Determination of TOF characteristics in Iranian patients

Objective: Tetralogy of fallot (TOF) is one of the most common forms of cyanotic congenital heart disease (CHD). The aim of this study was determination of demography, associated anomalies, peripheral pulmonary stenosis (PPS), blood grouping, Rh typing, operation results and complications in TOF. Material & Methods: The records of 270 patients were reviewed. These patients were admitted from 1993 to 2003, in Shaheed Rajaei Hospital. Findings: Male patients were 60.37% and females were 39.63%. Incidence of patent foramen ovale (PFO), Right Aortic Arch (RAA), coronary artery (CA) anomalies and other anomalies were 44.81%, 21.11%, 9.25% and 36.30% respectively. Single ostium coronary artery (SOCA) was the most common CA anomaly. The most common PPS was bifurcation stenosis. TOF was more common in 0 blood group patients. The mean age at the first palliative operation was 5.21 years and for TC was 7.19 years. Post surgical mortality rate was about 3% and morbidity rate, 12.18%. Conclusion: Trend toward earlier total correction (TC), and single stage early TC of TOF should be recommended as the preferred management strategy

Enhancement of the electrical conductivity and interlaminar shear strength of CNT/GFRP hierarchical composite using an electrophoretic deposition technique

In this work, an electrophoretic deposition (EPD) technique has been used for deposition of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the surface of glass fiber textures (GTs) to increase the volume conductivity and the interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) of CNT/glass fiber-reinforced polymers (GFRPs) composites. Comprehensive experimental studies have been conducted to establish the influence of electric field strength, CNT concentration in EPD suspension, surface quality of GTs, and process duration on the quality of deposited CNT layers. CNT deposition increased remarkably when the surface of glass fibers was treated with coupling agents. Deposition of CNTs was optimized by measuring CNT’s deposition mass and process current density diagrams. The effect of optimum field strength on CNT deposition mass is around 8.5 times, and the effect of optimum suspension concentration on deposition rate is around 5.5 times. In the optimum experimental setting, the current density values of EPD were bounded between 0.5 and 1 mA/cm2. Based on the cumulative deposition diagram, it was found that the first three minutes of EPD is the effective deposition time. Applying optimized EPD in composite fabrication of treated GTs caused a drastic improvement on the order of 108 times in the volume conductivity of the nanocomposite laminate in comparison with simple GTs specimens. Optimized CNT deposition also enhanced the ILSS of hierarchical nanocomposites by 42%

Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography in Primary Thyroid Lymphoma with Coexisting Lymphocytic Thyroiditis

Background: Primary thyroid lymphoma is an uncommon neoplasm frequently associated with lymphocytic thyroiditis (LT). Once the pathologic diagnosis of primary thyroid lymphoma is established, imaging plays an important role in tumor staging and evaluating treatment response. The present case discusses the role of fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (18F-FDG PET)/computed tomography (CT) in this clinical setting along with the potential diagnostic challenges. Patient Findings: A 44-year-old man with a history of LT and hypothyroidism presented with an enlarging goiter. Initial imaging evaluation showed markedly enlarged gland with bilateral cervical and mediastinal adenopathy. Histopathologic evaluation confirmed the diagnosis of primary thyroid lymphoma on a background of LT. An 18F-FDG PET/CT revealed increased uptake in the gland and lymph nodes. Follow-up 18F-FDG PET/CT after chemotherapy showed interval decrease in FDG uptake in the thyroid gland associated with interval decrease in the size and metabolic activity of the cervical and superior mediastinal lymph nodes. Conclusions: The frequent association of LT with primary thyroid lymphoma and the overlap of their clinical and pathologic findings pose a significant diagnostic challenge. While other imaging techniques are helpful in evaluating anatomic local and regional extent of primary thyroid lymphoma, 18F-FDG PET/CT can be of an added value in evaluating its metabolic activity and detecting regional and distant disease as well as in assessing response to treatment.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/90467/1/thy-2E2011-2E0064.pd

Effect of Dipyridamole Injected for Myocardial Perfusion Imaging on Blood Glucose Concentration; A Preliminary Study

Introduction: Dipyridamole inhibits adenosine reuptake and increases cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate (cAMP) levels in platelets, erythrocytes and endothelial cells, all of which influence blood glucose. Acute hyperglycaemia reduces endothelium-dependent vasodilation and suppresses coronary microcirculation; which, in theory, can alter the outcome of a radionuclide scan. Aim: The present study was conducted with the aim to investigate the changes in blood glucose level of patients receiving dipyridamole for cardiac scan. Materials and Methods: A total of 293 patients (85 men and 208 women, age: 60.59±10.43 years) were included in the study. Fasting Blood Glucose (FBG) was measured before and 8 min after dipyridamole (0.568 mg/kg) injection during myocardial perfusion imaging. The data in different groups were analysed by paired t-test. R esults: There was not a significant difference between first (106.89 ± 19.21mg/dL) and second (107.98 ± 17.57 mg/dL) FBG measurements (p= 0.293). However, when the patients were grouped based on the quartiles of first measurement, there was an increase in FBG following dipyridamole injection in the first quartile (mean difference: 7.15±21.27 mg/dL, p<0.01); in contrast, FBG levels showed a significant decrease after dipyridamole administration in the 4th quartile (mean difference: -9.53±18.20 mg/dL, p<0.001). The differences in 2nd and 3rd quartiles were negligible. The patients were divided into normal, ischemic and fixed lesions based on the outcome of scans, then the possible correlation of dipyridamole-induced FBG alteration and scan results were investigated. There were no significant difference between the FBG values before and after dipyridamole injection and the final outcome of scan. C onclusion: The effects of dipyridamole on blood glucose highly depend on the initial blood glucose level

