Caries risk profile of 12 year old school children in an Indian city using Cariogram

Objectives: The present study was conducted with an aim to assess the caries profile of 12 year old Indian children using Cariogram. Study design: Hundred children were interviewed to record any illness, oral hygiene practices and fluoride exposure after obtaining a three day diet diary. Examination was done to record plaque and dental caries status. Stimulated saliva was collected and salivary flow rate, salivary buffering capacity, Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus were assessed. The information obtained was scored and Cariogram was created. Differences between mean decayed, missing and filled teeth ( DMFT) and Cariogram risk groups were assessed using ANOVA. Spearman Correlation coefficients were used to explore correlation among Cariogram scores and individual variables. Results: It was found that 21, 45, 21 and 13 children had 0-20%, 21-40%, 41-60% and 61-100% chance of avoiding caries respectively in future. Significant correlation was observed between cariogram score and DMFT, diet content, diet frequency, plaque scores, Streptococcus mutans counts and fluoride programme. Conclusions: Cariogram model can identify the caries-related factors that could be the reasons for the estimated future caries risk, and therefore help the dentist to plan appropriate preventive measures

Attitudes of general dental practitioners towards biopsy procedures

Objectives: A dentist is required to detect and recognise oral lesions and inform the patient accordingly by providing a diagnosis and adequate treatment plan. Biopsy serves as an important aid in achieving this goal; however, its use is not so widespread in general dental practice. The objective of the present study was to explore the attitudes of general dental practitioners in Belgaum city towards biopsy for diagnosis of oral lesions. Material and methods: A self designed questionnaire was administered to 74 general dental practitioners in Belgaum city, in the southern region of India, consisting of several items addressing the socio-demographic and professional aspects and their attitudes towards oral biopsy procedures. Results: The response rate was exceptionally high i.e. 90.54%. All the dentists felt that biopsy was an important tool in diagnosis of oral lesions but many still did not venture to undertake it on their own and preferred referring it to a specialist or higher care centre. This was mainly due to lack of experience and patient factors. There were also conflicting results regarding referral diagnostic pathology services and preservation of the biopsy specimens. Conclusion: This emphasizes the need for higher levels of importance to be placed on this aspect in undergraduate and postgraduate dental curriculum. Organisation of specific training or continuing dental education programmes to enhance their practical skills could aid in increasing the utility of this important tool in diagnosis of oral lesion

Ergonomic Risk Assessment using Postural Analysis Tools in a Bus Body Building Unit

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSD) which are related with repetitive and demandingworking conditions continue to represent one of the biggest problems throughout the world.Assessment of exposure levels to MSD risk factors can be an appropriate base for planning and implementing interventional ergonomics programs in theworkplace. The presents study is focused on posture analysis of the workers working in a automotive coach manufacturing company (bus body building) company. The study wasconducted on 38 workers engaged in various process of manufacturing. The different activities of the workers were recorded by Video and still photography, and these images were used for analysis. Posture analysis toolsRULA, REBA and QEC were used. The results of RULA showed that about 31.57% of the workers were under high risk level and needed a necessary action immediately. About 28.95% of the workers were under medium risk levels andabout 28.95% of the workers were at lower risk levels. The results of REBA showed that about26.32% of the workers wereunder very high risk levels and required immediate change. About 23.68% of the workers were at high risk levels and a change is necessary soon, and 42.10% of the workers were at medium risk levels. According to the QEC method of assessment, it was found that 10.53% of the workers needed no corrective measures. About 31.58% of the workers needed further investigation and 34.21% of the workers were at high risk and required immediate change. It can be  concluded that  there are ergonomic deficiencies in the planning and work methods.  A significant proportion of the workers are working inhigh risk postures. Thus the workers are under moderate to high risk of Work-related Musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs). The study recommended a proper implementation of ergonomics interventions program with awareness and training among workers to reduce the risksof WMSD. Keywords: Posture analysis, WMSD, bus body building

Prevalence of dental caries and its relationship with trace elements present in drinking water among 12 year old children in rural areas of andhra pradesh, india

AIM: The purpose of the present study was to assess the relationship of trace elements present in drinking water and dental caries in children aged 12 years in rural areas of Andhra Pradesh India. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 451children aged 12 years. Clinical examination was carried out and caries experience was recorded. Drinking water samples were collected and subjected to trace element analysis using ICP-MS equipment. Oneway ANOVA, Chi-square test, Pearson’s correlation coefficient and Multiple Logistic Regression were used for the statistical analysis. RESULTS: A statistically significant relation was found between caries and trace elements like Vanadium (p<0.001), strontium (p<0.001) and lead (p<0.01) in the drinking water. CONCLUSION: It may be postulated from this study that a mixture of trace elements such as fluorine, strontium, boron, and molybdenum may work together to retard caries

EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION ON USE OF ETHANOL AND BIODIESEL BLEND ON A SINGLE CYLINDER DIESEL ENGINE

