Determining effective criteria on sustainable development of fluting paper making industry

Fluting paper industry seems to be significant from environmental view point. Accordingly, study on sustainable development criteria in this sector of Iran’s industry is regarded as a national necessity. The intent of the current study is to determine and prioritize the indices affecting sustainable development of Iran’s fluting paper industry by benefiting from Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method. After the conducted investigations, 55 indices were identified and categories in eight general groups namely, technical & human, cultural-social, economic, materials & products, rules and regulations, environmental, infrastructure and sale & marketing . Analytical Hierarchy Process was applied in the form of adjusting and distributing questionnaires among professional experts. Results show that the highest priorities for attaining sustainable development in this industry respectively belong to sub-criteria of economic stability increase in the country, a continuous relation between university and industry, privatization, training man force, paper recycling, foreign investment, increasing productivity and reducing greenhouse gas emissions

Evaluation of Sustainable Development of Wooden Furniture Industry Using Multi criteria Decision Making Method

Abstract Furniture manufacturing industry seems to be significant not only from economical and social standpoints but also from perspective of environmentally compatible industries. Accordingly, moving toward sustainable development in this sector of Iran's industry is regarded as a national necessity. The intent of the current study is to determine and prioritize the indices affecting sustainable development of Iran's wooden furniture industry by benefiting from Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method. After the conducted investigations, 39 indices were identified and categories in seven general groups namely, technical, human, cultural-social, economic, materials and products, rules and regulations, and environmental. Subsequently, Analytical Hierarchy Process was applied in the form of adjusting and distributing questionnaires among professional experts. Results show that the highest priorities for attaining sustainable development in this industry respectively belong to sub-criteria of economic stability increase in the country, development of furniture industrial clusters, adjustment of furniture and wooden products importation tariffs, reduction of volatile organic compounds (VOC), marketing, reinforcement of unions, and creation of competitive environment in this industry

Developing a Rating Model for Selection Solar Wood Drying Location

AbstractSolar energy is one of the free and clean sources of energy supply without any destructive influence on the environment. Solar energy has been used in different forms for a long time. Concentrators of solar radiation can be used to produce unlimited, clean and free energy and save fossil fuels considerably. One of important applications of solar energy is to manufacture solar wood drying units. Iran has been located in an appropriate situation in the world with respect to receiving solar energy. The aim of the present paper is to propose a multicriteria methodological approach based on Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) useful for the "Determination of Effective Criteria on Site Selection for Solar Wood Drying Units in Iran". The methodological approach is divided in 3 steps. In first step experts of kiln wood drying were interviewed for preliminary investigation. In the second step, hierarchy of criteria was designed and weighing values of them were calculated by Analytic Hierarchy Process. Finally, in the third step, model was used rating for prioritizing capable provinces. Results showed that Qom province, with average temperature, has the highest priority as a criterion and alternative

Evaluation of Osveral efficacy in reducing ferritin levels in patients with thalassemia major

Background: Beta thalassemia is one of the inherited blood diseases in which the production of specific chains in hemoglobin decreases. Esfarlal is a shaltor which is used in these patients as a single dose per day. Since it is prescribed orally, it is easier to tolerate the drug and control the serum iron level of the patient. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of Osveral in reducing ferritin levels in patients with thalassemia major.Methods: This quasi-experimental study was performed on 48 patients with thalassemia major who referred to Bu-Ali hospital for receiving blood. At the beginning of the study, the required data were collected along with patients' tests including hemoglobin, ferritin, TSH, T4, CBC diff, BUN AST, ALT, BS and creatinine CBC diff. The Osveral drug was prescribed and the patients were evaluated monthly for up to 6 months on the basis of complications. In the first three months after the start of the drug, the serum ferritin level was measured, the dose was adjusted and 6 months after late, the previous tests were again requested, and the auditory and visual examinations were performed, and the information entered the checklist. Data were analyzed using SPSS statistical software.Results: Among all patients, 27 (56.2%) were male and the rest were women with a mean age of 22.22 ± 8.77 years. The results showed that during one year of study, hemoglobin level increased and ferritin level decreased significantly, and other parameters didn’t show significant difference. Nausea and vomiting were the most common complications among patients, which was higher after Osveral than before receiving Osveral.Conclusions: Results showed that Osveral is effective in reducing the level of ferritin in patients with thalassemia major, but control of hematuria is recommended when using this drug

Effects Of Nano-Clay Particles And Oxidized Polypropylene Polymers On Improvement Of The Thermal Properties Of Wood Plastic Composite

