Search results for: diagnostic reference levels

Authors: Sruthi Ramagiri, Rajeev T.

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Free radical damage has been entailed as the major culprit in the ischemic stroke contributing for oxidative damage. Recent investigations on Hydroxy Safflower Yellow A (HSYA) suggested its role in cerebral ischemia and various neurodegenerative disorders with unidentified molecular mechanisms. The current study was designed to investigate putative therapeutic role and possible molecular mechanisms of HSYA administration during the onset of reperfusion in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury in cerebral stroke. Cerebral stroke was achieved by focal ischemic model. HSYA (10 mg/kg) was injected intravenously via the tail vein 5 minutes before reperfusion. Losses of sensorimotor abilities were evaluated by neurological scoring, spontaneous locomotor activity, and rotarod performance. Extent of oxidative stress was evaluated by biochemical parameters i.e., malondialdehyde (MDA), Glutathione (GSH), Super Oxide Dismutase (SOD) and catalase levels. The infarct volume of brain was assessed by 2,3,5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining technique. Increased cerebral injury (I/R) was evidenced by motor impairment, increased infarct volume and elevation of MDA levels along with significant reduction in antioxidant i.e.,MDA levels along with significant reduction in antioxidant i.e., GSH, SOD and catalase levels when compared to sham control. However, post conditioning with HSYA (10 mg/kg, i.v.) at the onset of reperfusion has significantly ameliorated sensorimotor abilities, attenuated MDA levels and reduced the infarct volume as compared with vehicle treated I/R injury group. Moreover, HSYA treatments improved antioxidant enzyme levels as compared with vehicle treated I/R-injury group. In conclusion, it may be suggested that HSYA post conditioning could be novel therapeutic approach against I/R injury in cerebral stroke possibly through its anti-oxidant mechanism.

Keywords: HSYA, Ischemia reperfusion injury, oxidative stress, stroke

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Authors: Dipanshu Sur, Ratnabali Chakravorty

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Introduction: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common metabolic abnormality such as changes in lipid profile, diabetes, hypertension and metabolic syndrome occurring in women. Hypovitaminsis D was found to be associated with the development of obesity and insulin resistance in women with PCOS. Aim: To evaluate the association of vitamin D levels in obese and non-obese patients with PCOS in an East Indian populations. Methods: A case control study was conducted. It enrolled 100 cases of PCOS based on Rotterdam criteria and 100 ovulatory normal cases matched for their age and BMI. Vitamin D levels were compared in the obese and non-obese PCOS groups and also with the controls. Results: The mean age of subjects was 29.48 ± 3.29 years in the PCOS group and 26.24 ± 2.56 years in the control group. Hypovitaminosis D was present in 75 out of 100 PCOS women (75.0%) and 25 women (25.0%) showed sufficient 25OHD levels ≥30 ng/ml. Women with PCOS had significantly lower total serum calcium (8.4 ± 0.25 mg/dl versus 9.8 ± 0.17 mg/dl in controls), and 25 OHD (21.2 ± 2.56 ng/ml versus 32.6 ± 2.23 ng/ml in control group) than ovulatory normal women. This difference remained significant for both groups after adjustment for BMI. Obese women in both groups had significantly lower concentration of calcium and 25OHD than normal weight patients in this study. Conclusion: Our study shows majority of the patients and controls had vitamin D deficiency and there was significant difference in the vitamin D levels in PCOS group and controls as well as obese and non-obese groups. This may reflect the vitamin D deficiency status of the community. Vitamin D deficiency should demands immediate attention as it is a severe problem among the East Indian population.

Keywords: vitamin D deficiency, polycystic ovary syndrome, obese, hypovitaminsis D

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Authors: Ana-María Gómez-Carvajal, Hernando Santamaría-García, Mateo Bernal, Mario Valderrama, Daniela Lizarazo, Juliana Restrepo, María Fernanda Barreto, Angélica Parra, Paula Torres, Diana Matallana, Jaime Silva, José Santamaría-García, Sandra Baez

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Higher levels of oxytocin are associated with better performance on social cognition tasks. However, higher levels of oxytocin have also been associated with increased levels of envy and schadenfreude. Considering these antecedents, this study aims to explore social emotions (i.e., envy and schadenfreude) and other components of social cognition (i.e. ToM and empathy), in women in the puerperal period and their respective partners, compared to a control group of men and women without children or partners. Control women should be in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle or taking oral contraceptives as they allow oxytocin levels to remain stable. We selected this population since increased levels of oxytocin are present in both mothers and fathers of newborn babies. Both groups were matched by age, sex, and education level. Twenty-two parents of newborns (11 women, 11 men) and 15 controls (8 women, 7 men) performed an experimental task designed to trigger schadenfreude and envy. In this task, each participant was shown a real-life photograph and a description of two target characters matched in age and gender with the participant. The task comprised two experimental blocks. In the first block, participants read 15 sentences describing fortunate events involving either character. After reading each sentence, participants rated the event in terms of how much envy they felt for the character (1=no envy, 9=extreme envy). In the second block, participants read and reported the intensity of their pleasure (schadenfreude, 1=no pleasure, 9=extreme pleasure) in response to 15 unfortunate events happening to the characters. Five neutral events were included in each block. Moreover, participants were assessed with ToM and empathy tests. Potential confounding variables such as general cognitive functioning, stress levels, hours of sleep and depression symptoms were also measured. Results showed that parents of newborns showed increased levels of envy and schadenfreude. These effects are not explained by any confounding factor. Moreover, no significant differences were found in ToM or empathy tests. Our results offer unprecedented evidence of specific differences in envy and schadenfreude levels in parents of newborns. Our findings support previous studies showing a negative relationship between oxytocin levels and negative social emotions. Further studies should assess the direct relationship between oxytocin levels in parents of newborns and the performance in social emotions tasks.

