Diagnostic Dilemma with Interval Death in a Road-Traffic Accident Victim

Background: The cause of death is difficult to interpret in a road-traffic accident (RTA) victim, because multiple injuries make it difficult to decide on the most fatal lesion, particularly when death is delayed by prompt medical intervention; and secondary haemorrhage, renal failure, fat embolism, systemic infections, myocardial or cerebral infarction – all comes under the potential differential threats.Case Report: A 20 year-old RTA victim was hospitalized in a comatose state and died after surviving 21 days on intermittent positive pressure ventilation. Post-mortem examination of different organs revealed pneumonic consolidation in lung, fatty changes in liver and acute tubular necrosis in kidney; in addition to haemorrhage and congestion in these organs and brain.Conclusion: Acute contusions of various internal organs, compounded by hospital-acquired infection and medical interventions turn the overall diagnostic scenario messy in a resuscitated RTA victim. In such condition notification about all lethal organic defects, instead of mentioning mere ‘multiorgan failure’, is the best way to sign out an ‘autopsy report.

S-FMECA Based Collaborative Design Proposal for Additive Manufacturing Methodology

In the current context, the sustainable development, eco-design and eco-manufacturing concepts are being developed in research laboratories, and further being integrated gradually into manufacturing industries. Hence, the needed information for eco-design is scattered throughout the product life cycle and is not centralized; especially when designing for Additive Manufacturing. This paper aims to develop a collaborative eco-design methodology by using eco-design tools in different design stages and, finally, to contribute to tackling this issue. Either in the early design stage or in the detailed on, the designer will be supported to make sustainable, conscious decisions. The proposed methodology based on the sustainable-failure modes, effects, and criticality analysis (S-FMECA) eco-designing tool allows the communication with computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), life cycle assessment (LCA), topology optimization (TO) and product life cycle management (PLM) software in order to assist the designer to make green-conscious decisions

S-FMECA: A Novel Tool for Sustainable Product Design - Additive Manufacturing

The choices made in the early design stage (EDS) will largely define the environmental impacts of a product. The purpose of this paper is to develop an eco-design method used for assessing semi-quantitatively the sustainability of an additively manufactured product since the EDS. This article presents a semi-quantitative method to support EDS-conscious environmental decisions. A novel Sustainable-Failure Mode, Effect, and Criticality Analysis (S-FMECA) tool is developed to support designers in the conceptual design phase, to guide the choices, and to provide a valuable evaluation of the future additively manufactured product. Through the integration of the environmental aspects in FMECA analysis, systematic prevention of errors, and enhancement of sustainability since the EDS would be the main advantage of this tool

Contemporary works from the University collection

Contemporary works from the University collection Catalogue of exhibition held at Fine Arts Gallery, University of Tasmania, 10-30 June, 1988 Works by Lisa Anderson, Barry Cleavin, Anne Connors, Adrienne Gaha, Elizabeth Gower, Ruth Johnstone, David Keeling

Modification of Collagen by 3-Deoxyglucosone Alters Wound Healing through Differential Regulation of p38 MAP Kinase

Background: Wound healing is a highly dynamic process that requires signaling from the extracellular matrix to the fibroblasts for migration and proliferation, and closure of the wound. This rate of wound closure is impaired in diabetes, which may be due to the increased levels of the precursor for advanced glycation end products, 3-deoxyglucosone (3DG). Previous studies suggest a differential role for p38 mitogen-activated kinase (MAPK) during wound healing; whereby, p38 MAPK acts as a growth kinase during normal wound healing, but acts as a stress kinase during diabetic wound repair. Therefore, we investigated the signaling cross-talk by which p38 MAPK mediates wound healing in fibroblasts cultured on native collagen and 3DG-collagen. Methodology/Principal Findings: Using human dermal fibroblasts cultured on 3DG-collagen as a model of diabetic wounds, we demonstrated that p38 MAPK can promote either cell growth or cell death, and this was dependent on the activation of AKT and ERK1/2. Wound closure on native collagen was dependent on p38 MAPK phosphorylation of AKT and ERK1/2. Furthermore, proliferation and collagen production in fibroblasts cultured on native collagen was dependent on p38 MAPK regulation of AKT and ERK1/2. In contrast, 3DG-collagen decreased fibroblast migration, proliferation, and collagen expression through ERK1/2 and AKT downregulation via p38 MAPK. Conclusions/Significance: Taken together, the present study shows that p38 MAPK is a key signaling molecule that plays

