The association between microcytic anemias and spirometric parameters

Introduction: Microcytic anemia is a type of anemia with smaller than normal red blood cells. Iron deficiency anemia and thalassemiaare some of the major causes. The aim of the study was to compare the pulmonary function of the subjects with microcyticanemia to the respective results of the normal population. Material and methods: This was a cross-sectional study in Bandar Abbas, Iran, conducted on the patients attending yearly occupationalhealth checkups. Complete blood cell count and a standard spirogram were attained from each consenting participantand occupational histories of exposure to dust, fumes, solvents, and noxious gases were obtained. Results: At last, 2,199 subjects were included in the analysis, of which 335 cases had microcytic anemia. There was a significantassociation between having microcytic anemia and forced vital capacity (FVC) reduction, and to a lesser degree, the reductionof forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1). These parameters were also significantly increased together with the riseof mean corpuscular volume (MCV) in the sample population. Conclusion: It can be concluded that having microcytic anemia may reduce some spirometric parameters. Even though thesechanges are small, adjusting for the reduced values can help prevent an overestimation of lung disorders, mostly in borderline cases

Evaluation of Diagnostic Values in NCCT and MRI of the Patients With Cerebral Venous or Sinus Thrombosis in Loghman Hakim Hospital in Tehran 2014-2018

Background: Cerebral venous and sinus thrombosis (CVT) is the rare type of stroke, which can be fatal or causes significant morbidity. CVT could cause by multiple etiologies and risk factors and could present with many signs and symptoms such as a headache, seizure or altered mental status. The gold standard for diagnosing CVT is magnetic resonance venography (MRV) or computed tomographic venography (CTV), as these modalities are not available in many health centers and the early diagnosis of this disease improves significantly the outcome of treatment, we evaluated the diagnostic values of CT and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in CVT patients.Methods: We compiled and investigated the radiological and clinical records of 92 patients with the final diagnosis of CVT; we observed the sign of thrombosis in 74 patients who had either the non-contrast CT or MRI plus MRV. We statistically analyzed the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, accuracy, the positive and negative likelihood ratio of these modalities.Results: Our results demonstrated that the sensitivity of CT scan is 60.5%, and its specificity is 66.7%. The positive predictive value of CT is 85%, and its negative predictive value is 34%. Our study demonstrated that the accuracy of CT in diagnosing CVT patients is 62%.Besides our results showed that the sensitivity of MRI in diagnosing CVT is 87%, and the specificity of MRI is 76.9%. Hence the positive predictive value of MRI is 94%, and the negative predictive value is 58%, and the accuracy of this modality is 85%Conclusion: In the absence of gold standard modalities, MRI and CT scan have relatively good diagnostic values, besides MRI is more beneficial between the two, moreover we found that CVT is more prevalent among women and in warm seasons

Paranasal sinuses malignancies : a 12-year review of clinical characteristics

Inadequate epidemiologic investigations of the paranasal sinuses malignancies prompted this retrospective study with special emphasis on a major group of 111 tumors. Clinical records of 111 patients with histologically confirmed malignant tumors of the paranasal sinuses were investigated retrospectively from April 2000 to January 2012. Collection of data included demographic information, clinical manifestations, treatment plans, and histopathology of the tumor. There were 69 (62.16%) male and 42 (37.83%) female patients (male-to-female ratio of 1.6:1), with a median age of 49±12.2 years (range 21 to 88 years). A high level of occurrence was noticed in the fifth (26.3%) decade of life. The most frequent histological types were squamous cell carcinoma (43.5%) and adenoid cystic carcinoma (19%). Among clinical manifestations, nasal obstruction was the most frequent followed by diplopia, and facial swelling. Fifty three patients (47.74%) were treated with combined approach of surgery and radiation therapy. Paranasal sinuses malignancies are rare conditions with nonspecific symptoms which make early diagnosis of the lesions more challenging. The optimal therapeutic protocol for patients suffering from these tumors is still a somewhat controversial entity and requires further studies

