Emotional Intelligence Components in Alcohol Dependent and Mentally Healthy Individuals

Objective. Emotional intelligence might play an important role in the onset and persistence of different psychopathologies. This study investigated the relationship between emotional intelligence and alcohol dependence. Methods. In this case-control study, participants included alcohol dependent individuals and mentally healthy inpatients. Each group consisted of 40 individuals (male/female: 1). The diagnosis was based on the criteria of the DSM-IV-TR using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-IV). All the participants completed Bar-On emotional intelligence test. Results. 20 males and 20 females were included in each group. Mean age of alcohol dependent participants and controls was 31.28 ± 7.82 and 34.93 ± 9.83 years in that order. The analyses showed that the alcohol dependent individuals had a significant difference compared with the control group and received lower scores in empathy, responsibility, impulse control, self-esteem, optimism, emotional consciousness, stress tolerance, autonomy, problem-solving, and total score of emotional intelligence components. Conclusion. Patients with alcohol dependence have deficits in components of emotional intelligence. Identifying and targeted training of the individuals with lower scores in components of emotional intelligence may be effective in prevention of alcohol dependence

A Hardware-Software System for Accurate Segmentation of Phonocardiogram Signal

Background: Phonocardiogram (PCG) signal provides valuable information for diagnosing heart diseases. However, its applications in quantitative analyses of heart function are limited because the interpretation of this signal is difficult. A key step in quantitative PCG is the identification of the first and second sounds (S1 and S2) in this signal. Objective: This study aims to develop a hardware-software system for synchronized acquisition of two signals electrocardiogram (ECG) and PCG and to segment the recorded PCG signal via the information provided in the acquired ECG signal. Material and Methods: In this analytical study, we developed a hardware-software system for real-time identification of the first and second heart sounds in the PCG signal. A portable device to capture synchronized ECG and PCG signals was developed. Wavelet de-noising technique was used to remove noise from the signal. Finally, by fusing the information provided by the ECG signal (R-peaks and T-end) into a hidden Markov model (HMM), the first and second heart sounds were identified in the PCG signal. Results: ECG and PCG signals from 15 healthy adults were acquired and analyzed using the developed system. The average accuracy of the system in correctly detecting the heart sounds was 95.6% for S1 and 93.4% for S2.   Conclusion: The presented system is cost-effective, user-friendly, and accurate in identifying S1 and S2 in PCG signals. Therefore, it might be effective in quantitative PCG and diagnosing heart diseases

Prevalence of Cerebrospinal Fluid Rhinorrhea Following Trans-Sphenoidal Surgery for Pituitary Adenoma in Patients Referred to Loghman Hakim Hospital from 2016 to 2020

Background: Endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal surgery is commonly used to remove pituitary adenomas. However, it can lead to cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage, with an incidence of around 5% in sphenoid transnasal procedures and up to 20% in extended endonasal approaches. A retrospective study was conducted on 160 pituitary adenoma patients admitted to Loghman Hakim Hospital from 2016 to 2020 to evaluate the factors influencing CSF leak. Aim: The aim of this study was evaluating the occurrence of cerebrospinal fluid leakage and analyzing the factors involved. Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of patients diagnosed with pituitary adenoma at Loghman-Hakim hospital over a four-year period. Demographic information, tumor characteristics, surgical procedures, and complications were collected. All patients gave their consent, and the study was approved by the ethics committee. Surgical procedures were conducted using a direct endonasal trans-sphenoidal approach under general anesthesia, and antibiotics were given. Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS to evaluate the relation between measured variables and the occurrence of CSF leak. Results: The study found that 19.4% of the patients developed CSF leak during their hospital stay. Age and body mass index (BMI) of patients with CSF leak significantly differed from those without. The size of the tumor did not differ significantly between patients with and without CSF leak. The only variable associated with CSF leak was sphenoid sinus anatomy. Conclusion: The study concluded that older patients with a lower BMI and a larger defect size are more prone to CSF leak, but no significant difference was found in tumor size between the groups with and without CSF leak. Sphenoid sinus anatomy correlated with CSF leak, while other factors did not show any correlation with the incidence of CSF leak

Emotional Intelligence Components in Alcohol Dependent and Mentally Healthy Individuals

Objective. Emotional intelligence might play an important role in the onset and persistence of different psychopathologies. This study investigated the relationship between emotional intelligence and alcohol dependence. Methods. In this case-control study, participants included alcohol dependent individuals and mentally healthy inpatients. Each group consisted of 40 individuals (male/female: 1). The diagnosis was based on the criteria of the DSM-IV-TR using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-IV). All the participants completed Bar-On emotional intelligence test. Results. 20 males and 20 females were included in each group. Mean age of alcohol dependent participants and controls was 31.28 ± 7.82 and 34.93 ± 9.83 years in that order. The analyses showed that the alcohol dependent individuals had a significant difference compared with the control group and received lower scores in empathy, responsibility, impulse control, self-esteem, optimism, emotional consciousness, stress tolerance, autonomy, problem-solving, and total score of emotional intelligence components. Conclusion. Patients with alcohol dependence have deficits in components of emotional intelligence. Identifying and targeted training of the individuals with lower scores in components of emotional intelligence may be effective in prevention of alcohol dependence

Levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in milk and milk powder samples and their likely risk assessment in Iranian population

An MSPE/GC–MS method was used for the measuring of 16 PAHs and assessing of the effect of different factors on PAHs concentrations among different types of dairy products. Moreover, the probabilistic health risk assessment due to ingestion of PAHs by the consumption of milk and milk powder was evaluated.The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantitation LOQ were ranged between 0.040-0.075 and 0.121-0.227 μg/kg, respectively. The highest mean of total PAHs was noted in milk powdered (2.28 ± 0.39 μg/kg), while the lowest content was observed in pasteurized milk (0.87 ± 0.18 μg/kg). Except for a few samples of milk powder, the PAHs contents of the other samples was lower than standard limits while the concentration of BaP was lower than of standard levels proposed by EU (0.02-0.06 μg/kg). Considering season effect, the samples in winter had the highest level of PAHs. The percentile 95% actual THQ was the 3.64E-04 value that was lower than 1 value. Hence, the consumers are not at considerable non carcinogenic health risk while the actual ILCR was 3.53E-03 as higher than 1E-04. Therefore, consumers are at considerable carcinogenic risk. Generally speaking, approaching the control plans for a decrease in the concentration of PAHs in dairy products in order to control carcinogenic health risk is crucial

Management Science Letters An integrated model for building brand in food industry

This paper presents an empirical investigation on the effects of various factors on building appropriate brand in food industry. The proposed study deigns a questionnaire and distributes it among some expert who were involved in food industry. Cronbach alpha are mostly well above the minimum desirable limit of 0.7, which validate the overall questionnaire. In addition, Pearson correlation ratios indicate that there were some positive and meaningful relationships among all components of the survey. The study implements structural equation modeling and the results indicate that brand vision influences brand position, positively. In addition, there is a positive and meaningful relationship from brand vision to product performance, from stakeholders towards brand vision as well as brand position and brand communication. The survey has also detected that brand position could influence on brand communication and product performance. In our survey, brand communication influences product and brand performance, brand distribution influences on brand performance and product influences on brand performance