Factors affecting the severity of pedestrian traffic crashes

Background: Considering the importance of pedestrian traffic crashes and the role of environmental and demographic factors in the severity of these crashes, this article aimed to review the published evidence and synthesize the results of related studies to determine any associations between demographic and environmental factors and the severity of pedestrian-vehicle crashes. Methods: All epidemiological studies published from 1970 to 2019 were searched in international electronic databases (PubMed Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, Embase, ScienceDirect, and Ovid) and reference lists of the identified articles were also searched. Studies were included if they investigated the severity of pedestrian-vehicle crashes as outcome, measured any environmental and demographic factors for pedestrian-vehicular crashes as exposure, designed observational, and if they were written in all languages. Quality of included studies was evaluated using the strengthening the reporting of observational studies in epidemiology checklist for observational studies. Results: We found 3126 references among which 24 studies were included in this review. All retrieved studies were conducted between 1990 and 2019 and had a cross-sectional design. In most of these studies, the associations between environmental and demographic variables such as vehicle speed or speed limits, pedestrian age, lighting, type of road, type of vehicle, and alcohol intake with the severity of pedestrian traffic crashes were examined. Conclusion: This study showed that few studies were conducted in this area; in fact, most of the studies were carried out in metropolises of developed countries. As a result, studies which provide strong causal inferences by focusing on high-risk groups and a higher level of evidence such as cohort and case-control ones are needed in developing countries

Fully robotic social environment for teaching and practicing affective interaction: Case of teaching emotion recognition skills to children with autism spectrum disorder, a pilot study

21st century brought along a considerable decrease in social interactions, due to the newly emerged lifestyle around the world, which became more noticeable recently of the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, children with autism spectrum disorder have further complications regarding their social interactions with other humans. In this paper, a fully Robotic Social Environment (RSE), designed to simulate the needed social environment for children, especially those with autism is described. An RSE can be used to simulate many social situations, such as affective interpersonal interactions, in which observational learning can take place. In order to investigate the effectiveness of the proposed RSE, it has been tested on a group of children with autism, who had difficulties in emotion recognition, which in turn, can influence social interaction. An A-B-A single case study was designed to show how RSE can help children with autism recognize four basic facial expressions, i.e., happiness, sadness, anger, and fear, through observing the social interactions of two robots speaking about these facial expressions. The results showed that the emotion recognition skills of the participating children were improved. Furthermore, the results showed that the children could maintain and generalize their emotion recognition skills after the intervention period. In conclusion, the study shows that the proposed RSE, along with other rehabilitation methods, can be effective in improving the emotion recognition skills of children with autism and preparing them to enter human social environments

Evaluation of the Relationship between Troponin T Level and Prognosis of Preterm Neonates Admitted to Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Fatemieh Hospital in Hamadan

Background and Objective: Due to the prevalence of myocardial dysfunction and Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA) in a large number of preterm neonates, the prognosis of these infants is highly related to their early diagnosis and treatment. In this regard, the present study aimed to determine the relationship between troponin T level and the prognosis of premature neonates admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Fatemieh Hospital in Hamadan. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a certain number of infants who underwent serum levels of troponin T from 72 hours to one week after birth were assessed for demographic information, length of hospital stay, complications during hospitalization, acidosis, inotropic agents, recovery, and mortality, as well as their relationship with troponin level. Results: Out of 61 neonates, 22 patients had large PDA with a troponin level of 436±50.2 pg/ml, 14 patients had a small PDA with a troponin level of 260.5±89.8 pg/ml, and 25 patients were without PDA with a troponin level of 277.1±229.7 pg /ml (P = 0.203). There was no statistically significant difference between the three groups. The mean levels of troponin were 423±521 and 274±154 pg/ml in deceased and surviving neonates, respectively (P=0.194). Inotropic was significantly higher in deceased patients (P=0.003), and troponin T level was statistically significant (P=0.008). The relationship between troponin level and severe acidosis (P=0.051) was not significant, with a small difference that could be clinically valuable. Conclusion: Serum troponin T level was higher in preterm neonates with large PDA and deceased ones who received inotropic agents due to hemodynamic disorders and severe acidosis

Small bowel hemangioma causing perforation

Background: Benign vascular tumors that can be found anywhere in the body are defined as hemangiomas The most common clinical manifestation is gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB). Other possible signs and symptoms could be Iron deficiency anemia, intestinal obstruction, abdominal pain, intramural hematoma, perforation, platelet sequestration, intussusception, or perforation. The main diagnostic methods are Computed tomography (CT) and contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT), and capsule endoscopy is helpful too. The therapeutic plan depends on the disease development and the condition of the patient, but, surgical resection is the choice for most patients. Case presentation: A 6-year-old girl with the chief complaint of acute abdominal pain that was accompanied by loss of appetite, nausea, and vomiting was admitted. There was no sign of GIB. The first diagnosis of the patient was perforation of the intestinal wall. In the laparotomy operation, a perforation was seen and resection and anastomosis were done. The pathological studies revealed the signs of hemorrhage of hemangioma and so hemorrhagic necrosis and perforation due to it. Conclusion: Although small intestinal hemangiomas are rare and, in their complication, perforation is unusual, they should be considered in the differential diagnosis of acute abdominal pain

ZnO-SrAl2O4:Eu Nanocomposite-Based Optical Sensors for Luminescence Thermometry

Conventional thermometers fail to operate in a variety of medical procedures due to the harsh and sensitive environments required for such applications, and therefore, the development of optical fiber thermometers has gained significant attention. In this study, a ZnO-SrAl2O4:Eu (ZnO-SAO:Eu) nanocomposite has been synthesized by using a CO2 laser, which showed enhanced optical properties and a dynamic range in comparison with the crystalline ones. XRD, EDAX, SEM, and PL spectroscopy investigated the crystalline and optical properties of precursors, and the final nanostructure, and the findings were in agreement with references. Further analysis of the PL spectra in a 0-100 degrees C range suggests that the optical properties of the ZnO-SAO:Eu nanocomposite show a linear behavior toward temperature alterations. Considering this inter-relation and measuring the decay time for various frequencies helped us calibrate the temperature based on phase angle shift alterations. The curve obtained at 30 Hz frequency exhibits the highest linearity and accuracy (0.33%) due to its relatively high phase shift (60 degrees C) in the studied temperature range. The fabricated sensor exhibited great sensitivity and repeatability while maintaining an unprecedented structure. Finally, the thermometer's applicability for future industries was tested by measuring the interior temperature of a dead muscle tissue as it was being heated by a diode laser and it was accompanied by remarkable results. This achievement could make this device a promising addition to the drug delivery science and industry as it could aid the study and optimization of medications that increase the targeted tissues temperature and therefore can be employed in treating tumors that are formed in organic tissues