A NOVEL USER PROFILE-BASED FUZZY APPROACH FOR EVALUATING TRUST IN SEMANTIC WEB

ABSTRACT: As a developed World Wide Web architecture, the Semantic Web collects traditional web contents with a formal and understandable semantic using a machine. The main purpose of the Semantic Web is to increase automation, web information processing, and improve interactions and collaboration among information systems. The subject of trust is one of the main challenges in the semantic web. Since different tools and individuals exist in the semantic web, a certain measure of trust in an entity cannot be used and a central system is responsible for data collection and estimating the reliability. In this study, a fuzzy system is used to evaluate the trust measure in the semantic web. For this purpose, the user profile data including a list of pages, user sessions, and visited pages in each session, and the time of page viewings are used as semantic parameters. After determining the general framework of trust in the semantic web, the effectiveness of the above mentioned semantic parameters on the trust measure is investigated and effective parameters are used for evaluation in the fuzzy system. The experiment results show that the proposed fuzzy method with a mean absolute error of 2.5% and an average precision of 97.5% could achieve the right value of trust in the semantic web. ABSTRAK:  Sebagai senibina World Wide Web, Semantik Web mengumpul kandungan web tradisional bersama semantik formal dan mudah difahami menggunakan mesin. Tujuan utama Semantik Web adalah bagi meningkatkan automasi, pemprosesan maklumat web, dan meningkatkan interaksi dan kerjasama antara sistem maklumat. Kepercayaan adalah salah satu cabaran utama dalam web semantik. Disebabkan perbezaan alatan dan pelbagai individu wujud dalam web semantik, langkah tertentu sebagai entiti dipercayai tidak dapat digunakan dan sistem pusat adalah bertanggungjawab bagi pengumpulan data dan kebolehpercayaan anggaran. Dalam kajian ini, sistem rawak telah digunakan bagi menilai tahap kepercayaan dalam web semantik. Bagi tujuan ini, data profil pengguna termasuk senarai halaman, sesi pengguna, dan halaman yang dikunjungi dalam setiap sesi, dan masa paparan halaman telah digunakan sebagai parameter semantik. Selepas menentukan rangka umum kepercayaan dalam web semantik, keberkesanan parameter semantik yang dinyatakan di atas pada ukuran kepercayaan telah disiasat dan parameter yang berkesan telah digunakan bagi penilaian sistem rawak. Keputusan eksperimen menunjukkan bahawa kaedah rawak yang dicadangkan dengan ralat mutlak purata sebanyak 2.5% dan ketepatan purata sebanyak 97.5% dapat mencapai nilai kepercayaan yang benar dalam web semantik

A comprehensive study on removal of cadmium from aqueous solution by using mesoporous SBA-15 functionalized by 1,5-diphenyl carbazide: experimental design, kinetic, thermodynamic, and isotherm aspects

In this study, a new adsorbent, which was synthesized by using SBA-15Santa Barbara Amorphous. modified with 1,5-diphenyl carbazide, was employed to extract cadmium (Cd) from aquatic systems. First, the sorbent was identified via various characterization techniques, and then the response surface methodology approach was applied for modeling and optimizing the adsorption performance of the sorbent. Under optimum conditions ($\mathrm{pH}=5.75$, an adsorbent dose of 4.55 mg, and a Cd concentration of 25.39 mg/L), an adsorption capacity of 160 mg/g was obtained. In addition, the sorption process was fast; it attained equilibrium in 25.39 min. Furthermore, the sorbent regenerated by nitric acid was reused without any significant loss of adsorption capacity. Finally, the experimental data were studied by different isotherm models and well described by the Langmuir model

A comprehensive study on removal of cadmium from aqueous solution by using mesoporous SBA-15 functionalized by 1,5-diphenyl carbazide: experimental design, kinetic, thermodynamic, and isotherm aspects

In this study, a new adsorbent, which was synthesized by using SBA-15Santa Barbara Amorphous. modified with 1,5-diphenyl carbazide, was employed to extract cadmium (Cd) from aquatic systems. First, the sorbent was identified via various characterization techniques, and then the response surface methodology approach was applied for modeling and optimizing the adsorption performance of the sorbent. Under optimum conditions ($\mathrm{pH}=5.75$, an adsorbent dose of 4.55 mg, and a Cd concentration of 25.39 mg/L), an adsorption capacity of 160 mg/g was obtained. In addition, the sorption process was fast; it attained equilibrium in 25.39 min. Furthermore, the sorbent regenerated by nitric acid was reused without any significant loss of adsorption capacity. Finally, the experimental data were studied by different isotherm models and well described by the Langmuir model

Lack of group X secreted phospholipase A₂ increases survival following pandemic H1N1 influenza infection

The role of Group X secreted phospholipase A2 (GX-sPLA2) during influenza infection has not been previously investigated. We examined the role of GX-sPLA2 during H1N1 pandemic influenza infection in a GX-sPLA2 gene targeted mouse (GX−/−) model and found that survival after infection was significantly greater in GX−/− mice than in GX+/+ mice. Downstream products of GX-sPLA2 activity, PGD2, PGE2, LTB4, cysteinyl leukotrienes and Lipoxin A4 were significantly lower in GX−/− mice BAL fluid. Lung microarray analysis identified an earlier and more robust induction of T and B cell associated genes in GX−/− mice. Based on the central role of sPLA2 enzymes as key initiators of inflammatory processes, we propose that activation of GX-sPLA2 during H1N1pdm infection is an early step of pulmonary inflammation and its inhibition increases adaptive immunity and improves survival. Our findings suggest that GX-sPLA2 may be a potential therapeutic target during influenza

