Abstract: A device and method for unloading frozen or congealed crude oil, oil product, or chemical cargo from a railway or highway tank car. A brief heating step uses the high thermal conductivity of metal tank walls, and the low thermal conductivity of oil or chemical cargos, to thaw a relatively thin band of cargo adjacent to the longitudinal tank wall. This thin band of thawed liquid lubricates the remainder of the plug, which remains solid, so that the plug can be mechanically ejected into a receiving trough positioned at the same height as the emerging plug; this avoids the requirement of completely thawing the frozen cargo before it can be pumped out. A tank car is disclosed having at least one end wall that can be opened, allowing a frozen or congealed mass to be physically ejected from the tank as a solidified plug.

Abstract: A surgical device and method are disclosed for closing the sternum following a median sternotomy. Instead of using stainless steel wire or a flat steel band, a strand of thin flexible suture material is used which is compressible in its radial dimension (either because of a hollow tubular shape, or due to solid material properties), while remaining strong and inelastic in its longitudinal dimension. The longitudinal strength may be maintained by using selected plastics, or by using nylon fibers or other materials for reinforcement. When not compressed, the strand has a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the needle used to place the strand in position around the sternal halves, between the ribs. After insertion, the expandable suture material will provide gentle pressure against the surrounding tissue to minimize bleeding in the needle track.

Abstract: This invention discloses a method of using a salt of pyruvic acid (such as sodium pyruvate) to protect against neuronal degeneration due to ischemia (inadequate blood flow, which can be caused by stroke, cardiac arrest, or other events) or due to hypoxia, hypoglycemia, or cellular disorders which interfere with the energy metabolism of neurons. Treatment with pyruvate can be effective even when administered after the onset of an event that triggers neurodegeneration. A preferred mode of use involves co-administration of a pyruvate salt along with one or more agents that block NMDA and/or non-NMDA receptors, or with insulin or a thrombolytic agent.

Abstract: This invention discloses a rapid-diffusion injectable formulation, comprising disulfiram or a suitable salt or analog of disulfiram. Unlike slow-release injectable formulations designed to ensure that chronic alcoholics have significant quantities of disulfiram in their blood at all time, the rapid-diffusion injectable formulation disclosed herein is designed to reduce the hypoxic or ischemic damage caused by crisis events such as stroke, heart attack, cardiac arrest, or asphyxiation. A rapid-diffusion injectable formulation can contain disulfiram mixed with water, an organic compound having a plurality of hydroxyl groups (such as pharmaceutically acceptable glycols or polysaccharides; propylene glycol, dextrans, and cyclodextrins are often used for such purposes), and a buffer.

Abstract: This invention discloses a method for treating human patients suffering from dermatitis, particularly severe dermatitis which does not respond adequately to non-prescription drugs. Such patients are treated using dextromethorphan (DM), an antitussive agent normally used in cough syrup. If the patient is a so-called "extensive metabolizer," an antioxidant drug (such as quinidine) can be coadministered to inhibit the DM-degrading activity of debrisoquin hydroxylase, an enzyme that will rapidly convert DM into its metabolite, dextrorphan. This treatment has been shown to be highly effective in treating severe dermatitis, and in most patients this drug combination causes no significant adverse side effects.

Abstract: This invention discloses a method for increasing the effectiveness of dextromethorphan (DM) as an antitussive agent (i.e., as a cough suppressant). This method involves the concurrent administration of DM and a second agent which inhibits the oxidative activity of debrisoquin hydroxylase, a cytochrome P450 oxidase enzyme. Effective anti-oxidant compounds include quinidine, yohimbine, and fluoxetine.

Abstract: This invention relates to flexible internal liners for reducing the amount of oil spilled by oil tankers due to groundings, collisions, and other major accidents. The liner comprises a flexible oil-resistant impermeable plastic or rubber, which preferably is reinforced by steel mesh or woven aramid fibers. In one embodiment, a independent segment is provided in each bay between two stiffeners. The horizontal edges of each liner segment are coupled to the stiffeners, near the ends of the stiffeners, to provide enough material for the liner to be pushed inward a substantial distance if a collision or grounding occurs. The edges can be secured by detachable clamps; this will provide watertight seals during normal operation, while allowing the segment to be detached and opened when the hull is inspected.

Abstract: This invention relates to single-tool surgical instruments, such as scissors or forceps which do not pass through a channel in an operating laparoscope, which contain moving actuator parts at the end of a long slender shaft comprising a tube and a yoke. The actuator is operated by means of a handle assembly, which either forces or retracts an interior rod through a hollow shaft tube. These instruments can be disassembled to remove the interior rod from inside the shaft tube. This allows improved cleaning and removal of blood or tissue residues from the interior rod and shaft tube prior to sterilization, to provide for more effective and reliable sterilization of the components. The assembly includes a union coupling near the handle which allows the shaft tube to be disengaged from the handle without rotating either the interior rod or the shaft tube. After the shaft tube has been disengaged and pulled away slightly, the shaft and actuator assembly are rotated relative to the handle assembly.