Keywords: envy, empathy, oxytocin, schadenfreude, social emotions, theory of mind

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Authors: Espinosa Carlos, Nobrega Doris

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Children are at high risk for lead (Pb) exposure. The objective of this study was to identify risk factors that contribute to high blood lead (PbB) levels in Venezuelan children. The concentration of PbB was determined in 60 children (ages 4-9 years old), coming from the Michelena sector, Valencia District, Carabobo State. The relationship between these concentrations and socio-economical parameters (A: high quality life; B: fair quality life; C: critic poverty), Pb levels of faucet water (Pb-water) and dust Pb levels of floor (Pb-dust) of their houses, was established. Living areas were classified according to sectors and socio-economical status. Forty [40=66.7%] children resulted with PbB levels above the permissible concentration (LAPC). Average PbB was not significantly higher than the permissible levels. Odds ratio proved that children from status C are 7.28 times more likely to have LAPC of PbB than the ones coming from A or B. Thirty-four percent (34%) of the children with LAPC come from status C which could be considered the most critical status from the exposure risk point of view. The 76,3% of the sampled houses reported VSLP of Pb-water, being the Pb-water average in 35 ± 25.5 ug/L. This average significantly went superior to the permissible limit established by Venezuela and international organisms (10 ug/L). When grouping the results of PbB and Pb-water by sex, were that 50,8% of the children who presented/displayed VSLP of Pb-water and PbB. Was a significant relation (p ≤ 0.05), between masculine sex and the VSLP of PbB and Pb-water (x² = 3,672). In relation to the Pb-Dust analyses, were not statistically significant differences with respect to their permissible limit value (40 ug/pie²). This study shows that by correlating geographical and health data, we can identify 'high risk' areas, leading to a proactive public health action. The results of this study are excellent, in order to take preventive measures for the care from the health. Later studies are suggested predicting main to determine of more conclusive form of levels elevated of PbB in the investigated population.

Keywords: demographic, lead, risk, socio-economical status

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Authors: P. Moskal, T. Bednarski, P. Bialas, E. Czerwinski, A. Gajos, A. Gruntowski, D. Kaminska, L. Kaplon, G. Korcyl, P. Kowalski, T. Kozik, W. Krzemien, E. Kubicz, Sz. Niedzwiecki, M. Palka, L. Raczynski, Z. Rudy, P. Salabura, N. G. Sharma, M. Silarski, A. Slomski, J. Smyrski, A. Strzelecki, A. Wieczorek, W. Wislicki, M. Zielinski, N. Zon

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A new concept and results of the performance tests of the TOF-PET detection system developed at the Jagiellonian University will be presented. The novelty of the concept lies in employing long strips of polymer scintillators instead of crystals as detectors of annihilation quanta, and in using predominantly the timing of signals instead of their amplitudes for the reconstruction of Lines-of-Response. The diagnostic chamber consists of plastic scintillator strips readout by pairs of photo multipliers arranged axially around a cylindrical surface. To take advantage of the superior timing properties of plastic scintillators the signals are probed in the voltage domain with the accuracy of 20 ps by a newly developed electronics, and the data are collected by the novel trigger-less and reconfigurable data acquisition system. The hit-position and hit-time are reconstructed by the dedicated reconstruction methods based on the compressing sensing theory and the library of synchronized model signals. The solutions are subject to twelve patent applications. So far a time-of-flight resolution of ~120 ps (sigma) was achieved for a double-strip prototype with 30 cm field-of-view (FOV). It is by more than a factor of two better than TOF resolution achievable in current TOF-PET modalities and at the same time the FOV of 30 cm long prototype is significantly larger with respect to typical commercial PET devices. The Jagiellonian PET (J-PET) detector with plastic scintillators arranged axially possesses also another advantage. Its diagnostic chamber is free of any electronic devices and magnetic materials thus giving unique possibilities of combining J-PET with CT and J-PET with MRI for scanning the same part of a patient at the same time with both methods.

Keywords: PET-CT, PET-MRI, TOF-PET, scintillator

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Authors: Satria B. Mahathma, Asri Hendrawati

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Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a metabolic disorder syndrome characterized by chronic hyperglycemia. The number of people with diabetes rose from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014. In general, almost 90% of the prevalence of DM is type 2 DM which marked by insulin resistance and decreased receptor sensitivity. Aside from conventional antidiabetic therapy, the utilization of medicinal plants as alternative medicine has beneficial effects in diabetic patients. Flavonoid contents in radish leaves such as quercetin, pelargonidin, and kaempferol are thought to have antidiabetic activity on decreasing blood glucose levels by tricyclic nucleotide modulation of pancreatic beta cells and ameliorating insulin resistance. This study aimed to determine the effect of variant concentration of radish leaves ethanol extract on blood glucose levels in diabetic rats. Method: This study used pretest-posttest control group design by using 16 male Wistar rats which were induced type-2 diabetic by streptozotocin 60 mg/kg BW-nicotinamide 120 mg/kg BW intraperitoneally. Rats who had developed type-2 DM later divided randomly into 4 groups; negative control received placebo, positive control received glibenclamide 5 mg/kg BW/day, rats intervention I and intervention II received 100% and 50% of radish leaves ethanol extract, respectively. Treatments were administered orally for four weeks. The blood glucose levels were measured using the Enzymatic Colorimetric Test “GOD-PAP”. Data were analyzed by the dependent t-test for pretest-posttest intervention difference and one-way ANOVA followed by post hoc test to determine the significant difference of each treatment to obtain the significant data. Result: The result revealed that intervention group had lower blood glucose levels mean than control group which the lowest was intervention II group (negative control: 540,9 ± 191,7 mg/dl, positive control: 494, 97 ± 64,91 mg/dl, intervention I: 301,92 ± 165,70 mg/dl, and intervention II group: 276,1 ± 139,02 mg/dl. Intervention II group had the highest antidiabetic activity, followed by the intervention I group with the amount of decrease in blood glucose levels were -151,85 ± 77,43 mg/dl and -11,08 ± 186,62 mg/dl, however negative and positive control group didn’t have antidiabetic activity. The dependent t-test result showed there is a significant difference in decreasing blood glucose levels in the intervention II pretest-posttest intervention (p=0,03) while the other group didn’t. Data analyzed by one-way ANOVA also revealed the intervention II group significantly declined blood glucose levels compared to the negative and positive control group (p = 0,033 and p=0,032, respectively). Conclusion: There is a significant effect of radish leaves ethanol extract on blood glucose levels in streptozotocin-nicotinamide-induced diabetic rats with the optimal therapeutic effect at a concentration of 50%.

