The prevalence of physical and psychological violence during pregnancy in Iran and the world: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background and aims: Violence against women is a public health crisis, because it affects the mother and fetus simultaneously and causes undesirable consequences. This study was performed to determine the prevalence of physical and psychological violence during pregnancy in the world and Iran in systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods: This study was a systematic review and meta-analysis that was conducted on the English and Persian articles published from 1990 up to 2015. In this aim by searching the information at SID, Medlib, Irandoc, Google scholar, Pubmed, ISI, Iranmedex, Scopus and Magiran, using key words the prevalence of physical and psychological violence during pregnancy in the world and Iran were extracted all related articles independently by 2 trained researchers. The results of studies combined using the STATA and Spss20 software. Results: In the initial searching of 276 articles, 46 articles related to Iran with a sample size 40457, 83 articles related to other regions of the world and totally 124 with a sample size 417832 Person relevant articles met inclusion criteria for study. The prevalence of physical violence during pregnancy was estimated in the world 18% (CI95%: 16%-19%) and in Iran 23% (CI95%: 20%-27%) and prevalence of psychological violence during pregnancy were estimated in the world 38% (CI95%:35%-41%) and in Iran 44% (CI95%: 38%-50%). Conclusion: According to the present meta-analysis results, the prevalence of physical and psychological violence during pregnancy in Iran is more than the world. Thus, it is recommended that the relevant authorities by implementation the intervention programs such as the establishment of Prevention Center for Social Damages, implementation the family education programs before marriage and pregnancy prevent of violence during pregnancy

Development of microstrip patch antenna strain sensors for wireless structural health monitoring

Current developments in the design and manufacturing of composite materials along with their superior mechanical characteristics have resulted in the extensive use of these materials in advanced structures for aerospace industry. In recent years, several different attempts have been made to develop Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) systems and, as a result, various SHM techniques have been introduced. Currently, however, none of these techniques are capable of monitoring the condition of complex operational aerospace structures. The number of sensors and its wiring pose significant problems because of the increased signal processing demand and heightened system unreliability, respectively. Current available wireless sensors are not efficient enough to be used in SHM for aerospace structures primarily because of cost and battery power limitations. The aim in this research was to investigate the feasibility of using microstrip patch antennas as a new type of strain sensor and develop the required techniques for wireless strain measurement without these aforementioned problems. Analytical, computational (finite element analysis) and experimental tests conducted in this research demonstrated that microstrip patch antennas can be used to reliably measure strain. As a result of investigating different microstrip patch antenna configurations in this study, novel antenna sensors were designed, simulated and tested. These antenna sensors (circular, slotted circular and meandered circular microstrip patch antennas) showed good sensitivity with strain with acceptable linearity between strain and the shift in its resonant frequency. In particular, the meandered circular microstrip patch antenna was shown to have localised and omni-directional strain measurement capabilities. In this research, it was shown that by using carefully selected techniques, the resonant frequency of circular microstrip patch antennas can be detected and measured wirelessly. As a result, the feasibility of wireless strain measurement for different aerospace materials (aluminium, carbon fibre reinforced polymer and glass fibre reinforced polymer) was demonstrated. Several diagnostic-related parameters here were investigated and a pivotal parameter discovered was the distance between the sensor and the reader. This technology can be further developed to be used in SHM techniques for wireless measurement of strain and possibly wireless detection of damage in aerospace structures

A review of passive wireless sensors for structural health monitoring

Wireless sensors for Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) is an emerging new technology that promises to overcome many disadvantages pertinent to conventional, wired sensors. The broad field of SHM has experienced significant growth over the past two decades, with several notable developments in the area of sensors such as piezoelectric sensors and optical fibre sensors. Although significant improvements have been made on damage monitoring techniques using these smart sensors, wiring remains a significant challenge to the practical implementation of these technologies. Wireless SHM has recently attracted the attention of researchers towards un-powered and more effective passive wireless sensors. This article presents a review of some of the underlying technologies in the field of wireless sensors for SHM - with a focus on the research progress towards the development of simple, powerless, yet effective and robust wireless damage detection sensors. This review examines the development of passive wireless sensors in two different categories: (1) use of oscillating circuits with the help of inductors, capacitors and resistors for damage detection; and (2) use of antennas, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags and metamaterial resonators as strain sensors for wireless damage monitoring. An assessment of these electromagnetic techniques is presented and the key issues involved in their respective design configurations are discussed

The relationship between violence during pregnancy and low birth weight: A meta-analysis study

