Search results for: anterior neck disectomy and fusion

Authors: Oanthata Jester Sealetsa, Richie Moalosi

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Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs) are reported to be amongst the leading contributing factors of low productivity in many industries across the world, and the most affected being New Emerging Economies (NEC) such as Botswana. This is due to lack of expertise and resources to deal with existing ergonomics challenges. This study was aimed to evaluate occupational postures and the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders among diamond polishers in a diamond company in Botswana. A case study was conducted with about 106 diamond polishers in Gaborone, Botswana. A case study was chosen because it can investigate and explore an issue thoroughly and deeply, and record behaviour over time so changes in behaviour can be identified. The Corlett and Bishop Body Map was used to determine frequency of MSDs symptoms in different body parts of the workers. This was then followed by the use of the Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA) to evaluate the occupational postural risks of MSDs. Descriptive statistics, chi square, and logistic regression were used for data analysis. The results of the study reveal that workers experienced pain in the upper back, lower back, shoulders, neck, and wrists with the most pain reported in the upper back (44.6%) and lower back (44.2%). However, the mean REBA score of 6.07 suggests that sawing, bruiting and polishing were the most dangerous processes in diamond polishing. The study recommends that a redesign of the diamond polishing workstations is necessary to accommodate the anthropometry characteristic of Batswana (people from Botswana) to prevent the development of MSDs.

Keywords: assessment, Botswana, diamond polishing, ergonomics, musculoskeletal disorders, occupational postural risks

Procedia PDF Downloads 165

Authors: Pongsakorn Komutpol, Pravej Serichetaphongse, Soontra Panmekiate, Atiphan Pimkhaokham

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Statement of Problem: The important parameter of esthetic assessment in anterior maxillary implant include pink esthetic of gingiva and white esthetic of restoration. While the 3 dimensional (3D) implant position are recently concerned as a key for succeeding in implant treatment. However, to our knowledge, the authors did not come across any publication that demonstrated the relations of esthetic outcome and 3D implant position. Objectives: To investigate the correlation between positional accuracy of single-tooth implant restoration (STIR) in all 3 dimensions and their esthetic outcomes. Materials and Methods: 17 patients’ data who had a STIR at central incisor with pristine contralateral tooth were included in this study. Intraoral photographs, dental models, and cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) images were retrieved. The esthetic outcome was assessed in accordance with pink esthetic score and white esthetic score (PES/WES). While the number of correct position in each dimension (mesiodistal, labiolingual, apicocoronal) of the implant were evaluated and defined as 'right' or 'wrong' according to ITI consensus conference by one investigator using CBCT data. The different mean score between right and wrong position in all dimensions was analyzed by Mann-Whitney U test with 0.05 was the significant level of the study. Results: The average score of PES/WES was 15.88 ± 1.65 which was considered as clinically acceptable. The average PES/WES score in 1, 2 and 3 right dimension of the implant position were 16.71, 15.75 and 15.17 respectively. None of the implants placed wrongly in all three dimensions. Statistically significant difference of the PES/WES score was found between the implants that placed right in 3 dimensions and 1 dimension (p = 0.041). Conclusion: This study supported the principle of 3D position of implant. The more properly implant was placed, the higher esthetic outcome was found.

Keywords: accuracy, dental implant, esthetic, 3D implant position

Procedia PDF Downloads 153

Authors: Cheng-Yu Tsai, Wen-Te Liu, Chen-Chen Lo, Yin-Tzu Lin, Kang Lo

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Background: Driving fatigue related to inadequate or disordered sleep accounts for a major percentage of traffic accidents. Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is a common respiratory disorder during sleep. However, the effects of OSAS severity on driving drowsiness remain unclear. Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between OSAS severity and driving fatigue. Methodologies: The physical condition while driving was obtained from the questionnaires to classify the state of driving fatigue. OSAS severity was quantified as the polysomnography, and the mean hourly number of greater than 3% dips in oxygen saturation during examination in a hospital in New Taipei City (Taiwan). The severity of OSAS was diagnosed by the apnea and hypopnea index (AHI) with the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) guideline. The logistic regression model was used to examine the associations after adjusted age, gender, neck circumstance, waist circumstance, and body mass index (BMI). Results: There were 880 subjects recruited in this study, who had been done polysomnography for evaluating severity for OSAS as well as completed the driver condition questionnaire. 752 subjects were diagnosed with OSA, and 484 subjects had fatigue driving behavior in the past week. Patients diagnosed with OSAS had a 9.42-fold higher odds ratio (p < 0.01, 95% CI = 5.41 – 16.42) of driving drowsiness for cohorts with a normal degree. Conclusion: We observe the considerable correlation between OSAS and driving fatigue. For the purpose of promoting traffic safety, OSAS should be monitored and treated.