Keywords: blood glucose levels, medicinal plant, radish leaves, type-2 diabetes mellitus

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Authors: Pablo González Álvarez, Anna Vinaixa Vergés, Paula Sol Ventura, Paula Fernández, Mercè Redorta, Gemma Ginovart Galiana, Maria Méndez Hernández

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Context: The use of music therapy is gaining popularity worldwide, and it has shown positive effects in neonatology. Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol has recently established a music therapy unit and initiated a project in their neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Research Aim: The aim of this study is to measure the effect of a music therapy intervention in the NICU of Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol in Spain. Methodology: The study will be an observational analytical case-control study. All newborns admitted to the neonatology unit, both term and preterm, and their parents will be offered a session of music therapy. Data will be collected from families who receive at least two music therapy sessions. Maternal and paternal anxiety levels will be measured through a pre- and post-intervention test. Findings: The study aims to demonstrate the benefits and acceptance of music therapy by patients, parents, and healthcare workers in the neonatal unit. The findings are expected to show a reduction in maternal and paternal anxiety levels following the music therapy sessions. Theoretical Importance: This study contributes to the growing body of literature on the effectiveness of music therapy in neonatal care. It will provide evidence of the acceptance and potential benefits of music therapy in reducing anxiety levels in both parents and babies in the NICU setting. Data Collection: Data will be collected from families who receive at least two music therapy sessions. This will include pre- and post-intervention test results to measure anxiety levels. Analysis Procedures: The collected data will be analyzed using appropriate statistical methods to determine the impact of music therapy on reducing anxiety levels in parents. Questions Addressed: - What is the effect of music therapy on maternal anxiety levels? - What is the effect of music therapy on paternal anxiety levels? - What is the acceptability and perceived benefits of music therapy among patients and healthcare workers in the NICU? Conclusion: The study aims to provide evidence supporting the value of music therapy in the neonatal intensive care unit. It seeks to demonstrate the positive effect of music therapy on reducing anxiety levels among parents.

Keywords: neonatology, music therapy, neonatal intensive care unit, babies, parents

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Authors: Swati Kapoor, Rajeev Upreti, Monica Mahajan, Abhaya Indrayan, Dinesh Srivastava

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Enteric Fever is caused by gram negative bacilli Salmonella typhi and paratyphi. It is associated with high morbidity and mortality worldwide. Timely initiation of treatment is a crucial step for prevention of any complications. Cultures of body fluids are diagnostic, but not always conclusive or practically feasible in most centers. Moreover, the results of cultures delay the treatment initiation. Serological tests lack diagnostic value. The blood counts can offer a promising option in diagnosis. A retrospective study to find out the relevance of leucopenia and eosinopenia was conducted on 203 culture proven enteric fever patients and 159 culture proven non-enteric fever patients in a tertiary care hospital in New Delhi. The patient details were retrieved from the electronic medical records section of the hospital. Absolute eosinopenia was considered as absolute eosinophil count (AEC) of less than 40/mm³ (normal level: 40-400/mm³) using LH-750 Beckman Coulter Automated machine. Leucopoenia was defined as total leucocyte count (TLC) of less than 4 X 10⁹/l. Blood cultures were done using BacT/ALERT FA plus automated blood culture system before first antibiotic dose was given. Case and control groups were compared using Pearson Chi square test. It was observed that absolute eosinophil count (AEC) of 0-19/mm³ was a significant finding (p < 0.001) in enteric fever patients, whereas leucopenia was not a significant finding (p=0.096). Using Receiving Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves, it was observed that patients with both AEC < 14/mm³ and TCL < 8 x 10⁹/l had 95.6% chance of being diagnosed as enteric fever and only 4.4% chance of being diagnosed as non-enteric fever. This result was highly significant with p < 0.001. This is a very useful association of AEC and TLC found in enteric fever patients of this study which can be used for the early initiation of treatment in clinically suspected enteric fever patients.

Keywords: absolute eosinopenia, absolute eosinophil count, enteric fever, leucopenia, total leucocyte count

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Authors: Yanling Li, Linying Ji, Zita Oravecz, Timothy R. Brick, Michael D. Hunter, Sy-Miin Chow

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Assessing several individuals intensively over time yields intensive longitudinal data (ILD). Even though ILD provide rich information, they also bring other data analytic challenges. One of these is the increased occurrence of missingness with increased study length, possibly under non-ignorable missingness scenarios. Multiple imputation (MI) handles missing data by creating several imputed data sets, and pooling the estimation results across imputed data sets to yield final estimates for inferential purposes. In this article, we introduce dynr.mi(), a function in the R package, Dynamic Modeling in R (dynr). The package dynr provides a suite of fast and accessible functions for estimating and visualizing the results from fitting linear and nonlinear dynamic systems models in discrete as well as continuous time. By integrating the estimation functions in dynr and the MI procedures available from the R package, Multivariate Imputation by Chained Equations (MICE), the dynr.mi() routine is designed to handle possibly non-ignorable missingness in the dependent variables and/or covariates in a user-specified dynamic systems model via MI, with convergence diagnostic check. We utilized dynr.mi() to examine, in the context of a vector autoregressive model, the relationships among individuals’ ambulatory physiological measures, and self-report affect valence and arousal. The results from MI were compared to those from listwise deletion of entries with missingness in the covariates. When we determined the number of iterations based on the convergence diagnostics available from dynr.mi(), differences in the statistical significance of the covariate parameters were observed between the listwise deletion and MI approaches. These results underscore the importance of considering diagnostic information in the implementation of MI procedures.

Keywords: dynamic modeling, missing data, mobility, multiple imputation

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Authors: Manar Aslan, Ayfer Karaaslan, Serap Selçuk

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The research was conducted in order to determine the organizational socialization levels of nurses working in hospitals in the form of a descriptive study. The research population was composed of nurses employed in public and private sector hospitals in the province of Konya with 0-3 years of professional experience in the hospitals (N=1200); and the sample was composed of 495 nurses that accepted to take part in the study voluntarily. Organizational Socialization Scale which was developed by Haueter, Macan and Winter (2003) and whose validity-reliability in Turkish was analyzed by Ataman (2012) was used. Statistical evaluation of data was conducted in SPSS.16 software. The results of the study revealed that the total score taken by nurses at the organizational socialization scale was 262.95; and this was close to the maximum score. Particularly the departmental socialization sub-dimension proved to be higher in comparison to the other two dimensions (organization socialization and task socialization). Statistically meaningful differences were found in the levels of organization socialization in relation to the status of organizational orientation training, level of education and age group.

Keywords: nurses, newcomers, organizational socialization, total score

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Authors: Muhammad Suhail Ibrahim, Ahmad Mujtaba

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Background: The accuracy of the most frequently used tests for diagnosing Helicobacter pylori is always under consideration in clinical settings. A reliable diagnosis is crucial to confirm the success of therapy. Objective: The aim of this research was to study the isolation frequency of H. pylori from patients compatible with gastritis or gastric ulcer and to compare some feasible non-invasive and invasive methods for the diagnosis of infection. Materials and Methods: Ninety-six gastric biopsy and blood samples were obtained with various gastroduodenal symptoms after obtaining informed consent. The biopsies were analyzed and compared using the culture, microscopic examination, histopathology, Rapid urease RUT), serology, biochemical, antibiotic susceptibility test and molecular method. Results: A number of 40 (41.67%) were considered H. pylori positive in both histopathology and RUT. On the other hand, 46 patients were positive against anti IgA and IgG by ELISA. Eighteen biopsies were positive according to the culture test. This was further confirmed by endoscopic examination, urease, catalase and oxidase tests. A high percentage of resistance to polymyxin B, amoxicillin, and kanamycin was observed (100, 88.89, and 77.78%, respectively). A gene (Cag A) was also detected by using molecular technique which appeared positive in 16 patients. The sensitivity/specificity (%) of diagnostic method was 95/77 for histology, 100/83.5 for rapid urease, 85.7/90 for gram staining, 100/66.6 for IgG serology, 100/79.5 for IgA serology, 100/75.0 for PCR, 100/79.04 for combination of RUT and IgG serology and 100/92.4 for combination of RUT, gram staining and IgG serology. Conclusion: In view of the result obtained, PCR appeared to be the most reliable test. However, higher sensitivity and specificity were also recorded for other tests. So, for more accurate results, it is advisable not to rely solely on a single method for detection.

