Estruturas de madeira: uso do ultrassom na localização de defeitos

TCC (graduação) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina. Centro Tecnológico. Engenharia Civil.O presente trabalho tem por objetivo avaliar a sensibilidade da técnica de propagação de ondas ultrassônicas na localização de defeitos em elementos de madeira, especificamente na determinação da posição de nós, como também em avaliar a influência de determinados fatores na propagação de tais ondas na madeira. Para tal, inicialmente efetuou-se uma revisão bibliográfica sobre os principais fatores que influenciam a propagação de ondas ultrassônicas na madeira, inclusive sobre a influência provocada pela presença de não homogeneidades. Após, realizou-se o mapeamento com leituras ultrassônicas transversais diretas e longitudinais diretas e indiretas de quatro elementos estruturais de madeira, sendo dois da espécie Pinus elliottii (5 cm x 11 cm x 300 cm e 7 cm x 15 cm x 300 cm) e dois da espécie Hymenolobium petraeum (5 cm x 11 cm x 300 cm e 7 cm x 15 cm x 300 cm). Com o propósito de avaliar a sensibilidade do ultrassom na detecção de nós nos corpos de prova de Pinus elliottii, fez-se uma comparação a partir dos resultados obtidos com as leituras transversais diretas por meio de duas análises distintas. Uma análise foi baseada em diferenças entre leituras adjacentes ao longo desses corpos de prova e outra foi baseada na diferença entre uma leitura de referência (correspondente a uma região de madeira isenta de defeitos) e as demais leituras obtidas. Concluiu-se para a análise das leituras transversais diretas que o método da leitura de referência obteve melhor desempenho na classificação de regiões nesses elementos, do que o método das leituras adjacentes.The main objective of this research relies on the evaluation of the sensibility of ultrasonic wave propagation when used to locate flaws in wood profiles, specifically in order to define the position of knots and the influence of different factors related to the propagation of such waves in wood. Starting with a literature review about the main factors that influence the ultrasonic waves propagation in wood, including the ones caused by inhomogeneities. Then with direct transverse and direct longitudinal ultrasonic mapping of four wood profiles, two from the Pinus elliottii species (5 cm x 11 cm x 300 cm e 7 cm x 15 cm x 300 cm) and the other two from the Hymenolobium petraeum species (5 cm x 11 cm x 300 cm e 7 cm x 15 cm x 300 cm). In order to evaluate the sensibility of the ultrasound in the detection of knots in the specimens from the Pinus elliottii species, a comparison was made from the results obtained with direct transversal readings between two distinct analyses. One analysis was based on the differences between adjacent readings of this specimens and the other was based on the differences between a reference reading (that corresponds to a wood region free of flaws) and the other readings obtained. The results show that when analyzing wood profiles with direct transversal readings, the reference reading method managed to deliver better performance than the adjacent readings method in classifying the regions of the profiles

Le criticità dell’infrastruttura scolastica in Italia secondo docenti e dirigenti

The quality of school infrastructure can exert a strong impact on the educational process, in terms of improvement of health, safety, environmental sustainability, relations between institutions and communities, social equity and educational achievement. Heightened awareness of the role of spatiality and physical environments in schooling requires information about educators’ perceptions. After having provided background information about school infrastructure in Italy, this article explores Italian teachers’ and principals’ opinions on the inadequacy of school buildings and compares them with those expressed by educational professionals in other European countries. Data are drawn principally from the 2018 edition of the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) and focuses on lower secondary schools. Compared to colleagues in other countries, Italian principals are more likely to indicate the inadequacy of educational spaces, buildings, and physical infrastructures; but these problems are not necessarily considered more critical than others. Conversely, Italian teachers confer greater priority to the improvement of buildings and infrastructures with respect to both their colleagues in other countries and other areas of intervention. The need to redevelop school buildings is detected across the board, regardless of the institutional and individual contexts in which education professionals work, although greater levels of inadequacy are recorded in Central and Southern Italy