Keywords: obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, driving fatigue, polysomnography, apnea and hypopnea index

Procedia PDF Downloads 111

Authors: Alexander N. Savostyanov, Tatiana A. Dolgorukova, Elena A. Esipenko, Mikhail S. Zaleshin, Margherita Malanchini, Anna V. Budakova, Alexander E. Saprygin, Tatiana A. Golovko, Yulia V. Kovas

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EEG correlates of mathematical and trait anxiety level were studied in 52 healthy Russian-speakers during execution of error-recognition tasks with lexical, arithmetic and algebraic conditions. Event-related spectral perturbations were used as a measure of brain activity. The ERSP plots revealed alpha/beta desynchronizations within a 500-3000 ms interval after task onset and slow-wave synchronization within an interval of 150-350 ms. Amplitudes of these intervals reflected the accuracy of error recognition, and were differently associated with the three conditions. The correlates of anxiety were found in theta (4-8 Hz) and beta2 (16-20 Hz) frequency bands. In theta band the effects of mathematical anxiety were stronger expressed in lexical, than in arithmetic and algebraic condition. The mathematical anxiety effects in theta band were associated with differences between anterior and posterior cortical areas, whereas the effects of trait anxiety were associated with inter-hemispherical differences. In beta1 and beta2 bands effects of trait and mathematical anxiety were directed oppositely. The trait anxiety was associated with increase of amplitude of desynchronization, whereas the mathematical anxiety was associated with decrease of this amplitude. The effect of mathematical anxiety in beta2 band was insignificant for lexical condition but was the strongest in algebraic condition. EEG correlates of anxiety in theta band could be interpreted as indexes of task emotionality, whereas the reaction in beta2 band is related to tension of intellectual resources.

Keywords: EEG, brain activity, lexical and numerical error-recognition tasks, mathematical and trait anxiety

Procedia PDF Downloads 543

Authors: Stefan Wagenpfeil, Felix Engel, Paul McKevitt, Matthias Hemmje

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Multimedia Indexing and Retrieval is generally designed and implemented by employing feature graphs. These graphs typically contain a significant number of nodes and edges to reflect the level of detail in feature detection. A higher level of detail increases the effectiveness of the results but also leads to more complex graph structures. However, graph-traversal-based algorithms for similarity are quite inefficient and computation intensive, especially for large data structures. To deliver fast and effective retrieval, an efficient similarity algorithm, particularly for large graphs, is mandatory. Hence, in this paper, we define a graph-projection into a 2D space (Graph Code) as well as the corresponding algorithms for indexing and retrieval. We show that calculations in this space can be performed more efficiently than graph-traversals due to a simpler processing model and a high level of parallelization. In consequence, we prove that the effectiveness of retrieval also increases substantially, as Graph Codes facilitate more levels of detail in feature fusion. Thus, Graph Codes provide a significant increase in efficiency and effectiveness (especially for Multimedia indexing and retrieval) and can be applied to images, videos, audio, and text information.

Keywords: indexing, retrieval, multimedia, graph algorithm, graph code

Procedia PDF Downloads 134

Authors: Philipp Ruf, Massiwa Chabbi, Christoph Reich, Djaffar Ould-Abdeslam

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In recent years, convolutional neural networks (CNN) have demonstrated high performance in image analysis, but oftentimes, there is only structured data available regarding a specific problem. By interpreting structured data as images, CNNs can effectively learn and extract valuable insights from tabular data, leading to improved predictive accuracy and uncovering hidden patterns that may not be apparent in traditional structured data analysis. In applying a single neural network for analyzing multimodal data, e.g., both structured and unstructured information, significant advantages in terms of time complexity and energy efficiency can be achieved. Converting structured data into images and merging them with existing visual material offers a promising solution for applying CNN in multimodal datasets, as they often occur in a medical context. By employing suitable preprocessing techniques, structured data is transformed into image representations, where the respective features are expressed as different formations of colors and shapes. In an additional step, these representations are fused with existing images to incorporate both types of information. This final image is finally analyzed using a CNN.

Keywords: CNN, image processing, tabular data, mixed dataset, data transformation, multimodal fusion

Procedia PDF Downloads 95

Authors: Jae Ni Jang, SoYoon Park, Sukhee Park, Yumin Song, Jae Won Kim, Keum Nae Kang, Young Uk Kim

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Objectives: Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) is a common clinical condition characterized by anterior knee pain. Here, we investigated the quadriceps tendon cross-sectional area (QTCSA) as a novel predictor for the diagnosis of PFPS. By examining the association between the QTCSA and PFPS, we aimed to provide a more valuable diagnostic parameter and more equivocal assessment of the diagnostic potential of PFPS by comparing the QTCSA with the quadriceps tendon thickness (QTT), a traditional measure of quadriceps tendon hypertrophy. Patients and Methods: This retrospective study included 30 patients with PFPS and 30 healthy participants who underwent knee magnetic resonance imaging. T1-weighted turbo spin echo transverse magnetic resonance images were obtained. The QTCSA was measured on the axial-angled phases of the images by drawing outlines, and the QTT was measured at the most hypertrophied quadriceps tendon. Results: The average QTT and QTCSA for patients with PFPS (6.33±0.80 mm and 155.77±36.60 mm², respectively) were significantly greater than those for healthy participants (5.77±0.36 mm and 111.90±24.10 mm2, respectively; both P<0.001). We used a receiver operating characteristic curve to confirm the sensitivities and specificities for both the QTT and QTCSA as predictors of PFPS. The optimal diagnostic cutoff value for QTT was 5.98 mm, with a sensitivity of 66.7%, a specificity of 70.0%, and an area under the curve of 0.75 (0.62–0.88). The optimal diagnostic cutoff value for QTCSA was 121.04 mm², with a sensitivity of 73.3%, a specificity of 70.0%, and an area under the curve of 0.83 (0.74–0.93). Conclusion: The QTCSA was found to be a more reliable diagnostic indicator for PFPS than QTT.