Keywords: helicobacter pylori, isolation, detection, culture, urease, polymerase chain reaction, antibiotic susceptibility test, dyspeptic patients

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Authors: S. Bagur, S. Verger, B. Mut

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Early childhood intervention (ECI) is understood as the set of interventions aimed at the child population with developmental disorders or disabilities from 0 to 6 years of age, the family, and the environment. Under the principles of family-centred practices, the members of the family nucleus are direct agents of intervention. Thus, the multidisciplinary team of professionals should work to improve family empowerment and the level of parenting skills. The aim of the present study is to analyse descriptively and differentially the level of parenting skills and family empowerment of parents using ECI services during the foster care phase. There were 135 families participating in the study. Three questionnaires were completed. The results show that the employment situation, the age of the child receiving an intervention, and the number of children in the family nucleus or the professional carrying out the intervention are variables that have a differential impact on different items of empowerment and parenting skills. The results are discussed and future lines of research are proposed, with the understanding that the initial analysis of the variables of empowerment and parenting skills may be predictors for the improvement of child development and family well-being. In addition, it is proposed to identify and analyse professional training in order to be able to adapt early care practices without depending on the discipline of the professional of reference.

Keywords: developmental disabilities, early childhood intervention, family empowerment, parenting skills

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Authors: Yulistiani Yulistiani, Zamrotul Izzah, Lintang Bismantara, Wenny Putri Nilamsari, Arif Bachtiar, Budi Suprapti

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Interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) are pro-inflammatory cytokines, which have the protective immune response against Tuberculosis (TB). Indeed, pro-inflammatory cytokines Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigen-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cells and NK cells increase the level of production of IFN-γ, a cytokine critical for augmenting the microbicidal activity of phagocytes. On the other hand, M. tuberculosis reduces the effects of IFN-γ by inhibiting the transcription of IFN-γ- responsive genes and by inducing the secretion of IL-6, which inhibits IFN-γ signaling. Probiotics Lactobacillus sp. and Bifidobacterium sp. were known to increase IFN-γ production in vivo, while vitamin B1, B6, and B12 worked on macrophages and releasing cytokines. Therefore, the present study was to evaluate the effect of probiotics and vitamin B supplement on changes of plasma cytokine levels in active pulmonary TB. From October to November 2016, twelve M. tuberculosis-infected patients starting anti-TB drugs were recruited, then divided into two groups. Seven patients were given a combination of probiotics and vitamin B, while five patients were in the control group. Plasma IFN-γ and IL-6 levels were measured by the ELISA kit before and a month after treatment. IFN-γ levels raised in four patients receiving the supplement (P = 0.743), while IL-6 increased in three patients in this group until day 30 of treatment (P = 0.298). Taken together, these results show the promising effect of probiotics and vitamin B on stimulation of IFN-γ and IL-6 production during intensive therapy of TB.

Keywords: interferon-gamma, interleukin-6, probiotic, tuberculosis

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Authors: Zulfa D. Putri, Jumayanti Jumayanti, Hatiefah T. I. Melati, Kiki Indriati, Farah U. Mauhibah

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Momordica charantia is a food that is often used for nutrition therapy for patients with Diabetes Mellitus (DM) because of its effect as antihiperglicemia. However, the bitter taste of Momordica charantia may be an obstacle to consume. Some people remove the bitter taste of this by boiling it with salt water. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of Momordica charantia boiling with salt water in lowering blood glucose levels. This study is a quasi-experimental study with pre-post test with control group design. The research sample consisted of 25 rats Sprague-Dawley were divided into 5 groups: Control group of healthy, control group of DM, control group of DM with the addition of Momordica charantia are boiled by salt for 3 minutes, 6 minutes, and 9 minutes. Blood glucose levels were measured after 4 weeks using a spectrophotometer. These results indicate that there is the effect of bitter taste from Momordica charantia in lowering blood glucose levels in rats significantly. The conclusion of this study is giving a Momordica charantia juice in Sprague-Dawley rats that induced by alloxan has meaningful statistically proven by One Way ANOVA test (p = 0.00) in lowering blood glucose levels of rats.

Keywords: antihiperglicemia, diabetes mellitus, momordica charantia, salt

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Authors: Mohamed Aniss El-Gamal

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For decades, the Global South has been facing many challenges in the fields of heritage conservation and local development. These challenges continue to increase due to rapid urbanization in historical cities, thus resulting in complicated juxtaposed contexts of heritage resources and deteriorated dwellings, where slum areas are dotted with heritage structures. While the majority of cases show the incapacity of national and local governments to deal with such contexts, few others managed to demonstrate how different levels of government can play complementary roles in the cooperation with local and international institutions as well as involving local community to achieve an integrated strategy and overcome the challenge. This paper discusses heritage conservation and local development strategies in reference to a number of case studies in cities of the Global south, i.e. Porto Alegre, Agra, Cairo and Mumbai. It further investigates main key aspects of success and failure through cross case studies analysis (Matrix). This study could help create a delineation of an integrated strategy for undertaking future interventions in similar contexts. Integrated strategies are needed to overcome the gap between heritage conservation and local development, maintaining the value of heritage structures and ensuring the quality of life for communities residing in its surroundings.