In this study, the effects of oxidized polypropylene, as a compatibilizer, and Nano-clay particles in improving the thermal properties of wood plastic composites are investigated. For this purpose, polypropylene polymer was oxidized in the vicinity of the air oxygen for 2 hours. Then, in order to produce the samples, Nano-clay particles at three levels (0%, 2% and 4%) were mixed with wood fibers, polypropylene polymer and the compatibilizer. Finally, the samples with thickness of 2mm and dimensions of 15×15cm were made by using hot press. For more precise investigation, the morphology of wood plastic composites was studied by using X-rays diffraction and electronic microscope images. Thermal properties of the composites were evaluated through thermal and differential analyses. The results of the thermal tests demonstrated that the addition of oxidized polypropylene and Nano-clay particles significantly improve the thermal properties of wood plastic composites. Furthermore, increment of Nano-clay particles content additionally improves thermal stability of the composites and also reduces the released heat amount during the thermal degradation. In addition, TEM images showed that the dispersion of Nano-clay particles in the composite has an intercalation structure. This subject also verified by the X-rays diffraction and it is an evidence of better thermal stability of the achieved wood plastic composites

Evaluation of left ventricular systolic and diastolic regional function after enhanced external counter pulsation therapy using strain rate imaging

Aims Enhanced external counter pulsation (EECP) is a non-invasive and non-pharmacological therapy for patients with symptomatic coronary artery disease (CAD). There are, however, insufficient data to support the effectiveness of EECP in improving the myocardial mechanical properties of patients with refractory stable angina. We aimed to assess the effects of EECP on myocardial mechanical properties and cardiac functions in CAD patients not eligible for surgical or percutaneous revascularization procedures. Methods and results Twenty patients in New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional Class III and IV angina were evaluated. The mean age of the patients was 63+9 years, and 65% were male. A comprehensive echocardiographic study including an evaluation of the tissue Doppler-based parameters of systolic and diastolic functions was performed before and after the termination of the protocol. EECP was carried out 1 h per day, 5 days per week, for 7 weeks. EECP resulted in a significant increase in peak late diastolic transmitral inflow velocity (0.75+0.14 vs. 0.83+0.20 m/s, P , 0.05), propagation velocity (42.35+6.25 vs. 46.00+5.68 cm/s, P , 0.05), peak early diastolic velocity of mitral annulus (5.35+1.79 vs. 5.95+1.10 cm/s, P , 0.05), peak systolic velocity (2.51+0.28 vs. 2.67+ 0.26, P , 0.05), and early diastolic velocity (3.24+0.18 vs. 3.52+0.26 cm/s, P , 0.01) of all middle segments, peak late diastolic velocity of all basal (4.48+0.58 vs. 4.75+0.70 cm/s, P , 0.05) and middle segments (2.82+0.66 vs. 3.25+0.46 cm/s, P , 0.01), peak systolic strain rate of all basal (0.76+0.07 vs. 0.99+0.08 1/s, P ¼ 0.001) and middle segments (0.75+0.09 vs. 0.94+0.09 1/s, P , 0.001), peak systolic strain of basal (11.64+1.51 vs. 13.97+1.52%, P , 0.01) and middle segments (11.81+1.15 vs.13.73+1.57%, P , 0.001), and left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (40.25+ 12.72 vs. 46.25+12.97%, P , 0.001).There was also a significant decrease in the ratios of transmitral E/A (0.92+ 0.41 vs. 1.08+ 0.46, P , 0.05) and E/Ea (12.61+4.22 vs. 15.44+6.96, P , 0.05) after EECP therapy. A significant reduction in NYHA angina class ( 1 angina class) was seen in the patients, who completed treatment. Conclusion EECP therapy seemed to improve both regional and global LV systolic and diastolic functions in patients with chronic angina pectoris

Echocardiographic evaluation of mitral geometry in functional mitral regurgitation