Keywords: patellofemoral pain syndrome, quadriceps muscle, hypertrophy, magnetic resonance imaging

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Authors: Fedili Benamar, Beloulou Mohamed Lamine, Ouahes Hassane, Ghattas Samir

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 Background and aims: Peripheral regional anesthesia has been integrated into most analgesia protocols for total knee arthroplasty which considered among the most painful surgeries with a huge potential for chronicization. The adductor canal block (ACB) has gained popularity. Similarly, the IPACK block has been described to provide analgesia of the posterior knee capsule. This study aimed to evaluate the analgesic efficacy of this block in patients undergoing primary PTG. Methods: 90 patients were randomized to receive either an IPACK, an anterior sciatic block, or a sham block (30 patients in each group + multimodal analgesia and a catheter in the KCA adductor canal). GROUP 1 KCA GROUP 2 KCA+BSA GROUP 3 KCA+IPACK The analgesic blocks were done under echo-guidance preoperatively respecting the safety rules, the dose administered was 20 cc of ropivacaine 0.25% was used. We were to assess posterior knee pain 6 hours after surgery. Other endpoints included quality of recovery after surgery, pain scores, opioid requirements (PCA morphine)(EPI info 7.2 analysis). Results: -groups were matched -A predominance of women (4F/1H). -average age: 68 +/-7 years -the average BMI =31.75 kg/m2 +/- 4. -70% of patients ASA2 ,20% ASA3. -The average duration of the intervention: 89 +/- 19 minutes. -Morphine consumption (PCA) significantly higher in group 1 (16mg) & group 2 (8mg) group 3 (4mg) - The groups were matched . -There was a correlation between the use of the ipack block and postoperative pain Conclusions :In a multimodal analgesic protocol, the addition of IPACK block decreased pain scores and morphine consumption ,

Keywords: regional anesthesia, analgesia, total knee arthroplasty, the adductor canal block (acb), the ipack block, pain

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Authors: Shimaa Holail, Tamer Saleh, Xiongwu Xiao

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Building change detection (BCD) from satellite imagery is an essential topic in urbanization monitoring, agricultural land management, and updating geospatial databases. Recently, methods for detecting changes based on deep learning have made significant progress and impressive results. However, it has the problem of being insensitive to changes in buildings with complex spectral differences, and the features being extracted are not discriminatory enough, resulting in incomplete buildings and irregular boundaries. To overcome these problems, we propose a dual Siamese network based on the Unet model with the addition of a deep supervision strategy (DS) in this paper. This network consists of a backbone (encoder) based on ImageNet pre-training, a fusion block, and feature pyramid networks (FPN) to enhance the step-by-step information of the changing regions and obtain a more accurate BCD map. To train the proposed method, we created a new dataset (EGY-BCD) of high-resolution and multi-temporal aerial images captured over New Cairo in Egypt to detect building changes for this purpose. The experimental results showed that the proposed method is effective and performs well with the EGY-BCD dataset regarding the overall accuracy, F1-score, and mIoU, which were 91.6 %, 80.1 %, and 73.5 %, respectively.

Keywords: building change detection, deep supervision, semantic segmentation, EGY-BCD dataset

Procedia PDF Downloads 87

Authors: Ayda Youssef, Mohammed Ali Khalaf, Tarek Rafaat

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Background: Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare multi-systemic disease that shows an abnormal proliferation of these kinds of cells associated with a granular infiltration that affects different structures of the human body, including the lung, liver, spleen, lymph nodes, brain, mucocutaneous, soft tissue (head and neck), and salivary glands. Evaluation of the extent of disease is one of the major predictors of patient outcome. Objectives: To recognize the pathogenesis of Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH), describe the radiologic criteria that are suggestive of LCH in different organs rather than the bones and to illustrate the appropriate differential diagnoses for LCH in each of the common extra-osseous sites. Material and methods: A retrospective study was done on 150 biopsy-proven LCH patients from 2007 to 2012. All patients underwent imaging studies, mostly US, CT, and MRI. These patients were reviewed to assess the extra-skeletal manifestations of LCH. Results: In 150 patients with biopsy-proven LCH, There were 33 patients with liver affection, 5 patients with splenic lesions, 55 patients with enlarged lymph nodes, 9 patient with CNS disease and 11 patients with lung involvement. Conclusions: Because of the frequent LCH children and evaluation of the extent of disease is one of the major predictors of patient outcome. Radiologist need to be familiar with its presentation in different organs and regions of body outside the commonest site of affection (bones). A high-index suspicion should be raised a biopsy is recommended in the presence of radiological suspicion. Chemotherapy is the preferred therapeutic modality.

Keywords: langerhans cell histiocytosis, extra-skeletal, pediatrics, radiology

Procedia PDF Downloads 421

Authors: Cheng-Yu Tsai, Wen-Te Liu, Shin-Mei Hsu, Yin-Tzu Lin, Chi Wu

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Background: Obstructive Sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is a common respiratory disorder during sleep. In addition, Body parameters were identified high predictive importance for OSAS severity. However, the effects of body parameters on OSAS severity remain unclear. Objective: In this study, the objective is to establish a prediction model for OSAS by using body parameters and investigate the effects of body parameters in OSAS. Methodologies: Severity was quantified as the polysomnography and the mean hourly number of greater than 3% dips in oxygen saturation during examination in a hospital in New Taipei City (Taiwan). Four levels of OSAS severity were classified by the apnea and hypopnea index (AHI) with American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) guideline. Body parameters, including neck circumference, waist size, and body mass index (BMI) were obtained from questionnaire. Next, dividing the collecting subjects into two groups: training and testing groups. The training group was used to establish the random forest (RF) to predicting, and test group was used to evaluated the accuracy of classification. Results: There were 3330 subjects recruited in this study, whom had been done polysomnography for evaluating severity for OSAS. A RF of 1000 trees achieved correctly classified 79.94 % of test cases. When further evaluated on the test cohort, RF showed the waist and BMI as the high import factors in OSAS. Conclusion It is possible to provide patient with prescreening by body parameters which can pre-evaluate the health risks.