Keywords: heritage conservation, local development, the global south, regional development

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Authors: A. Rahim Baharudin, Nor Arinee binti Mat Saaud, Muhammad Afiq Azman, Farah Adiba A. Sani

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Objectives: This paper shares the case study on the engineering analysis, data analysis, and real-time data comparison for qualifying the stand wires' minimum breaking load and safe working load upon loadout operation for a new project and, at the same time, eliminate the risk due to discrepancies and unalignment of COMPANY Technical Standards to Industry Standards and Practices. This paper demonstrates “Lean Construction” for COMPANY’s Project by sustaining fit-for-purpose Technical Requirements of Loadout Strand Wire Factor of Safety (F.S). The case study utilizes historical engineering data from a few loadout operations by skidding methods from different projects. It is also demonstrating and qualifying the skidding wires' minimum breaking load and safe working load used for loadout operation for substructure and other facilities for the future. Methods: Engineering analysis and comparison of data were taken as referred to the international standard and internal COMPANY standard requirements. Data was taken from nine (9) previous projects for both topsides and jacket facilities executed at the several local fabrication yards where load out was conducted by three (3) different service providers with emphasis on four (4) basic elements: i) Industry Standards for Loadout Engineering and Operation Reference: COMPANY internal standard was referred to superseded documents of DNV-OS-H201 and DNV/GL 0013/ND. DNV/GL 0013/ND and DNVGL-ST-N001 do not mention any requirements of Strand Wire F.S of 4.0 for Skidding / Pulling Operations. ii) Reference to past Loadout Engineering and Execution Package: Reference was made to projects delivered by three (3) major offshore facilities operators. Strand Wire F.S observed ranges from 2.0 MBL (Min) to 2.5 MBL (Max). No Loadout Operation using the requirements of 4.0 MBL was sighted from the reference. iii) Strand Jack Equipment Manufacturer Datasheet Reference: Referring to Strand Jack Equipment Manufactured Datasheet by different loadout service providers, it is shown that the Designed F.S for the equipment is also ranging between 2.0 ~ 2.5. Eight (8) Strand Jack Datasheet Model was referred to, ranging from 15 Mt to 850 Mt Capacity; however, there are NO observations of designed F.S 4.0 sighted. iv) Site Monitoring on Actual Loadout Data and Parameter: Max Load on Strand Wire was captured during 2nd Breakout, which is during Static Condition of 12.9 MT / Strand Wire (67.9% Utilization). Max Load on Strand Wire for Dynamic Conditions during Step 8 and Step 12 is 9.4 Mt / Strand Wire (49.5% Utilization). Conclusion: This analysis and study demonstrated the adequacy of strand wires supplied by the service provider were technically sufficient in terms of strength, and via engineering analysis conducted, the minimum breaking load and safe working load utilized and calculated for the projects were satisfied and operated safely for the projects. It is recommended from this study that COMPANY’s technical requirements are to be revised for future projects’ utilization.

Keywords: construction, load out, minimum breaking load, safe working load, strand jacking, skidding

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Authors: Ali Amiri, Arash Esfandiari, Elham Zarenezhad

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We report here an efficient and rapid method for the preparation of 3,4-dihydro-1H-quinoxalin-2-ones and 1H‑quinolin-2-ones that involves grinding of o-, m-, or p‑phenylenediamine and three dialkyl acetylenedicarboxylates using a pestle and mortar. This solvent-free approach requires only a few minutes of reaction time. This type of reaction is expected to be the most economical method since neither catalyst nor solvent is used. Finally, all synthesised compounds were screened for antimicrobial activity against two Gram-positive bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa PTCC 1077, Escherichia coli PTCC1330) and two Gram-negative bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus PTCC 1133, Bacillus cereus PTCC 1015) and their activity. Compared with gentamycin and ampicillin as reference drugs for Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the synthesised compounds and reference drugs were determined by the microdilution method. Good antibacterial activity was observed for 3,4-dihydro-1H-quinoxalin-2-ones against all species of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, and1H‑quinolin-2-ones showed good antibacterial activity against two Gram-positive bacteria.

Keywords: quinolin, quinoxalin, anti-bacterial activity, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC)

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Authors: Kuei-Yu Chien, Nai-Wen Kan, Wan-Chun Wu, Guo-Dong Ma, Shu-Chen Chen

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Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the responses of systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), heart rate (HR), rating of perceived exertion (RPE) and lactate following continued high-intensity interval exercise in water and on land. The results of studies can be an exercise program design reference for health care and fitness professionals. Method: A total of 20 volunteer postmenopausal women was included in this study. The inclusion criteria were: duration of menopause > 1 year; and sedentary lifestyle, defined as engaging in moderate-intensity exercise less than three times per week, or less than 20 minutes per day. Participants need to visit experimental place three times. The first time visiting, body composition was performed and participant filled out the questionnaire. Participants were assigned randomly to the exercise environment (water or land) in second and third time visiting. Water exercise testing was under water of trochanter level. In continuing jump testing, each movement consisted 10-second maximum volunteer jump for two sets. 50% heart rate reserve dynamic resting (walking or running) for one minute was within each set. SBP, DBP, HR, RPE of whole body/thigh (RPEW/RPET) and lactate were performed at pre and post testing. HR, RPEW, and RPET were monitored after 1, 2, and 10 min of exercise testing. SBP and DBP were performed after 10 and 30 min of exercise testing. Results: The responses of SBP and DBP after exercise testing in water were higher than those on land. Lactate levels after exercise testing in water were lower than those on land. The responses of RPET were lower than those on land post exercise 1 and 2 minutes. The heart rate recovery in water was faster than those on land at post exercise 5 minutes. Conclusion: This study showed water interval jump exercise induces higher cardiovascular responses with lower RPE responses and lactate levels than on-land jumps exercise in postmenopausal women. Fatigue is one of the major reasons to obstruct exercise behavior. Jump exercise could enhance cardiorespiratory fitness, the lower-extremity power, strength, and bone mass. There are several health benefits to the middle to older adults. This study showed that water interval jumping could be more relaxed and not tried to reach the same land-based cardiorespiratory exercise intensity.

Keywords: interval exercise, power, recovery, fatigue

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Authors: Ashit Syngle, Inderjit Verma, Pawan Krishan

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Objective: Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) have reparative potential in overcoming the endothelial dysfunction and reducing cardiovascular risk. EPC depletion has been demonstrated in the setting of established atherosclerotic diseases. With this background, we evaluated whether reduced EPCs population are associated with endothelial dysfunction, subclinical atherosclerosis and inflammatory markers in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients without any known traditional cardiovascular risk factor in AS patients. Methods: Levels of circulating EPCs (CD34+/CD133+), brachial artery flow-mediated dilatation, carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and inflammatory markers i.e erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), tissue necrosis factor (TNF)–α, interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1 were assessed in 30 AS patients (mean age33.41 ± 10.25; 11 female and 19 male) who fulfilled the modified New York diagnostic criteria with 25 healthy volunteers (mean age 29.36± 8.64; 9 female and 16 male) matched for age and sex. Results: EPCs (CD34+/CD133+) cells were significantly (0.020 ± 0.001% versus 0.040 ± 0.010%, p<0.001) reduced in patients with AS compared to healthy controls. Endothelial function (7.35 ± 2.54 versus 10.27 ±1.73, p=0.002), CIMT (0.63 ± 0.01 versus 0.35 ± 0.02, p < 0.001) and inflammatory markers were also significantly (p < 0.01) altered as compared to healthy controls. Specifically, CD34+CD133+cells were inversely multivariate correlated with CRP and TNF-α and endothelial dysfunction was positively correlated with reduced number of EPC. Conclusion: Depletion of EPCs population is an independent predictor of endothelial dysfunction and early atherosclerosis in AS patients and may provide additional information beyond conventional risk factors and inflammatory markers.