Background & Aim: Violence during pregnancy affects both mother and fetus. This study was performed to investigate the relationship between physical, sexual and psychological violence during pregnancy and low birth weight in the world as a meta-analysis. Methods & Materials: This study is a meta-analysis that was performed on articles published in Persian and English languages from the beginning of 1995 to the end of 2015. Articles were extracted by searching in the databases of Scopus, Medline, EMBASE, Pubmed, Web of Science, Google scholar, Science Direct, Irandoc, Magiran, Medlib, and SID using key words of violence during pregnancy, low birth weight, physical, sexual and psychological violence and their compounds. The results of studies were combined using a random effects model in the meta-analysis. The heterogeneity of studies was evaluated using the I2 index and meta-regression, and the data analysis was performed using STATA software v.11.2 and SPSS software v.16. Results: Of 254 found articles, 16 relevant articles with the sample number of 117287 people were included in the study. The results of meta-analysis showed that physical OR:1.61 (CI95:2.04–2.28), psychological OR:1.26 (CI95:1.02–1.56) and sexual violence OR:1.26 (CI95:1.02–1.56) during pregnancy, lead to an increase in the rate of low birth weight infants in the exposed mothers. Conclusion: Physical, psychological and sexual violence during pregnancy lead to an increase in the rate of low birth weight infants in the exposed mothers. Therefore, maternal screening and counseling by trained general practitioners and professionals before and during pregnancy are recommended. © 2016, Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS). All Rights Reserved

Multiscale Fluctuation Dispersion Entropy of EEG as a Physiological Biomarker of Schizotypy

Altered electroencephalography (EEG) activity in schizotypal individuals is a powerful indicator of proneness towards psychosis. This alteration is beyond decreased alpha power often measured in resting state EEG. Multiscale fluctuation dispersion entropy (MFDE) measures the non-linear complexity of the fluctuations of EEGs and is a more effective approach compared to the traditional linear power spectral density (PSD) measures of EEG activity in patients with neurodegenerative disorders. In this study, we applied MFDE to EEG signals to distinguish high schizotypy (HS) and low schizotypy (LS) individuals. The study includes several trials from 29 participants psychometrically classified as HS (n=19) and LS (n=10). After preprocessing, MFDE was computed in frontal, parietal, central, temporal and occipital regions for each participant at multiple time scales. Statistical analysis and machine learning algorithms were used to calculate the differences in MFDE measures between the HS and LS groups. Our findings revealed significant differences in MFDE measures between LS and HS individuals in the delta frequency band (at time scale 100 ms). HS individuals exhibited increased complexity and irregularity compared to LS individuals in the delta frequency band particularly in the occipital region. Furthermore, the MFDE measures resulted in high accuracy (96.55%) in discriminating between HS and LS individuals and outperformed the models based on power spectrum, demonstrating the potential of MFDE as a neurophysiological marker for schizotypy traits. The increased non-linear fluctuation in delta frequency band in the occipital region of HS individuals implies the changes in cognitive functions, such as memory and attention, and has significant potential as a biomarker for schizotypy and proneness towards psychosis

Chitinase isolated from water and soil bacteria in shrimp farming ponds

Chitinases have received attention because of their wide applications in the medicine, biotechnology, agriculture, waste management and industrial applications such as food quality enhancer and biopesticide. Excessive use of insecticides has led to several problems related to pollution and environmental degradation. In this study, isolation and identification of native bacterial strains with chitin hydrolysis activity, took place from water and soil of shrimp culture ponds in Bushehr and Abadan. To investigate the capacity of our chitinase for using in insecticide, biochemical properties of selected chitinase obtained in this research were compared to that of produced by Bacillus cereus p-1, isolated from an insecticide tablet. In this research, three mesophilic strains containing: Serratia marcescens B4A, Citrobacter freundii B1A and Bacillus cereus B3R were isolated. Results showed a 1600 bp band corresponding to chitinase gene. The similarity between temperature and pH profile and stability of chitinase was extracted from native bacteria and ones was obtained from Bacillus cereus p-1 implied that chitinase extracted from Serratia marcescens B4A has potential application in industry

Assessment of Crawler Tractor Effects on Soil Surface Properties

Skidding operations can cause considerable and wide spread soil disturbance. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of ground skidding operations on soil compaction, moisture content, and total porosity at different levels of slope and traffic frequency. Four levels of traffic intensity (3, 8, 13, and >13 passes of a Crawler Tractor Onezhets – 110) and three levels of slope ( 20%) were applied to assess soil disturbance. The soil samples from the depth interval 0-10 cm were collected with a soil hammer and rings. Results showed that dry bulk density, moisture content and total porosity were affected considerably by slope and traffic frequency of skid trails. Bulk density was drawing near to the critical value after 8 passes in the trail with the slope >20%; when the number of machine passes increased from 8 to 13 passes, the additional bulk density increment was negligible. Irrespective of traffic frequency, dry bulk density increased significantly in the slope >10% compared to the slope <10%; however there was no significant difference between slopes 10-20% and >20% . Minimum moisture content was measured as 27% on the skid trail versus 47% in the undisturbed area. A negative correlation was found between moisture content and dry bulk density. Total porosity was measured as a maximum 58% to a minimum 44% on the skid trail treatments, and 65% in the undisturbed area. Soil disturbance was extended dramatically on the treatments with slopes >20%, so dry bulk density on the treatments with 8 passes and slopes >20% (1.38 g cm-3) was significantly higher than on the treatment with 13 passes and slopes <10% (1.32 gcm-3). Results showed that slope >10% increased soil disturbance quite dramatically