Keywords: apnea and hypopnea index, Body parameters, obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, Random Forest

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Authors: Amirhossein Mohajerzadeh, Abolghasem Mohajerzadeh

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In this paper, target parameter is estimated with desirable precision in hierarchical wireless sensor networks (WSN) while the proposed algorithm also tries to prolong network lifetime as much as possible, using efficient data collecting algorithm. Target parameter distribution function is considered unknown. Sensor nodes sense the environment and send the data to the base station called fusion center (FC) using hierarchical data collecting algorithm. FC builds underlying phenomena based on collected data. Considering the aggregation level, x, the goal is providing the essential infrastructure to find the best value for aggregation level in order to prolong network lifetime as much as possible, while desirable accuracy is guaranteed (required sample size is fully depended on desirable precision). First, the sample size calculation algorithm is discussed, second, the average queue length based on M/M[x]/1/K queue model is determined and it is used for energy consumption calculation. Nodes can decrease transmission cost by aggregating incoming data. Furthermore, the performance of the new algorithm is evaluated in terms of lifetime and estimation accuracy.

Keywords: aggregation, estimation, queuing, wireless sensor network

Procedia PDF Downloads 166

Authors: Suraphan Rattanavadi

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This research was a study based on an application of used glass in producing glaze on ceramics. The aim was to identify the factors in the production process that affected ceramic product property when used glass was applied as the ceramic glaze. The study factors included appropriate materials, appropriate temperature used in fusion process, percentage of water absorption, fluidity, crazing and appropriate proportion in glaze production by Biaxial Blend Technique and use of oxide in glaze coloring both on test and real product. The test of fluidity revealed that the glazes number 15 and 16 had appropriate fluidity ratio for use as basic glaze. When each glaze was mixed with oxide at different proportion, it was discovered that the glaze number 16 showed glossy brown with beautiful but not clear crazing, due to its dark shade. This was from the mixture of kaolin and pieces of glass at the ratio of 1:3 (kaolin : pieces of glass), affecting at 10% with iron oxide. When 0.5% of copper carbonate and 0.1% of tin oxide were added, the result was the glaze with glossy, Muzo emerald (green- blue) color with beautiful and clear crazing. Lastly, 0.4% of cobalt carbonate was added, ending in the glaze with glossy, bright blue with beautiful but not clear, due to its dark shade.

Keywords: glaze, recycled, bottle glass, ceramic

Procedia PDF Downloads 291

Authors: Albert Suryaprawira

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The Nasion-Sella Line (NSL) has been used for several years as a reference line in longitudinal growth study. Therefore this line is considered to be stable not only to evaluate treatment outcome and to predict relapse possibility but also to manage prognosis. This is a radiographic superimposition of an adult male aged 19 years who complained of difficulty in aesthetic, talking and chewing. Patient has a midface hypoplasia profile (concave). He was diagnosed to have a severe Skeletal Class III with Class III malocclusion, increased lower vertical height, and an anterior open bite. A pre-treatment cephalometric radiograph was taken to analyse the skeletal problem and to measure the amount of bone movement and the prediction soft tissue response. A panoramic radiograph was also taken to analyse bone quality, bone abnormality, third molar impaction, etc. Before the surgery, a pre-surgical cephalometric radiograph was taken to re-evaluate the plan and to settle the final amount of bone cut. After the surgery, a post-surgical cephalometric radiograph was taken to confirm the result with the plan. The superimposition using NSL as a reference line between those radiographs was performed to analyse the outcome. It is important to describe the amount of hard and soft tissue movement and to predict the possibility of relapse after the surgery. The patient also needs to understand all the surgical plan, outcome and relapse prevention. The surgical management included maxillary impaction and advancement of Le Fort I osteotomy. The evaluation using NSL as a reference was a very useful method in determining the outcome and prognosis.

Keywords: Nasion-Sella Line, midface hypoplasia, Le Fort 1, maxillary advancement

Procedia PDF Downloads 126

Authors: Yong Zhao, Jian He, Cheng Zhang

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Cardiovascular diseases caused by hypertension are extremely threatening to human health, and early diagnosis of hypertension can save a large number of lives. Traditional hypertension detection methods require special equipment and are difficult to detect continuous blood pressure changes. In this regard, this paper first analyzes the principle of heart rate variability (HRV) and introduces sliding window and power spectral density (PSD) to analyze the time domain features and frequency domain features of HRV, and secondly, designs an HRV-based hypertension prediction network by combining Resnet, attention mechanism, and multilayer perceptron, which extracts the frequency domain through the improved ResNet18 features through a modified ResNet18, its fusion with time-domain features through an attention mechanism, and the auxiliary prediction of hypertension through a multilayer perceptron. Finally, the network was trained and tested using the publicly available SHAREE dataset on PhysioNet, and the test results showed that this network achieved 92.06% prediction accuracy for hypertension and outperformed K Near Neighbor(KNN), Bayes, Logistic, and traditional Convolutional Neural Network(CNN) models in prediction performance.