Keywords: endothelial progenitor cells, atherosclerosis, ankylosing spondylitis, cardiovascular

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Authors: Magdalena B. Kaziuk, Waldemar Kosiba, Marek J. Kuzniewski

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Introduction: Adipose tissue is a typical place for storage water-insoluble toxins in the body. It's connective tissue, where the intercellular substance consist of fat, which level in people with low physical activity should be 18-25% for women and 13-18% for men. Due to the fat distribution in the body we distinquish two types of obesity: android (visceral, abdominal) and gynoidal (gluteal-femoral, peripheral). Abdominal obesity increases the risk of complications of the cardiovascular system diseases, and impaired renal and liver function. Through the influence on disorders of metabolism, lipid metabolism, diabetes and hypertension, leading to emergence of the metabolic syndrome. So thus, obesity will especially overload kidney function in patients after transplantation. Aim: An attempt was made to estimate the impact of amount fat tissue on transplanted kidney function and excretory function of the liver in patients after Ktx. Material and Methods: The study included 108 patients (50 females, 58 male, age 46.5 +/- 12.9 years) with active kidney transplant after more than 3 months from the transplantation. An analysis of body composition was done by using electrical bioimpedance (BIA) and anthropometric measurements. Estimated basal metabolic rate (BMR), muscle mass, total body water content and the amount of body fat. Information about physical activity were obtained during clinical examination. Nutritional status, and type of obesity were determined by using indicators: Waist to Height Ratio (WHR) and Waist to Hip Ratio (WHR). Excretory functions of the transplanted kidney was rated by calculating the estimated renal glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) using the MDRD formula. Liver function was rated by total bilirubin and alanine aminotransferase levels ALT concentration in serum. In our patients haemolitic uremic syndrome (HUS) was excluded. Results: In 19.44% of patients had underweight, 22.37% of the respondents were with normal weight, 11.11% had overweight, and the rest were with obese (49.08%). People with android stature have a lower eGFR compared with those with the gynoidal stature (p = 0.004). All patients with obesity had higher amount of body fat from a few to several percent. The higher amount of body fat percentage, the lower eGFR had patients (p <0.001). Elevated ALT levels significantly correlated with a high fat content (p <0.02). Conclusion: Increased amount of body fat, particularly in the case of android obesity can be a predictor of kidney and liver damage. Due to that obese patients should have more frequent control of diagnostic functions of these organs and the intensive dietary proceedings, pharmacological and regular physical activity adapted to the current physical condition of patients after transplantation.

Keywords: obesity, body fat, kidney transplantation, glomerular filtration rate, liver function

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Authors: Sujata Sethi, Pawan Kumar, Sameer Aggarwal

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Depression and anxiety are of significant concern in youth with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and these are correlated with glycemic control in multiple ways. The extent of depression and anxiety in children with T1DM remains poorly studied in India. The index study aimed to find the prevalence of depression and anxiety and their correlation with HbA1c (glycated hemoglobin) levels in children with T1DM. Material and methods: This study was a cross-sectional study carried out on a purposive sample of 45 children with T1DM. Depressive symptoms were assessed using Children’s Depression Rating Scale-Revised (CDRS-R) and anxiety symptoms were assessed using Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale (SCAS). Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels of all the participants were recorded. Results: 43 out of 45 children were analyzed as HbA1c status for two was not known. 48.8% were females. Mean age was 12.95+2.04. The average duration of diabetes was 3.63+1.82. Mean CDRS-R score was 41.6+12.25 and mean SCAS score was 33.07+12.29. Mean recording of HbA1c level was 7.90+1.51. 27 (62.8%) out of 43 participants had abnormal scores on CDRS-R and 24 (55.8%) out of 43 had abnormal scores on SCAS. The correlation coefficient between HbA1c levels and the CDRS-R score came out to be 0.57 and between HbA1c and SCAS, it was 0.53. Both correlations were significant with the p-value of < 0.02. Conclusion: Children with T1DM have high co-morbidity of depression and anxiety which is significantly correlated with the HbA1c levels. Thus, it becomes important to screen the patients for depression and anxiety for better outcomes.

Keywords: anxiety, depression, HbA1c, T1DM

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Authors: Sabika Rafiq, Rubaida Mehmood, Sajid Hussain, Atia Iqbal

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Background and objectives: The pathogenesis of liver function abnormalities and cardiac dysfunction in hyperthyroid patients after I131 treatment is still unclear. This study aimed to determine the effects of radioiodine I131 on liver function parameters, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and low-density lipoproteins (LDL) before and after I131 therapy hyperthyroidism patients. Material & Methods: A total of 52 patients of hyperthyroidism recommended for I131were involved in this study with ages ranging from 12–65 years (mean age=38.6±14.8 & BMI=11.5±3.7). The significance of the differences between the results of 1st, 2nd and 3rd-time serum analysis was assessed by unpaired student’s t-test. Associations between the parameters were assessed by Spearman correlation analysis. Results: Significant variations were observed for thyroid profile free FT3 (p=0.04), FT4 (p=0.01), TSH (p=0.005) during the follow-up treatment. Before taking I131 (serum analyzed at 1st time), negative correlation of FT3 with AST (r=-0.458, p=0.032) and LDL (r=-0.454, p=0.039) were observed. During 2nd time (after stopping carbimazole), no correlation was assessed. Two months after the administration of I131 drops, a significant negative association of FT3 (r=-0.62, p=0.04) and FT4(r=-0.61, p=0.02) with ALB were observed. FT3(r=-0.82, p=0.00) & FT4 (r=-0.71, p=0.00) also showed negative correlation with LDL after I131 therapy. Whereas TSH showed significant positive association with ALB (r=0.61, p=0.01) and LDL (r=0.70, p=0.00) respectively. Conclusion: Current findings suggested that the association of TFTs with biochemical parameters in patients with goiter recommended for iodine therapy is an important diagnostic and therapeutic tool. The significant changes increased in transaminases and low-density lipoprotein levels after taking I131drops are alarming signs for heart and liver function abnormalities and warrant physicians' attention on an urgent basis.