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Objectives</p> <p>We sought to evaluate the geometric changes of the mitral leaflets, local and global LV remodeling in patients with left ventricular dysfunction and varying degrees of Functional mitral regurgitation (FMR).</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Functional mitral regurgitation (FMR) occurs as a consequence of systolic left ventricular (LV) dysfunction caused by ischemic or nonischemic cardiomyopathy. Mitral valve repair in ischemic MR is one of the most controversial topic in surgery and proper repairing requires an understanding of its mechanisms, as the exact mechanism of FMR are not well defined.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>136 consecutive patients mean age of 55 with systolic LV dysfunction and FMR underwent complete echocardiography and after assessing MR severity, LV volumes, Ejection Fraction, LV sphericity index, C-Septal distance, Mitral valve annulus, Interpapillary distance, Tenting distance and Tenting area were obtained.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There was significant association between MR severity and echocardiogarphic indices (all p values < 0.001). Severe MR occurred more frequently in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) patients compared to ischemic patients, (p < 0.001). Based on the model, only Mitral valve tenting distance (TnD) (OR = 22.11, CI 95%: 14.18 – 36.86, p < 0.001) and Interpapillary muscle distance (IPMD), (OR = 6.53, CI 95%: 2.10 – 10.23, p = 0.001) had significant associations with MR severity.</p> <p>Mitral annular dimensions and area, C-septal distance and sphericity index, although greater in patients with severe regurgitation, did not significantly contribute to FMR severity.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Degree of LV enlargement and dysfunction were not primary determinants of FMR severity, therefore local LV remodeling and mitral valve apparatus deformation are the strongest predictors of functional MR severity.</p

Socioeconomic inequalities in prevalence, awareness, treatment and control of hypertension: evidence from the PERSIAN cohort study

Background Elevated blood pressure is associated with cardiovascular disease, stroke and chronic kidney disease. In this study, we examined the socioeconomic inequality and its related factors in prevalence, Awareness, Treatment and Control (ATC) of hypertension (HTN) in Iran. Method The study used data from the recruitment phase of The Prospective Epidemiological Research Studies in IrAN (PERSIAN). A sample of 162,842 adults aged > = 35 years was analyzed. HTN was defined according to the Joint National Committee)JNC-7(. socioeconomic inequality was measured using concentration index (Cn) and curve. Results The mean age of participants was 49.38(SD = +/- 9.14) years and 44.74% of the them were men. The prevalence of HTN in the total population was 22.3%(95% CI: 20.6%; 24.1%), and 18.8%(95% CI: 16.8%; 20.9%) and 25.2%(95% CI: 24.2%; 27.7%) in men and women, respectively. The percentage of awareness treatment and control among individuals with HTN were 77.5%(95% CI: 73.3%; 81.8%), 82.2%(95% CI: 70.2%; 81.6%) and 75.9%(95% CI: 70.2%; 81.6%), respectively. The Cn for prevalence of HTN was -0.084. Two factors, age (58.46%) and wealth (32.40%), contributed most to the socioeconomic inequality in the prevalence of HTN. Conclusion The prevalence of HTN was higher among low-SES individuals, who also showed higher levels of awareness. However, treatment and control of HTN were more concentrated among those who had higher levels of SES, indicating that people at a higher risk of adverse event related to HTN (the low SES individuals) are not benefiting from the advantage of treatment and control of HTN. Such a gap between diagnosis (prevalence) and control (treatment and control) of HTN needs to be addressed by public health policymakers

Repositioning of the global epicentre of non-optimal cholesterol

High blood cholesterol is typically considered a feature of wealthy western countries(1,2). However, dietary and behavioural determinants of blood cholesterol are changing rapidly throughout the world(3) and countries are using lipid-lowering medications at varying rates. These changes can have distinct effects on the levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and non-HDL cholesterol, which have different effects on human health(4,5). However, the trends of HDL and non-HDL cholesterol levels over time have not been previously reported in a global analysis. Here we pooled 1,127 population-based studies that measured blood lipids in 102.6 million individuals aged 18 years and older to estimate trends from 1980 to 2018 in mean total, non-HDL and HDL cholesterol levels for 200 countries. Globally, there was little change in total or non-HDL cholesterol from 1980 to 2018. This was a net effect of increases in low- and middle-income countries, especially in east and southeast Asia, and decreases in high-income western countries, especially those in northwestern Europe, and in central and eastern Europe. As a result, countries with the highest level of non-HDL cholesterol-which is a marker of cardiovascular riskchanged from those in western Europe such as Belgium, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Malta in 1980 to those in Asia and the Pacific, such as Tokelau, Malaysia, The Philippines and Thailand. In 2017, high non-HDL cholesterol was responsible for an estimated 3.9 million (95% credible interval 3.7 million-4.2 million) worldwide deaths, half of which occurred in east, southeast and south Asia. The global repositioning of lipid-related risk, with non-optimal cholesterol shifting from a distinct feature of high-income countries in northwestern Europe, north America and Australasia to one that affects countries in east and southeast Asia and Oceania should motivate the use of population-based policies and personal interventions to improve nutrition and enhance access to treatment throughout the world.Peer reviewe