Keywords: feature extraction, heart rate variability, hypertension, residual networks

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Authors: M. Devamanalan, K. Pothiraj, M. Sudhan

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In competitive market like India, there is a high demand on the equal contribution on performance and its durability aspect of any system. In General vehicle has multiple sub-systems such as powertrain, BIW, Brakes, Actuations, Suspension and Seats etc., To withstand the market challenges, the contribution of each sub-system is very vital. The malfunction of any one sub system will directly have an impact on the performance of the major system which lead to dis-satisfaction to the end user. The Powertrain system consists of several sub-systems in which clutch is one of the prime sub-systems in MT vehicles which assist for smoother gear shifts with proper clutch dis-engagement and engagement. In general, most of the vehicles will have a mechanical or semi or full hydraulic clutch release system, whereas in small Commercial Vehicles (SCV) the majorly used clutch release system is mechanical cable release system due to its lesser cost and functional requirements. The major bottle neck in the cable type clutch release system is increase in pedal effort due to hysteresis increase and Gear shifting hard due to efficiency loss / cable slackness over the mileage accumulation of the vehicle. This study is to mainly focus on how the efficiency and hysteresis change over the mileage of the vehicle occurs because of the design architecture of outer and inner cable. The study involves several cable design validation results from vehicle level and rig level through the defined cable routing and test procedures. Results are compared to evaluate the suitable cable design architecture based on better efficiency and lower hysteresis parameters at initial and end of the validation.

Keywords: clutch, clutch cable, efficiency, architecture, cable routing

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Authors: Marie E. Docken

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At some point in the lifecycle of a country, patterns of political and social unrest of varying degrees are observed. Events involving public disorder or civil disobedience may produce effects that range a wide spectrum of varying outcomes, depending on the level of unrest. Many previous studies, primarily theoretical in nature, have attempted to measure public disorder in answering why or how it occurs in society by examining causal factors or underlying issues in the social or political position of a population. The main objective in doing so is to understand how these activities evolve or seek some predictive capability for the events. In contrast, this research involves the fusion of analytics and social studies to provide more knowledge of the public disorder and civil disobedience intensity in populations. With a greater understanding of the magnitude of these events, it is believed that we may learn how they relate to extreme actions such as mass migration or violence. Upon establishing a model for measuring civil unrest based upon empirical data, a case study on various Latin American countries is performed. Interpretations of historical events are combined with analytical results to provide insights regarding the magnitude and effect of social and political activism.

Keywords: public disorder, civil disobedience, Latin America, metrics, data analysis

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Authors: Makkia Ahmad Ali Al-Falahi, Abdullah Abdelaziz Muharram

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Background: Healthcare workers (HCWs) in Yemen are exposed to a myriad of occupational health hazards, including biological, physical, ergonomic, chemical and psychosocial hazards. HCWs operate in an environment that is considered to be one of the most hazardous occupational settings. Objective: To assess the prevalence of occupational health hazards among healthcare workers and associated risk factors in public hospitals in Sana'a City, Yemen. Method: Descriptive cross-sectional design was utilized; out of 5443 totals of HCWs 396 were selected by multistage sampling technique was carried out in the public hospitals in Sana'a city, Yemen. Results: More the half (60.6%) of HCWs aged between 20-30 years, (50.8%) were males, (56.3%) were married, and (45.5%) had a diploma qualification, while (65.2%) of HCWs had less than 6 years of experience. The result showed that the highest prevalence of occupational hazards was (99%), (ergonomic hazards (93.4%), biological hazards (87.6%), psychosocial (86.65%), physical hazards (83.3%), and chemical hazards (73.5%). There were no statistically significant differences between demographic characteristics and the prevalence of occupational hazards (p >0.05). Conclusion and recommendations: The study showed the highest prevalence of occupational hazards; regarding the prevalence of biological hazards exposure to sharp-related injury, the most prevalent physical hazards were slip/trip/and fall. Ergonomic hazards had back or neck pain during work. Chemical hazards were allergic to medical gloves powder. On psychosocial hazards was suffered from verbal and physical harassment. The study concluded by raising awareness among HCWs by conducting training courses to prevent occupational hazards.

Keywords: health workers, occupational hazards, risk factors, the prevalence

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Authors: Lin Dong-Yih, Yang S. M., Huang B. W., Lian J. A.

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Super duplex stainless steel has excellent mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. It becomes important structural material as its application has been extended to the fields such as renewable energy and the chemical industry because of its excellent properties. As examples are offshore wind power, solar cell machinery, and pipes in the chemical industry. The mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of super duplex stainless steel can be eliminated by welding due to the precipitation of the hard and brittle σ phase, which is rich of chromium, and molybdenum elements. This paper studies the influence of carbon element on the phase transformation of -ferrite and σ phase in 2507 super duplex stainless steel. The 2507 will be under argon gas protection welded with 316 and 316L extra low carbon stainless steel separately. The microstructural phases of stainless steels before and after welding, in fusion, heat affected zones, and base material will be studied via X-ray, OM, SEM, EPMA i.e. their quantity, size, distribution, and morphology. The influences of diffusion by carbon element will be compared according to the microstructures, hardness, and corrosion tests.