Keywords: hyperthyroidism, carbimazole, radioiodine I131, liver functions, low-density lipoprotein

Procedia PDF Downloads 142

Authors: Rosa S. Wong, Keith T.S. Tung, H.W. Tsang, Frederick K. Ho, Patrick Ip

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Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention and hyperactive-impulsive behavior. Evidence shows that ADHD and mood problems such as depression and anxiety often co-occur and yet not everyone with ADHD reported elevated emotional problems. Given that cholesterol is essential for healthy brain development including the regions governing emotion regulation, reports found lower cholesterol levels in patients with major depressive disorder and those with suicide attempt behavior compared to healthy subjects. This study explored whether ADHD adolescents experienced more emotional problems and whether emotional problems correlated with cholesterol levels in these adolescents. This study used a portion of data from the longitudinal cohort study which was designed to investigate the long-term impact of family socioeconomic status on child development. In 2018/19, parents of 300 adolescents (average age: 12.57+/-0.49 years) were asked to rate their children’s emotional problems and report whether their children had doctor-diagnosed psychiatric diseases. We further collected blood samples from 263 children to study their lipid profile (total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol). Regression analyses were performed to test the relationships between variables of interest. Among 300 children, 27 (9%) had ADHD diagnosis. Analysis based on overall sample found no association between ADHD and emotional problems, but when investigating the relationship by gender, there was a significant interaction effect of ADHD and gender on emotional problems (p=0.037), with ADHD males displaying more emotional problems than ADHD females. Further analyses based on 263 children (21 with ADHD diagnosis) found significant interaction effect of ADHD and gender on total cholesterol (p=0.038) and low LDL-cholesterol levels (p=0.013) after adjusting for the child’s physical disease history. Specifically, ADHD males had significantly lower total cholesterol and low lipoprotein-cholesterol levels than ADHD females. In ADHD males, more emotional problems were associated with lower LDL-cholesterol levels (B = -4.26, 95%CI (-7.46, -1.07), p=0.013). We found preliminary support for the association between more emotional problems and lower cholesterol levels in ADHD children, especially among males. Although larger prospective studies are needed to substantiate these claims, the evidence highlights the importance of healthy lifestyle to keep cholesterol levels in normal range which can have positive effects on physical and mental health.

Keywords: attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, cholesterol, emotional problems, adolescents

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Authors: Endang Purwati, Ely Vebriyanti, R. Puji Hartini, Hendri Purwanto

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This study aimed to determine the effect of addition cinnamon extract (Cinnamomum burmannii) in making goat milk yogurt product isolates dadih (Pediococcus pentosaceus) to antioxidant activity and cholesterol levels. The method of research was the experimental method by using a Randomized Block Design (RBD), which consists of 5 treatments with 4 groups as replication. Treatment in this study was used of cinnamon extract as A (0%), B (1%), C (2%), D (3%), E (4%) in a goat’s milk yoghurt. This study was used 4200 ml of Peranakan Etawa goat’s milk and 80 ml of cinnamon extract. The variable analyzed were water content, pH value, total lactic acid bacterial colonies, antioxidant activity and cholesterol levels. The average water content ranged from 81.2-85.56%. Mean pH values rang between 4.74–4.30. Mean total lactic acid bacteria colonies ranged from 3.87 x 10⁸ - 7.95 x 10⁸ CFU/ml. The average of the antioxidant activity ranged between 10.98%-27.88%. Average of cholesterol levels ranged from 14.0 mg/ml–17.5 mg/ml. The results showed that the addition of cinnamon extract in making goat milk yoghurt product isolates dadih (Pediococcus pentosaceus) significantly different (P < 0.05) to water content, pH value, total lactic acid bacterial colonies, antioxidant activity and cholesterol levels. In conclusion, the study shows that using of cinnamon extract 4% is the best in making goat milk yoghurt.

Keywords: antioxidant, cholesterol, cinnamon, Pediococcus pentosaceus, yoghurt

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Authors: Edward Hwang

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The efficiency of public policies depends on customer's satisfaction, and the change directions of public policies hinge on customer's assessment; i.e., the performance of public policies in governments is decided by the citizen's administrative satisfaction! The governments in all levels must heave their efficiency and effectiveness of public services to meet the people's substantially multiple needs in order to make citizens trust the governmental operation styles. To pursue the societal equality and justice, governments should treat people equally and provide more services for the disadvantages. The recent Dapu protest event involves Miaoli county Magistrate Liu cheng-hung who arbitrarily demolished houses and destroyed farmlands, and it shifts his popularity into disaffection. Liu case tells us that the political events are lethal to politicians; it cut almost 20% satisfaction degree for Magistrate Liu and hurt KMT support levels nationally. In terms of administrative satisfaction levels, political factors do matter, especially for the derogated events.

Keywords: local politics, administrative satisfaction, Taiwan, customer satisfaction

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Authors: M. Irfan Fareed, Muhammad Tahir, Alvina Gul Kazi

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Castor bean (Ricinus communis; family Euphorbiaceae) is cultivated for the production of oil and as an ornamental plant throughout tropical regions. Leaf samples from castor bean plants with leaf curl and vein thickening were collected from areas around Okara (Pakistan) in 2011. PCR amplification using diagnostic primers showed the presence of a begomovirus and subsequently the specific pair (BurNF 5’- CCATGGTTGTGGCAGTTGATTGACAGATAC-3’, BurNR 5’- CCATGGATTCACGCACAGGGGAACCC-3’) was used to amplify and clone the whole genome of the virus. The complete nucleotide sequence was determined to be 2,759 nt (accession No. HE985227). Alignments showed the highest levels of nucleotide sequence identity (98.8%) with Cotton leaf curl Burewala virus (CLCuBuV; accession No. JF416947) No. JF416947). The virus in castor beans lacks on intact C2 gene, as is typical of CLCuBuV in cotton. An amplification product of ca. 1.4 kb was obtained in PCR with primers for betasatellites and the complete nucleotide sequence of a clone was determined to be 1373 nt (HE985228). The sequence showed 96.3% nucleotide sequence identity to the recombinant Cotton leaf curl Multan betasatellite (CLCuMB; JF502389). This is the first report of CLCuBuV and its betasatellite infecting castor bean, showing this plant species as an alternate host of the virus. Already many alternate host have been reported from different alternate host like tobacco, tomato, hibiscus, okra, ageratum, Digera arvensis, habiscus, Papaya and now in Ricinus communis. So, it is suggested that these alternate hosts should be avoided to grow near cotton growing regions.