Analysis of disassembly parameters in repairability scores: limitations for engineering design and suggestions for improvement

In the last years, new standards (e.g., the EN4555X series) and indices (i.e., RSS, eDiM,) have been published to include repairability aspects in product design. These indices are very useful in the design phase to characterize the product and to understand the ability of products to be repaired, reused, upgraded, and recycled. However, the way how these indices have been developed presents some issues that can lead to a wrong assessment/evaluation and result interpretation. This work analyses the main shortcomings encountered in the assessment of the disassembly index in the RSS score providing useful guidelines to improve them. The study has been carried out based on a set of laboratory tests and results analysis performed on cooking appliances (e.g., ovens, hobs, hoods). Nine issues related to the disassembly index have been highlighted including a focus on the impacted parameters. The work provides a useful base to enhance the studies related to product disassembly for repairability as well as to update the standard related to repairability and to make use of this index in the early phase of product design

Maintenance optimisation using intelligent asset management in electricity distribution companies

This article presents the effect of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) combined with asset management (AM) in improving the life cycle of complex systems in electrical energy distribution (EED). The boom in smart networks leaves companies in this sector no choice but to adhere to I4.0. The contribution of I4.0 to the progress of AM in maintenance in EED will therefore be demonstrated by a case study using simulation. The case study will concern the benefits of using advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), the heart of smart grids, at Hydro-Québec Distribution (HQD), the primary supply authority in Quebec. The HQD network includes 4.3 million clients, on a territory of approximately 250,000 km2 and 680,000 overhead transformers. The results are conclusive: the number of outages will drop by 7% annually and maintenance costs will fall by at least 5% per year

Design metrics to normalize and compare LCA results in household appliance sector: outcomes from literature analysis

Nowadays, household appliance manufacturers shall adapt their engineering methods and tools to meet environmental concerns. Despite the environmental assessment of products and services is usually carried out based on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) standardized approach (e.g., ISO14040/14044), numerous assumptions are up to practitioners' discretion, such as functional unit, system boundaries, or allocation method. These choices may lead to a results discrepancy between equivalent studies, even if similar products are considered. The goal of this work is to present a method for determining appropriate metrics (indices) that enable designers to compare the findings of LCA analysis carried out in the context of home appliances. The indices refer to the cooker hoods family and they were developed through a systematic literature review. LCA studies carried out from 2006 to 2022 were the basis for the identification of design features and parameters that allow the normalization of results retrieved in different studies. These features served as the basis for the indices formulation, enabling an accurate comparison of appliances from the same family. The application of these indices, according to the results, makes LCA evaluations of cooker hood models with different performances and design factors comparable. Finally, the same approach can be adopted to create a framework and a useful guide to conduct future LCA studies for other household appliance families with the aim to provide a normalization basis to compare product design alternatives

Epidemiology of cardiovascular risk factors among schoolchildren in Sousse, Tunisia.

BACKGROUND: In Tunisia, where the epidemiological transition phenomenon is well established, there are no data available at the population level on the cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk profile for children, although it is well known that risk factor development takes place in childhood. METHODS: We report an epidemiological survey based on a representative sample of 1569 urban schoolchildren of Sousse in Tunisia to assess the following CVD risk factors: hypertension, hypercholesterolaemia and other lipid disorders, obesity and tobacco consumption. RESULTS: The main results showed that girls had significantly higher levels of body mass index (BMI), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol than boys, who however had significantly higher levels of systolic blood pressure (SBP). Total cholesterol was significantly correlated to BMI and decreased with age. Obesity (BMI = 27) was found in 7.9% of the study population and was significantly higher for girls (9.7%) than for boys (6%): chi 2 = 9.02, DF = 2, P = 0.011. Overweight (BMI = 25) was also significantly higher for girls (16%) than for boys (11.1%): chi 2 = 8.21, DF = 1, P = 0.0041. Smoking habit concerned 7.6% of the study population; it was significantly higher for boys (14.7%) than for girls (1.1%): chi 2 = 103.4, DF = 1, P < 0.00001. CONCLUSION: This study showed to some extent that Tunisia's urban population of schoolchildren is exposed early to CVD risk factors and all should be done to avoid the worsening of this profile. These results will serve as a baseline for assessment of future trends in the risk factors studied