Hepatic actinomycosis mimicking an isolated tumor recurrence

Actinomyces species has been described as an opportunistic pathogen, particularly in the oral cavity; however, in rare cases these bacteria can cause actinomycosis which is characterized by formation of abscesses in the mouth, lungs, or gastrointestinal tract

Comparison of levels of von Willebrand factor and ADAMTS13 in Patients of Myocardial Infarction and Healthy Controls

Background: to determine the levels of von Willebrand factor (vWF) and ADAMTS13 in patients of myocardial infarction and healthy controls Methods: In a comparative study, the samples were collected from 45 myocardial infarction patients and 45 age and sex matched healthy controls. Total 5ml blood was collected in tri-sodium citrated vials. The determination of VWF was carried out by chromogenic assay on Stago and ADAMTS13 assay was carried out by standard ELISA kit. The Mann Whitney U test was used to determine the median difference between two groups (patients and control). Results; Patients with MI had higher median plasma level of VWF (161%) as compared to healthy controls (120%). The median plasma level of ADAMTS13 of control and patients was 56.54 U/L and 18.80 U/L respectively. The difference in median plasma levels of VWF & ADAMTS13 between groups was statistically significant (p < 0.001 Conclusion: Plasma VWF and ADAMTS13 had a significant association with MI patients. There exists an inverse correlation between plasma VWF and ADAMTS13 levels in MI patients, but this correlation was very weak in control group

Excess volumes of mixing of some binary aqueous organic mixtures up to 2.2 kbar.

Excess volumes of 2-butanol+water have been determined indirectly from temperatures 5° to 85 C at low pressure. VE for the same system has also been determined directly from 1° to 85°C at pressures up to 2. 2 kbar using a newly developed low-cost high pressure dilatometer. Excess volumes of ethanol +water and butanone+water have directly been determined at 25° and 50°C, and 30°C respectively. All three systems studied exhibit negative volume changes on mixing at and near ambient pressures. The alcohol+water mixtures having very low alcohol concentration show positive volume changes at extreme pressures. A similar tendency is found in butanone+water mixtures. The VE measurements of 2-butanol+water and ethanol+water have been shown to be consistent with whatever reliable volumetric and LLE data is available. Direct VE measurements of butanone+water are not in agreement with the only other available data (not very reliable). The ability of the UNIQUAC equation to describe the volumetric behaviour of 2-butanol+water was tested and as with expressions for excess Gibbs free energy, good VE fit and good phase equilibrium predictions make inconsistent demands on the values of the adjustable parameters. The high pressure dilatometer has also been used to deter mine compressions of pure water, 2-butanol, ethanol and butanone, and the results are found to be in agreement with the reliable available data. The Tait's and Huddleston's equations have been found to represent the compression data well, though the former seems to do it better than does the latter

Excess volumes of mixing of some binary aqueous organic mixtures up to 2.2 kbar.

Excess volumes of 2-butanol+water have been determined indirectly from temperatures 5° to 85 C at low pressure. VE for the same system has also been determined directly from 1° to 85°C at pressures up to 2. 2 kbar using a newly developed low-cost high pressure dilatometer. Excess volumes of ethanol +water and butanone+water have directly been determined at 25° and 50°C, and 30°C respectively. All three systems studied exhibit negative volume changes on mixing at and near ambient pressures. The alcohol+water mixtures having very low alcohol concentration show positive volume changes at extreme pressures. A similar tendency is found in butanone+water mixtures. The VE measurements of 2-butanol+water and ethanol+water have been shown to be consistent with whatever reliable volumetric and LLE data is available. Direct VE measurements of butanone+water are not in agreement with the only other available data (not very reliable). The ability of the UNIQUAC equation to describe the volumetric behaviour of 2-butanol+water was tested and as with expressions for excess Gibbs free energy, good VE fit and good phase equilibrium predictions make inconsistent demands on the values of the adjustable parameters. The high pressure dilatometer has also been used to deter mine compressions of pure water, 2-butanol, ethanol and butanone, and the results are found to be in agreement with the reliable available data. The Tait's and Huddleston's equations have been found to represent the compression data well, though the former seems to do it better than does the latter

A framework using nested partitions algorithm for convergence analysis of population distribution-based methods

Stochastic optimization algorithms such as genetic algorithm (GA), particle swarm optimization (PSO), estimation of distribution algorithms (EDAs), and nested partitions algorithm (NPA) are used in many problems including nonlinear model predictive control and task assignment. Some of these algorithms, however, lack global convergence guarantee such as PSO, or require strict convergence assumptions such as NPA. To enhance these methods in terms of convergence, a common underlying framework towards representing the seemingly unrelated methods is established as the updating of the distribution of the population through iterative sampling, and the methods that fit into this framework are called population distribution-based methods. Global convergence conditions for this framework are innovatively developed by building a shadow NPA structure for the population evolution process. The result is generic and is capable of analyzing convergence of many methods including GA, PSO, EDA, and NPA. It can be further exploited to improve convergence by modifying these methods. The existing and modified variants of these methods are then applied to case studies to show the improvement

Influence of Income Level and Seasons on Quantity and Composition of Municipal Solid Waste: A Case Study of the Capital City of Pakistan

The current study aims to analyze and compare the quantity and composition of municipal solid waste (MSW) at three socio-economic levels of population during all four seasons of the year (spring, summer, monsoon and winter). In this study, 2164.75 kg of MSW was evaluated, from 1260 samples collected from 45 households. The average waste generation was estimated to be 0.6 kg per capita per day. Waste generation rate for high, middle and low income groups was 0.890, 0.612 and 0.346 kg per capita per day, respectively. Nevertheless, season specific analysis indicated waste generation rates of 0.78, 0.58, 0.48 and 0.75 kg per capita per day in spring, summer, monsoon and winter, respectively. A two way ANOVA statistical analysis further illustrated a significant effect (p = 0.00) of economic level and seasons on the amount and composition of waste generated by the community. Moreover, the collected waste was segregated into 42 categories, where the highest was the organic fraction (57%), then diapers (12%), followed by plastic (8%), cardboard (3%) and paper (2%). The amounts of textile, diapers and plastics were highest in the lowest income group, while tetra packs, metal, paper and yard waste were maximum in the high income group. It is concluded that the high income group generated the highest amount of waste and waste generation rate is higher in the seasons of spring and winter compared to the other two seasons

Simulation’s usage in training for dental trauma: An analysis of four splinting methods

Background and Aim: Majority of the dentists gain hands on experience in managing dental traumas after entering into the field practically leading to an overall limited exposure to dental trauma injuries before their graduation time. The present study aimed to assess the dental student’s perception regarding simulation based dental trauma training. Materials and Methods: This comparative cross-sectional study involved 80 dentistry students at a Tertiary Care teaching institute of Lahore, Pakistan. A questionnaire based survey was done on final year dentistry students to answer the questions regarding their experience of simulated trauma splinting. Prior to this simulation-based practice, all participants were given a 60-minute lecture on oral trauma damage, followed by post-training questions. All the students completed simulated treatment using orthodontic wire, twist flex wire, nylon fishing line, and powermesh as splints. The glass ionomer cement and composite resin were bonding materials used. A 5-point Likert scale was used for post-training questions and answers. Results: Out of the 80 dental students, there were 46 (57.5%) male and 34 (42.5%) female students. The incidence of students who agreed and strongly agreed to their learning assisted by simulated trauma practice were 46.3% (n=37) and 33.8% (n=27) respectively.&nbsp