The environmental benefits of urban open green spaces

Most of the scientific papers on urban planning and sustainable development begin by emphasizing the multiple benefits of urban open green space. When it comes to the benefits of urban green and open space, one should concern on the facilities provided to promote human or societal wellbeing, either directly or indirectly. In this study, a review of identified peer-reviewed literature from the most popular online databases was carried out and its contribution to improve our understanding of urban open green spaces and their environmental benefits to the human being are discussed. These many benefits cover various areas such as natural conservation which increases biodiversity of flora and fauna, affecting urban climate by reduction of air temperature and urban heat islands, improving air quality, decreasing air pollution and carbon sequestration, noise reduction and cleaning up contaminants. As urban open green spaces contribute to human and social wellbeing, they are essential for livable and sustainable cities

Towards a Non-Intrusive Pulse Oximetry System with Long-Term Mobile Monitoring

The percentage of arterial oxygen in the blood is a vital physiological sign used by clinicians and doctors to monitor the health of patients under critical conditions in the hospital; the technology used universally to monitor this is known as pulse oximetry. The sensors most commonly used in the hospitals are of reflection type such that the LEDs and the photodetector (PD) are placed on opposite ends of short distance body tissue, e.g. finger. There has been an increased demand for monitoring patients who have suffered a stroke and are recovering in their homes, and simply the elderly. For such persons, staying in the hospital is unnecessary and undesirable psychologically. As such, a system is to be designed such that patients can monitor their physiological signals, and only contact the doctor when it is imperative to do so. With the comfort of the patient in mind, the system must be unobtrusive in nature such that it does not impede any of their simply daily activities. The sensor used in the system is of reflectance type, i.e. LEDs and PD placed on the same side, and is to be placed on the pectoral region. The pectoral region is chosen for the ease of measuring electrocardiogram (ECG) signals, another vital physiological signal. Due to lesser blood perfusion in that anatomical region, the question remains as to whether signals could be acquired faithfully there. Results have shown that although signals can be obtained, they vary greatly mainly due to motion artifacts. The system could be improved if complex digital signal processing algorithms are used.</p

A Simple method for determining barley reaction to spot blotch disease

A simple method was used to determine the reaction of 14 barley genotypes to Cochliobolus sativus, the causal agent of barley spot blotch disease. In this assay, fivetransparent centered circles ranged from resistant to very susceptible, was used to screenbarley genotypes for resistance to the major virulent pathotype Pt4 in barley populationsin Syria. The center of circles placed on the started point of lesion and its extendedthrough the circle could give numerical values for each genotype. The method allows low,intermediate and absolute levels of resistance to spot blotch to be determined. Thetransparent circles method was repeatable and the disease scores obtained were correlated(r = 0.97, P &lt; 0.001) with those obtained by the seedling assay. The established method isboth simple and precisely, it could make a significant contribution in many types ofstudies in plant pathology breeding programs

Capturing Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide by Depleting Inorganic Carbon in Municipal Wastewater

CO2 removal from the atmosphere is likely necessary to limit global warming to the 2 °C goal of the Paris Agreement. This work aims to leverage the embedded conveyance energy within the existing wastewater infrastructure in the U.S. to remove inorganic carbon and develop a carbon negative CO2 removal technology. Although wastewater treatment plants are designed to remove organic carbon, a total of 588 Mt of inorganic carbon also enters the plants but is not removed. To demonstrate this, a bench-scale, membrane-based wastewater carbon-capture system was optimized. Commercially available, gas-permeable membranes (PFA) and hydrophobic, porous membranes (PVDF) fabricated in-house were evaluated in the system. The effects of multiple physiochemical parameters on inorganic carbon removal were investigated, with the best-case scenario removing 15% of the inorganic carbon from the feed stream. Deploying similar full-scale systems across US wastewater infrastructure without addition of acid for pH adjustment would remove up to 12.9 Mt-C/yr. The addition of hydrochloric acid (HCl) to bring the wastewater to 5.0 (one pH unit below the bicarbonate pKa) would increase removal to 30.5 Mt-C/yr, but this is partially offset by CO2 emissions from HCl production, resulting in a net removal of 22.6 Mt-C/yr. When compared to direct air capture, a more mature technology, the new system was more sustainable at reduced feed stream pH (2.5) based on net CO2 removal

A review of vertical farming technology: a guide for implementation of building integrated crop cultivation in agriculture sector / Nik Mohammad Shauqi Mohd ‘Arabi

Vertical farming is a cultivation crops vertically by new agricultural method which combines with latest technology to produce the crops in large quantities. The vertical farming was introduced at the United States America (USA), New York on 1970 which is the people not have any land-use for the agriculture activities. Based on the paper review, there are have two method is vertical farming under control environment and natural system. In this study, technology as one of the important factors of vertical farming is discussed and reviewed by qualitative approach how to manage and instruct the vertical farm on right way. The others factor was encouraging to implement the vertical farms for the future where the limitation land-use, increasing the growth population of peoples and towards zero use of chemical in agriculture. The big problem is limitation of land-use for the agriculture sector. From the innovative makes, there are have three technique which is responsible to develop the crops in large quantities. It is hydroponic, aeroponic and aquaponic techniques. The main advantages of these technique cultivation system are saving of water and zero use of chemical which is using bio nutrient solution as fertilizer and light emitting diode (LED) as artificial light for growth where the chemical can give the risks and harmful to the human health for the long period. Besides, in this study, in an attempt to review the major opportunities and challenges of vertical farming and uses as the framework of sustainability to examine the role of it in prospective the food security to people’s stock