Role of Metalloproteases in the Release of the IL-1 type II Decoy Receptor

The IL-1 type II receptor (decoy RII) is a nonsignaling molecule the only established function of which is to capture IL-1 and prevent it from interacting with signaling receptor. The decoy RII is released in a regulated way from the cell surface. Here, we reported that hydroxamic acid inhibitors of matrix metalloproteases inhibit different pathways of decoy RII release, including the following: (a) the slow (18 h) gene expression-dependent release from monocytes and polymorphonuclear cells exposed to dexamethasone; (b) rapid release (minutes) from myelomonocytic cells exposed to tumor necrosis factor, chemoattractants, or phorbol myristate acetate; (c) phorbol myristate acetate-induced release from decoy RII-transfected fibroblasts and B cells. Inhibition of release was associated with increased surface expression of decoy RII. Inhibitors of other protease classes did not substantially affect release. However, serine protease inhibitors increased the molecular mass of the decoy RII released from polymorphonuclear cells from 45 to 60 kDa. Thus, irrespective of the pathway responsible for release and of the cellular context, matrix metalloproteases, rather than differential splicing, play a key role in production of soluble decoy RII

Spinal Fusion Surgery: Epidemiologic and Economic Burden Attributable to First Intervention

IntroductionLow back pain (LBP) is the single most common cause for disability in individuals aged 50 years or younger with a high socioeconomic impact. In USA, LBP costs are estimated to exceed $1..

DENALI: il Data Warehouse di Sanità Pubblica della Regione Lombardia

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The societal burden of chronic liver diseases: results from the COME study.

OBJECTIVE: Chronic liver diseases (CLDs) impose a significant socioeconomic burden on patients and the healthcare system, but to what extent remains underexplored. We estimated costs and health-related-quality-of-life (HRQoL) among patients with CLDs at different stages and with different aetiologies. DESIGN: A cost-of-illness study was conducted. Direct costs, productivity loss and HRQoL were estimated in patients with chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) or where orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) had been performed, for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, or in those with liver disease from other causes. Patients were retrospectively observed for 6 months. The societal perspective was adopted to calculate costs. RESULTS: In total, 1088 valid patients (median age=59.5 years, 60% men) were enrolled. 61% had chronic hepatitis, 20% cirrhosis, 8% HCC and 12% underwent OLT. HCV infection was identified in 52% and HBV infection in 29% of the patients. Adjusted mean direct costs increased from €3000/patient-month in HBV infected patients with OLT. Antiviral treatment was the cost driver in patients with hepatitis, while hospital costs were the driver in the other subgroups. Absenteeism increased from HBV-infected patients with hepatitis (0.7 day/patient-month) to patients with OLT with other aetiologies (3.7 days/patient-month). HRQoL was on average more compromised in cirrhosis and patients with HCC, than in hepatitis and patients with OLT. HBV-infected patients generated higher direct costs, patients with other aetiologies generated the highest productivity loss and HCV-infected patients reported the worst HRQoL levels. CONCLUSIONS: The present study can be considered a benchmark for future research and to guide policies aimed at maximising the cost-effective of the interventions

Costs and effectiveness of influenza vaccination: a systematic review

Background: Seasonal influenza can cause a significant public health burden. Vaccination is proposed as the most effective measure to prevent influenza and related undesired outcomes. Objective: To estimate the efficiency of influenza vaccination. Methods: A literature review of economic evaluations of influenza vaccinations, published over the last 5 years, was performed using MEDLINE (through PubMed), Web of Science and Scopus. Results: 935 papers were identified and 30 were selected, including studies performed in different population subgroups: general population, children, adults, elderly, pregnant women and high risk patients. Twenty-one studies were performed in Europe and in US. The majority of the studies were carried out on elderly patients and children. All except one were cost-effectiveness analyses and reported influenza vaccination as a cost-saving or cost-effective intervention. Conclusions: Vaccination strategies are economically favourable in a range of countries and sub-groups of patients.

Metabolism disrupting chemicals and metabolic disorders

The recent epidemics of metabolic diseases, obesity, type 2 diabetes(T2D), liver lipid disorders and metabolic syndrome have largely been attributed to genetic background and changes in diet, exercise and aging. However, there is now considerable evidence that other environmental factors may contribute to the rapid increase in the incidence of these metabolic diseases. This review will examine changes to the incidence of obesity, T2D and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), the contribution of genetics to these disorders and describe the role of the endocrine system in these metabolic disorders. It will then specifically focus on the role of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in the etiology of obesity, T2D and NAFLD while finally integrating the information on EDCs on multiple metabolic disorders that could lead to metabolic syndrome. We will specifically examine evidence linking EDC exposures during critical periods of development with metabolic diseases that manifest later in life and across generations