World Addiction Medicine Reports : formation of the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM) Global Expert Network (ISAM-GEN) and Its global surveys

Funding: All the infrastructure funding of this initiative is supported by the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM). We will be open to fundraising for specific projects within the platform and future collaboration with external partners.Addiction medicine is a dynamic field that encompasses clinical practice and research in the context of societal, economic, and cultural factors at the local, national, regional, and global levels. This field has evolved profoundly during the past decades in terms of scopes and activities with the contribution of addiction medicine scientists and professionals globally. The dynamic nature of drug addiction at the global level has resulted in a crucial need for developing an international collaborative network of addiction societies, treatment programs and experts to monitor emerging national, regional, and global concerns. This protocol paper presents methodological details of running longitudinal surveys at national, regional, and global levels through the Global Expert Network of the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM-GEN). The initial formation of the network with a recruitment phase and a round of snowball sampling provided 354 experts from 78 countries across the globe. In addition, 43 national/regional addiction societies/associations are also included in the database. The surveys will be developed by global experts in addiction medicine on treatment services, service coverage, co-occurring disorders, treatment standards and barriers, emerging addictions and/or dynamic changes in treatment needs worldwide. Survey participants in categories of (1) addiction societies/associations, (2) addiction treatment programs, (3) addiction experts/clinicians and (4) related stakeholders will respond to these global longitudinal surveys. The results will be analyzed and cross-examined with available data and peer-reviewed for publication.Peer reviewe

Stroke genetics informs drug discovery and risk prediction across ancestries

Previous genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of stroke — the second leading cause of death worldwide — were conducted predominantly in populations of European ancestry1,2. Here, in cross-ancestry GWAS meta-analyses of 110,182 patients who have had a stroke (five ancestries, 33% non-European) and 1,503,898 control individuals, we identify association signals for stroke and its subtypes at 89 (61 new) independent loci: 60 in primary inverse-variance-weighted analyses and 29 in secondary meta-regression and multitrait analyses. On the basis of internal cross-ancestry validation and an independent follow-up in 89,084 additional cases of stroke (30% non-European) and 1,013,843 control individuals, 87% of the primary stroke risk loci and 60% of the secondary stroke risk loci were replicated (P < 0.05). Effect sizes were highly correlated across ancestries. Cross-ancestry fine-mapping, in silico mutagenesis analysis3, and transcriptome-wide and proteome-wide association analyses revealed putative causal genes (such as SH3PXD2A and FURIN) and variants (such as at GRK5 and NOS3). Using a three-pronged approach4, we provide genetic evidence for putative drug effects, highlighting F11, KLKB1, PROC, GP1BA, LAMC2 and VCAM1 as possible targets, with drugs already under investigation for stroke for F11 and PROC. A polygenic score integrating cross-ancestry and ancestry-specific stroke GWASs with vascular-risk factor GWASs (integrative polygenic scores) strongly predicted ischaemic stroke in populations of European, East Asian and African ancestry5. Stroke genetic risk scores were predictive of ischaemic stroke independent of clinical risk factors in 52,600 clinical-trial participants with cardiometabolic disease. Our results provide insights to inform biology, reveal potential drug targets and derive genetic risk prediction tools across ancestries

Aggressive angiomyxoma of the vulva: dramatic response to gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist therapy

&lt;p&gt;Aggressive angiomyxoma is a rare soft tissue neoplasm that usually arises within the perineum. It often occurs as a vulvar mass and clinically simulates a Bartholin&amp;#39;s gland cyst. Most patients are in the second or third decade of life, but some cases have also been reported in children. This is the report of a 21 year old woman with 4.5 &amp;times; 3 &amp;times; 1.5 cm mass in right labia major. The patient underwent wide local excision surgical treatment. Histological examination showed high vascular myxoid tumor containing spindle cells. Immunohistochemical study of cells showed positive reaction to estrogen and progesterone and negative reaction to S100, SMA and desmin. Treatment with a gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist was administered to deal with residual tumor and prevent local recurrence for 6 months.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;KEY WORDS&lt;/strong&gt;: Aggressive angiomyxoma, vulva, pregnancy, Gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist.&lt;/p&gt