Keywords: complex stainless steel, welding, phase formation, carbon element, sigma phase, delta ferrite

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Authors: Saria Almarzook, Monika Reissmann, Gudrun Brockmann

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Due to its history, occurrence in different ecosystems and diverse using, the modern horse (Equus caballus) shows large variability in size, appearance, behavior and habits. At all times, breeders try to create groups (breeds, strains) representing high homology but showing clear differences in comparison to other groups. A great interest of analyzing phenotypic and genetic traits looking for real diversity and genetic uniqueness existents for Arabian horses in Syria. 90 Arabian horses from governmental research center of Arabian horses in Damascus were included. The horses represent three strains (Kahlawi, Saklawi, Hamdani) originated from different geographical zones. They were raised on the same farm, under stable conditions. Twelve phenotypic traits were measured: wither height (WH), croup width (CW), croup height (CH), neck girth (NG), thorax girth (TG), chest girth (ChG), chest depth (ChD), chest width (ChW), back line length (BLL), body length (BL), fore cannon length (FCL) and hind cannon length (HCL). The horses were divided into groups according to age (less than 2 years, 2-4 years, 4-9 years, over 9 years) and to sex (male, female). The statistical analyzes show that age has significant influence of WH while the strain has only a very limited effect. On CW, NG, BLL, FCL and HCL, there is only a significant influence of sex. Age has significant effect on CH and BL. All sources of classes have a significant effect on TG, ChG, ChD and ChW. Strain has a significant effect on the BL. These results provide first information for real biodiversity in and between the strains and can be used to develop the breeding work in the Arabian horse breed.

Keywords: Arabian horse, phenotypic traits, strains, Syria

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Authors: Orkide Donma, M. Metin Donma, Burcin Nalbantoglu, Birol Topcu, Feti Tulubas, Murat Aydin, Tuba Gokkus, Ahmet Gurel

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Increasing prevalence of childhood obesity has increased the interest in early and late indicators of gaining weight. Cell blood counts may be indicators of proinflammatory states. The aim was to evaluate associations of hematological parameters, including Hematocrit (HTC), hemoglobin, blood cell counts, and their indices with the degree of obesity in pediatric population. A total of 249; -139 morbidly obese (MO), 82 healthy Normal Weight (NW) and 28 Overweight (OW) children were included into the scope of the study. WHO BMI-for age percentiles were used to form age- and sex-matched groups. Informed consent forms and the Ethics Committee approval were obtained. Anthropometric measurements were performed. Hematological parameters were determined. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS. The degree for statistical significance was p≤0.05. Significant differences (p=0.000) between waist-to-hip ratios and head-to-neck ratios (hnrs) of MO and NW children were detected. A significant difference between hnrs of OW and MO children (p=0.000) was observed. Red cell Distribution Width (RDW) was higher in OW children than NW group (p=0.030). Such finding couldn’t be detected between MO and NW groups. Increased RDW was prominent in OW children. The decrease in Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin Concentration (MCHC) values in MO children was sharper than the values in OW children (p=0.006 vs p=0.042) compared to those in NW group. Statistically higher HTC levels were observed between MO-NW (p=0.014), but none between OW-NW. Though the cause-effect relationship between obesity and erythrocyte indices still needs further investigation, alterations in RDW, HTC, MCHC during obesity may be of significance in the early life.

Keywords: anthropometry, children, erythrocytes, obesity

Procedia PDF Downloads 330

Authors: Yong Zhang

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Light has proven to be useful in a wide range of biomedical applications such as fluorescence imaging, photoacoustic imaging, optogenetics, photodynamic therapy, photothermal therapy, and light controlled drug/gene delivery. Taking photodynamic therapy (PDT) as an example, PDT has been proven clinically effective in early lung cancer, bladder cancer, head, and neck cancer and is the primary treatment for skin cancer as well. However, clinical use of PDT is severely constrained by the low penetration depth of visible light through thick tissue, limiting its use to target regions only a few millimeters deep. One way to enhance the range is to use invisible near-infrared (NIR) light within the optical window (700–1100nm) for biological tissues, extending the depth up to 1cm with no observable damage to the intervening tissue. We have demonstrated use of NIR-to-visible upconversion fluorescent nanoparticles (UCNPs), emitting visible fluorescence when excited by a NIR light at 980nm, as a nanotransducer for PDT to convert deep tissue-penetrating NIR light to visible light suitable for activating photosensitizers. The unique optical properties of UCNPs enable the upconversion wavelength to be tuned and matched to the activation absorption wavelength of the photosensitizer. At depths beyond 1cm, however, tissue remains inaccessible to light even within the NIR window, and this critical depth limitation renders existing phototherapy ineffective against most deep-seated cancers. We have demonstrated some new treatment modalities for deep-seated cancers based on UCNP hydrogel implants and miniaturized, wirelessly powered optoelectronic devices for light delivery to deep tissues.

