and the depth of measurement. To improve the precision in the specification of absorbed dose amongst the participants, the individually measured dose components were normalized to the results from a single method. Assuming a boron concentration of 15 microg g(-1) that is typical of concentrations realized clinically with the boron delivery compound boronophenylalanine-fructose, systematic discrepancies in the specification of the total biologically weighted dose of up to 10% were apparent between the different groups. The results from these measurements will be used in future to normalize treatment plan calculations between the different clinical dosimetry protocols as Part II of this study.

Biophysical Phenomena↗

Reference dosimetry at the neutron capture therapy facility at Studsvik.

The purpose of this publication was to present and evaluate the methods for reference dosimetry in the epithermal neutron beam at the neutron capture therapy facility at Studsvik. Measurements were performed in a PMMA phantom and in air using ionization chambers and activation probes in order to calibrate the epithermal neutron beam. Appropriate beam-dependant calibration factors were determined using Monte Carlo methods for the detectors used in the present publication. Using the presented methodology, the photon, neutron and total absorbed dose to PMMA was determined with an estimated uncertainty of +/- 5.0%, +/- 25%, and +/- 5.5% (2 SD), respectively. The uncertainty of the determination of the photon absorbed dose was comparable to the case in conventional radiotherapy, while the uncertainty of the neutron absorbed dose is much higher using the present methods. The thermal neutron group fluence, i.e., the neutron fluence in the energy interval 0-0.414 eV, was determined with an estimated uncertainty of +/- 2.8% (2 SD), which is acceptable for dosimetry in epithermal neutron beams.

Algorithms↗

Effect of a chlorhexidine/thymol-containing varnish on prostaglandin E2 levels in gingival crevicular fluid.

The aim was to study the effect of a chlorhexidine/thymol-containing varnish (Cervitec) on the levels of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF). The material consisted of 25 adolescents and young adults with fixed orthodontic appliances exhibiting gingival inflammation. Four buccal sites, adjacent to bands and brackets, were selected on each patient and randomly treated with either a varnish containing chlorhexidine diacetate (1% w/w) and thymol (1% w/w) or a placebo varnish without active ingredients. After baseline registration, the varnishes were applied twice within 3 d. Follow-up examinations were performed after 3, 8 and 30 d. The gingival inflammation was assessed by bleeding on probing, volume of GCF with a Periotron 8000 and PGE2 level in GCF by using a radioimmuno assay. Compared with baseline, a statistically significant reduction in the volume of GCF was recorded at the chlorhexidine/thymol treated sites in contrast to the placebo. The mean PGE2 levels were significantly reduced after the test varnish treatment compared with baseline and differed significantly from placebo after 8 d. The findings suggest that treatments with the antibacterial varnish result in reduced gingival inflammation and may thus be beneficial for patients with fixed orthodontic appliances.

Adolescent↗