Diesel engine is most versatile engine which is used as main prime mover in transportation, decentralized electric generation and agricultures sector. The current growth in environmental degradation and limited availability of fossil fuels has been a matter of concern throughout the world. In view of this fact it has become necessary to explore renewable alternative fuel from resources available locally, such as vegetable oils, alcohol, animal fats etc. whose properties are comparable with mineral diesel and it can be used in the existing C.I. engine without any major hardware modification. The present energy scenario has motivated the world scientist to explore non petroleum, renewable and clean fuel which helps in sustainable development. In the present investigation, experimental work has been carried out to analyze the affect of an ethanol blending with biodiesel on the performance, emission and combustion characteristic of pongamia pinnata biodiesel with ethanol as blend of 15%, 20% and 25%. The biodiesel-ethanol blended fuels were prepared by using microemulsification technique and the main properties were determined. The results showed that, with the increasing the percentage of ethanol up to 20% improves the performance of the engine. At full load condition CO emission is higher compared to the biodiesel and its blends. Unburnt hydrocarbon (HC) is more in ethanol blend of 25% (E25BD75) and lowest for BD100. NOx emission first increases and reaches for all the fuels and then decreases. Increasing in the percentage of ethanol in the biodiesel increases the NOx emission. Upto 75% of the load the smoke emission is almost all same for all the fuels but lower for E25BD75 at maximum load. By adding ethanol to the biodiesel improves combustion quality and there is an increase in efficiency with a little penalty of NO emission

Ergonomic Risk Identification and Postural Analysis in Electrical Transformers Manufacturing Company located in Southern India

Introduction: Musculoskeletal disorders are the major factors resulting in discomfort at work in manufacturing industries to workers and these conditions contribute to the poor health of the workforce, subsequently to lower productivity. Therefore, the design of a workstation based on Ergonomic principles is becoming significant to reduce the effects of MSD. This study aimed to identify and assess the ergonomic risks associated with the work tasks in the company through posture analysis and develop recommendations for reducing those risks. Methods: About 36 manufacturing workers from five sections were randomly selected for the cross-sectional study. The chosen team members were from Core building, Core winding, Assembly, Tanking and Tank fabrication sections with experience of more than two years. The presence of MSDs was assessed using a Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire.  For postural analysis, Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) and Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA) were utilized. Few selected postures were analysed using CATIAV5 software and improvements reducing the risks of postures were recommended. Results: All of the 36 workers selected for the study were male with a mean age of 32 years and, average experience of 10 years, and 75% of workers had normal body mass index. The MSD questionnaire indicated discomfort of 86% mostly in the lower back portion of the body. The combined findings of RULA and REBA showed that about 44% of postures were in the high-risk group. Conclusion: Well-defined ergonomic interventions such as redesigning the workstation are suggested to reduce awkward postures and manual handling risks, leading to improvement in job performance and productivity

DESIGN OF HYBRID SEALS FOR GAS TURBINES

Gas turbine has many merits, such as good flexibility, compact structure, reliable and stable operation, high efficiency and so on. However, leakage between rotor and static parts of the engine is the enemy of power and efficiency. Several mechanisms have been used to reduce the leakage, among them brush seals, labyrinth seals are predominating. Review of literature indicates that increasing stiffness can decrease the hysteresis and leakage of finger seal (FS). In this paper an attempt is made to increase the stiffness of seals. V thread and V and square threads are provided to finger seals. Analysis of static pressure loading using ANSYS fluent is carried out and presented. It is found that providing V thread and combination of V and square thread to finger seals is worth

Bioclimatic approach of passive cooling techniques for the design of buildings in southern Algeria

The bioclimatic approach looks into the opportunities for building conception under the local climatic conditions. The first bioclimatic chart has been developed by Olgyay which combines temperature with relative humidity to characterize the comfort zone. It is founded on outside climate conditions to identify attenuation measures such as solar radiation, wind speed, or shading to reach comfortable inside conditions. Givoni created also a bioclimatic chart founded on inside conditions using the physical and thermal properties of air. Bioclimatic approach strategies contribute to decreasing the building energy loads and increasing thermal comfort for its residents over the year. The principal aim of this research is to evaluate a bioclimatic approach to passive cooling for building design in Algeria's South using Givoni's Bioclimatic chart and Olgyay's Bioclimatic chart. Climate data of various locations (Ouargla, Ghardaia, and El Oued) within this area were collected and analyzed. Furthermore, an overview of appropriated conception strategies for the hot season for each zone is developed. The results show that the maximum average temperature from June to August at around 43.1°C. After applying passive cooling strategies, the temperature indoor can be decreased from about 26.1 to 31.4°C, which can be described as being in the comfort zone for the three studied locations. Finally, these findings can contribute to understanding the thermal behavior of residential buildings and offer guidelines to develop a convenient concept of what the building composition should look like in arid and hot climates