Keywords: upconversion, fluorescent, nanoparticle, bioimaging, photodynamic therapy

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Authors: Katie-Beth Webster

Abstract:

Mucormycosis is a rare opportunistic fungal infection that, if left untreated, can cause large scale tissue necrosis and death. There are a number of cases of this in the literature, most commonly in the head and neck region arising from sinuses. It is also usually found in immunocompromised patient subgroups. This study reviewed a number of cases of mucormycosis in previously fit and healthy young trauma patients to assess predisposing factors for infection and adequacy of current treatment paradigms. These trauma patients likely contracted the fungal infection from the soil at the site of the incident. Despite early washout and debridement of the wounds at the scene of the injury and on arrival in hospital, both these patients contracted mucormycosis. It was suspected that inadequate early debridement of soil contaminated limbs was one of the major factors that can lead to catastrophic tissue necrosis. In both cases, this resulted in the patients having a higher level of amputation than would have initially been required based on the level of their injury. This was secondary to cutaneous and soft tissue necrosis secondary to the fungal infiltration leading to osteomyelitis and systemic sepsis. In the literature, it appears diagnosis is often protracted in this condition secondary to inadequate early treatment and long processing times for fungal cultures. If fungal cultures were sent at the time of first assessment and adequate debridements are performed aggressively early, it could lead to these critically unwell trauma patients receiving appropriate antifungal and surgical treatment earlier in their episode of care. This is likely to improve long term outcomes for these patients.

Keywords: mucormycosis, plastic surgery, osteomyelitis, trauma

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Authors: Inkyong Yi

Abstract:

Acute kidney injury (AKI) in trauma patients is known to be associated with multiple factors, especially shock and consequent inadequate renal perfusion, yet its clinical presentation is little known in severe trauma patients. Our aim was to investigate the clinical presentation of acute kidney injury and its outcome in severe trauma patients at a level I trauma center. A total of 93 consecutive adult trauma patients with an injury severity score (ISS) of more than 15 were analyzed retrospectively from our Level I trauma center data base. Patients with direct renal injury were excluded. Patients were dichotomized into two groups, according to the presence of AKI. Various clinical parameters were compared between two groups, with Student’s T test and Mann-Whitney’s U test. The AKI group was further dichotomized into patients who recovered within seven days, and those who required more than 7days for recovery or those who did not recover at all. Various clinical parameters associated with outcome were further analyzed. Patients with AKI (n=33, 35%) presented with significantly higher age (61.4±17.3 vs. 45.4±17.3, p < 0.0001), incidence of comorbidities (hypertension; 51.5% vs. 13.3%, OR 6.906 95%CI 2.515-18.967, diabetes; 27.3% vs. 6.7%, OR 5.250, 95%CI 1.472-18.722), odds of head and neck trauma (69.7% vs. 41.7%, OR 3.220, 95%CI 1.306-7.942) and presence of shock during emergency room care (66.7% vs 21.7% OR 7.231, 95%CI, 2.798-18.687). Among AKI patients, patients who recovered within 1 week showed lower peak lactate (4.7mmol/L, 95%CI 2.9-6.5 vs 7.3mmol/L, 95%CI 5.0-9.6, p < 0.0287), lesser units of transfusion during first 24 hours (pRBC; 20.4unit, 95%CI 12.5-28.3 vs. 58.9unit, 95%CI 39.4-78.5, p=0.0003, FFP; 16.6unit, 95%CI 6.8-26.4 vs. 56.1unit, 95%CI 26.9-85.2, p=0.0027). In severe trauma patients, patients with AKI showed different clinical presentations and worse outcomes. Initial presence of shock and higher DIC profiles may be important risk factors for AKI in severe trauma patients. In patients with AKI, peak lactate level and amounts of transfusion are related to recovery.

Keywords: acute kidney injury, lactate, transfusion, trauma

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Authors: Hai Xu, Yiwei Wang, Xi Bao, Bihua Deng, Pengcheng Li, Yu Lu

Abstract:

T7 phage could be used as a perfect vector for peptides expression and haptens presentation. T7-3GnRH recombinant phage was constructed by inserting three copies of Gonadotrophin Releasing Hormone (GnRH) gene into the multiple cloning site of T7 Select 415-1b phage genome. The positive T7-3GnRH phage was selected by using polymerase chain reaction amplification, and the p10B-3GnRH fusion protein was verified by SDS-PAGE and Western-blotting assay. T7-3GnRH vaccine was made and immunized with 10¹⁰ pfu in 0.2 ml per dose in mice. Blood samples were collected at an interval in weeks, and anti-GnRH antibody and testosterone concentrations were detected by ELISA and radioimmunoassay, respectively. The results show that T7-3GnRH phage particles confer a high immunogenicity to the GnRH-derived epitope. Moreover, the T7-3GnRH vaccine induced higher level of anti-GnRH antibody than ImproVac^®. However, the testosterone concentrations in both immunized groups were at a similar level, and the testis developments were significantly inhibited compared to controls. These findings demonstrated that the anti-GnRH antibody could neutralize the endogenous GnRH to down regulate testosterone level and limit testis development, highlighting the potential value of T7-3GnRH in the immunocastration vaccine research.

Keywords: Gonadotrophin Releasing Hormone (GnRH), Immunocastration, T7 phage, Phage vaccine

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Authors: Triza Edwar Fawzi Deif

Abstract:

In the process of urbanization in China, new rural construction is on the ascendant, which is becoming more and more popular. Under the driving effect of rural urbanization, the house pattern and tectonic methods of traditional vernacular houses have shown great differences from the family structure and values of contemporary peasant families. Therefore, it is particularly important to find a prototype, form and strategy to make a balance between the traditional memory and modern functional requirements. In order for research to combine the regional culture with modern life, under the situation of the current batch production of new rural residences, Badie village, in Zhejiang province, is taken as the case. This paper aims to put forward a prototype which can not only meet the demand of modern life but also ensure the continuation of traditional culture and historical context for the new rural dwellings design. This research not only helps to extend the local context in the construction of the new site but also contributes to the fusion of old and new rural dwellings in the old site construction. Through the study and research of this case, the research methodology and results can be drawn as reference for the new rural construction in other areas.