Keywords: Ricinus communis, begomovirus, betasatellite, agriculture

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Authors: Basant Singh Sikarwar, Mukesh Roy, Ayush Goyal, Priya Ranjan

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This work combines two bodies of knowledge which includes biomedical basis of blood stain formation and fluid communities’ wisdom that such formation of blood stain depends heavily on physical properties. Moreover biomedical research tells that different patterns in stains of blood are robust indicator of blood donor’s health or lack thereof. Based on these valuable insights an innovative screening tool is proposed which can act as an aide in the diagnosis of diseases such Anemia, Hyperlipidaemia, Tuberculosis, Blood cancer, Leukemia, Malaria etc., with enhanced confidence in the proposed analysis. To realize this powerful technique, simple, robust and low-cost micro-fluidic devices, a micro-capillary viscometer and a pendant drop tensiometer are designed and proposed to be fabricated to measure the viscosity, surface tension and wettability of various blood samples. Once prognosis and diagnosis data has been generated, automated linear and nonlinear classifiers have been applied into the automated reasoning and presentation of results. A support vector machine (SVM) classifies data on a linear fashion. Discriminant analysis and nonlinear embedding’s are coupled with nonlinear manifold detection in data and detected decisions are made accordingly. In this way, physical properties can be used, using linear and non-linear classification techniques, for screening of various diseases in humans and cattle. Experiments are carried out to validate the physical properties measurement devices. This framework can be further developed towards a real life portable disease screening cum diagnostics tool. Small-scale production of screening cum diagnostic devices is proposed to carry out independent test.

Keywords: blood, physical properties, diagnostic, nonlinear, classifier, device, surface tension, viscosity, wettability

Procedia PDF Downloads 363

Authors: Sameer A. Pathan, Biswadev Mitra, Salman Mirza, Umais Momin, Zahoor Ahmed, Lubna G. Andraous, Dharmesh Shukla, Mohammed Y. Shariff, Magid M. Makki, Tinsy T. George, Saad S. Khan, Stephen H. Thomas, Peter A. Cameron

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Study objective: Emergency physician’s (EP) ability to identify hydronephrosis on point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) has been assessed in the past using CT scan as the reference standard. We aimed to assess EP interpretation of POCUS to identify and grade the hydronephrosis in a direct comparison with the consensus-interpretation of POCUS by radiologists, and also to compare the EP and radiologist performance using CT scan as the criterion standard. Methods: Using data from a POCUS databank, a prospective interpretation study was conducted at an urban academic emergency department. All POCUS exams were performed on patients presenting with renal colic to the ED. Institutional approval was obtained for conducting this study. All the analyses were performed using Stata MP 14.0 (Stata Corp, College Station, Texas). Results: A total of 651 patients were included, with paired sets of renal POCUS video clips and the CT scan performed at the same ED visit. Hydronephrosis was reported in 69.6% of POCUS exams by radiologists and 72.7% of CT scans (p=0.22). The κ for consensus interpretation of POCUS between the radiologists to detect hydronephrosis was 0.77 (0.72 to 0.82) and weighted κ for grading the hydronephrosis was 0.82 (0.72 to 0.90), interpreted as good to very good. Using CT scan findings as the criterion standard, Eps had an overall sensitivity of 81.1% (95% CI: 79.6% to 82.5%), specificity of 59.4% (95% CI: 56.4% to 62.5%), PPV of 84.3% (95% CI: 82.9% to 85.7%), and NPV of 53.8% (95% CI: 50.8% to 56.7%); compared to radiologist sensitivity of 85.0% (95% CI: 82.5% to 87.2%), specificity of 79.7% (95% CI: 75.1% to 83.7%), PPV of 91.8% (95% CI: 89.8% to 93.5%), and NPV of 66.5% (95% CI: 61.8% to 71.0%). Testing for a report of moderate or high degree of hydronephrosis, specificity of EP was 94.6% (95% CI: 93.7% to 95.4%) and to 99.2% (95% CI: 98.9% to 99.5%) for identifying severe hydronephrosis alone. Conclusion: EP POCUS interpretations were comparable to the radiologists for identifying moderate to severe hydronephrosis using CT scan results as the criterion standard. Among patients with moderate or high pre-test probability of ureteric calculi, as calculated by the STONE-score, the presence of moderate to severe (+LR 6.3 and –LR 0.69) or severe hydronephrosis (+LR 54.4 and –LR 0.57) was highly diagnostic of the stone disease. Low dose CT is indicated in such patients for evaluation of stone size and location.

Keywords: renal colic, point-of-care, ultrasound, bedside, emergency physician

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Authors: Mohammad Alfaifi

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Organophosphates are among the most widely used synthetic insect pesticides. The widespread use of organophosphates has stimulated research into the possible existence of effects related with their reproductive toxic activity. The present study aimed to assess the effects of diazinon (DIZ) on male reproductive system. DIZ at the dose levels of 1.5, 3.0 and 9.0 mg/kg b. wt./day was administered orally to male rats of Wistar strain for 30 days to evaluate the toxic alterations in testicular histology, biochemistry, sperm dynamics, and testosterone levels. The body weight of animals did not show any significant changes, however, a significant reduction was observed in testes weight. DIZ also brought about marked reduction in epididymal and testicular sperm counts in exposed males and a decrease in serum testosterone concentration. Histopathological examination of testes showed mild to severe degenerative changes in seminiferous tubules at various dose levels. Fertility test showed 79% negative results. All these toxic effects are moderate at low doses and become severe at higher dose levels. From the results of the present study it is concluded that DIZ induces severe testicular damage and results in reduction in sperm count and thus affect fertility. Small changes in sperm counts are known to have adverse affects on human fertility. Therefore, application of such insecticide should be limited to a designed programme.

Keywords: reproductive toxicity, fertility, diazinon, sperm count

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Authors: Sevil Arabaci Tamer, Gonul Gurol, Ibrahim Tekeoglu, Halil Harman, Ihsan Hakki Ciftci

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Neuroserpin (NSP) is a serine protease inhibitor and member of the serpin family. It is expressed in developing and adult nervous systems, and acts as an inhibitor of protease tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) and a regulator of neuronal growth and plasticity. Also NSP displays anti-inflammatory activity. But, its role in rheumatoid arthritis had never been studied before. So, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of neuroserpin in patients with RA. A total of 50 frozen (-20 ºC) serum samples 40 of them belonged to patients with RA, and 10 sample belonged to healthy subjects, were enrolled prospectively. We used DAS-28 to evaluate disease activity. The following clinical data gathered from the original patients' charts. Serum neuroserpin levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Our preliminary study results demonstrate, for the first time, that NSP levels are significantly different in RA patients relative to healthy subjects (P = 0.014). So, NSP contribute to pathological condition of RA. Thus, we believe that serum NSP levels can be as a marker in patients with RA. However other inflammatory diseases should be further investigated.

Keywords: neuroserpin, rheumatoid arthritis, tPA, tPA inhibitor

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