Abstract: This invention relates to a method of surgically implanting a blood pump into the ascending aorta or pulmonary artery of a patient with a diseased or damaged heart ventricle. One preferred type of pump which is well-suited for such implantation has an impeller design that generates central axial flow (CAF). After implantation of the CAF pump, blood flows through the hollowed-out rotor shaft of an electric motor. The CAF rotor shaft contains angled vanes mounted on the inner surface of the hollow shaft, extending only part of the distance toward an imaginary axis at the center of the rotor shaft. Rotation of the hollow shaft with its angled vanes pumps blood through the pumping unit. The vanes contact and impart forward motion to a portion of the blood at the periphery of the flow path, generating an outer fluid annulus which is being directly propelled by the vanes.

Abstract: This invention relates to a method of using sidewalls from discarded automobile, truck, and other tires to manufacture drainage culverts. It also relates to the culverts manufactured by this process, and to assembly devices useful for assembling and holding together such culverts. These culverts are made by means of a simple cutting operation which removes both sidewalls from a discarded tire. The tread portion is made available for any other desired use, and is not further involved herein. The two sidewall portions are laid flat together and drilled with holes which allows them to be mounted on parallel bars which have been welded to a circular steel base plate having roughly the same dimensions as the sidewalls. When a suitable number of sidewalls (such as about 50 to 150) have been mounted on the bars, a steel closure plate having matching holes is slid onto the bars, pressed hard against the sidewalls using a press, and welded to the protruding bars.

Abstract: This invention relates to the use of zinc salts as anti-viral agents in sexual lubricants. A zinc salt which releases divalent zinc ions in an aqueous carrier fluid is provided in a sexual lubricant formulation which is spread on the genitals before sexual intercourse. The mixture is non-irritating, and the zinc ions serve as an anti-viral agent to reduce the risk of contracting genital herpes if a sexual partner is infected. These lubricants may also reduce the risk of infection by other sexually transmitted viral diseases, such as hepatitis, papilloma viruses, and AIDS. A preferred lubricant formulation comprises water, a thickening or suspending agent, a lubricating agent, and a suitable zinc salt. Salts which have been tested and shown to be non-irritating during sexual intercourse include zinc acetate, zinc propionate, and zinc gluconate. Other zinc salts have also been identified which are soluble in water and have low pK values, which indicates a high rate of zinc ion release.

Abstract: A method is disclosed for reducing cardiovascular damage caused by hypoxic or ischemic events such as heart attack and cardiac arrest. This method involves the administration of disulfiram, or a suitable salt or analog of disulfiram, to a mammal in need of such treatment. Disulfiram can inhibit enzymes such as xanthine oxidase which would otherwise generate oxygenated free radicals, which are highly reactive chemical compounds that non-specifically attack and damage essential molecules and cells. It can also chelate copper and iron, thereby suppressing lipid peroxidation and protecting cell membranes from destruction. It also generates metabolites such as tryptophol which reduce the rate of metabolic activity in neurons and affected tissue, which can be useful during cytotoxic events. This invention also discloses injectable formulations that rapidly release disulfiram into the circulating blood.

Abstract: This invention discloses that certain types of non-addictive opioid drugs such as dextromethorphan (which is widely used in cough syrups) provide a highly effective means of treating the feelings and symptoms of emotional lability in at least some patients suffering from neurologic impairment, without sedating, tranquilizing, or otherwise significantly interfering with consciousness or alertness in the patient. In several patients tested to date who were suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), dextromethorphan, administered orally, was remarkably effective and became quite obvious to the patients even though it was being tested for an entirely different purpose. Its effectiveness is enhanced by co-administration of a second drug such as quinidine which reduces the degradation of dextromethorphan by oxidative enzymes and which therefore increases dextromethorphan concentrations in the blood.

Abstract: A method for enhancing the systemic delivery of dextromethorphan for the treatment of a neurological disorder resulting in injury to nervous tissue, which comprises administering to a patient suffering from the disorder an amount of a cytochrome P450IID6 enzyme inhibitor, sufficient to block dextromethorphan metabolism, and an amount of dextromethorphan sufficient to treat the neurological disorder. Quinidine is particularly suitable for use in the method of the invention.

Abstract: This invention provides a device and method for cooling an internal organ during surgery. The device involves a porous, water-permeable net, preferably made of hydrophilic elastic fabric. The net is fitted and secured around the organ and cold saline solution is infused into the net, preferably by means of a side-hole catheter. The cold liquid passes through the net, directly contacting and chilling the organ. As the liquid drips out of the net, it is removed from the patient's chest or abdomen by suction tube. To provide convenient access to any location on the surface of the organ (for example, to operate on a coronary artery which must be bypassed) a cut is made through a part of the net overlying the location that must be operated on. This exposes the artery without affecting the ability of the net to cool the rest of the organ.

Abstract: This invention relates to a protective restraint for patients such as sufferers of Alzhemier's disease or people emerging from anesthesia who, although not acutely violent or dangerous, must be restrained in a bed for their own safety. This device comprises a bottom portion called an anchor, which is placed under the mattress of a bed. A top portion called a topper is fastened to the anchor on both sides of the bed by means such as zippers which run along the sides of the anchor. For some uses, the topper can be translucent, such as nylon mesh, so that a caregiver can easily see the status of the patient and any bedclothes or catheters under the topper. For other uses and for additional warmth, an opaque sheet or blanket which extends beyond the edges of the anchor can be provided for maximal privacy and dignity. The topper is secured across the chest and shoulder region in a snug but not demeaning or severely uncomfortable manner.