Keywords: steel slag, co-product, primary coating, steel aggregate capital, rural areas, rural planning, rural governance village, design strategy, new rural dwellings, regional context, regional expression

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Authors: Abdullah Saeidi, Aydin Gülses, Christan Flörke

Abstract:

Skin cancer of the face region is the most common type of malignancy and surgical excision is the preferred approach. However, the clinical long term results reported in the literature are still controversial. Objectives: To describe; 1. Demographical characteristics 2. Affected site, distribution and TNM classification regarding tumor type 3. Surgical aspects • Surgical removal: excision principles, safety margins, the need for secondary resection, primary reconstruction/ defect closure, anesthesia protocol, duration of hospital stay (if any) • Secondary intervention for defect closure/reconstruction: Flap technique, anesthesia protocol, duration of hospital stay (if any), postoperative wound management etc. 4. Tumor recurrences 5. Clinical outcomes 6. Studying the possible therapy approach throw Biostatistical relation and correlation between multiple Histological, diagnostics and clinical Faktors. following surgical ablation of the skin cancer of the head and neck region. Methods: Selection and statistical analysis of medical records of patients who had admitted to the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Universitätsklinikum Schleswig Holstein, Campus Kiel during the period of 2015-2019 will be retrospectively evaluated. Data will be collected via ORBIS Information-Management-System (ORBIS AG, Saarbrücken, Germany).

Keywords: non melanoma skin cancer, face skin cancer, skin reconstruction, non melanoma skin cancer recurrence, non melanoma skin cancer metastases

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Authors: K. Parandhama Gowd

Abstract:

The aim of this research paper is to conceptualize, discuss, analyze and propose alternate design methodologies for futuristic Black Box for flight safety. The proposal also includes global networking concepts for real time surveillance and monitoring of flight performance parameters including GPS parameters. It is expected that this proposal will serve as a failsafe real time diagnostic tool for accident investigation and location of debris in real time. In this paper, an attempt is made to improve the existing methods of flight data recording techniques and improve upon design considerations for futuristic FDR to overcome the trauma of not able to locate the block box. Since modern day communications and information technologies with large bandwidth are available coupled with faster computer processing techniques, the attempt made in this paper to develop a failsafe recording technique is feasible. Further data fusion/data warehousing technologies are available for exploitation.

Keywords: flight data recorder (FDR), black box, diagnostic tool, global networking, cockpit voice and data recorder (CVDR), air traffic control (ATC), air traffic, telemetry, tracking and control centers ATTTCC)

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Authors: Muhsin Kizhisseri, Jorg Schluter, Saleh Gharie

Abstract:

Atherosclerosis is the main reason of stroke, which is one of the deadliest diseases in the world. The carotid artery in the brain is the prominent location for atherosclerotic progression, which hinders the blood flow into the brain. The inclusion of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) into the diagnosis cycle to understand the hemodynamics of the patient-specific carotid artery can give insights into stroke prediction. Realistic outlet boundary conditions are an inevitable part of the numerical simulations, which is one of the major factors in determining the accuracy of the CFD results. The Windkessel model-based outlet boundary conditions can give more realistic characteristics of the distal vascular branches of the carotid artery, such as the resistance to the blood flow and compliance of the distal arterial walls. This study aims to find the most influential distal branches of the carotid artery by using the Windkessel model parameters in the outlet boundary conditions. The parametric study approach to Windkessel model parameters can include the geometrical features of the distal branches, such as radius and length. The incorporation of the variations of the geometrical features of the major distal branches such as the middle cerebral artery, anterior cerebral artery, and ophthalmic artery through the Windkessel model can aid in identifying the most influential distal branch in the carotid artery. The results from this study can help physicians and stroke neurologists to have a more detailed and accurate judgment of the patient's condition.

Keywords: stroke, carotid artery, computational fluid dynamics, patient-specific, Windkessel model, distal vascular branches

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Authors: Xiangxu Chai, Bin Feng, Ping Li, Deyan Zhu, Liquan Wang, Guanzhong Wang, Yukun Jing

Abstract:

In high power large-aperture laser systems, such as the inertial confinement fusion project, the Nd: glass laser (1053nm) is usually needed to be converted to ultraviolet (UV) light and the fourth harmonic generation (FHG) is one of the most favorite candidates to achieve UV light. Deuterated potassium dihydrogen phosphate (DKDP) crystal is an optimal choice for converting the Nd: glass radiation to the fourth harmonic laser by noncritical phase matching (NCPM). To reduce the damage probability of focusing lens, the DKDP crystal is suggested to be set before the focusing lens. And a converging beam enters the FHG crystal consequently. In this paper, we simulate the process of FHG in the scheme and the dependence of FHG efficiency on the lens’ F is derived. Besides, DKDP crystal with gradient deuterium is proposed to realize the NCPM FHG of the converging beam. At every position, the phase matching is achieved by adjusting the deuterium level, and the FHG efficiency increases as a result. The relation of the lens’ F with the deuterium gradient is investigated as well.

Keywords: fourth harmonic generation, laser induced damage, converging beam, DKDP crystal

Procedia PDF Downloads 206