Anthropometric measurements of the external nose in 18–25-year-old Sistani and Baluch aborigine women in the southeast of Iran

The human nose differs in its anatomy and morphology between different racial and ethnic groups. The objective of this survey was to provide data for clinical plastics of the nose, medical aesthetics and cosmetology, anthropology, nationality study, and medical jurisprudence in Sistani (Fars) and Baluch aborigines in the southeast of Iran. The subjects participating in this study were 400 volunteer Baluch and Sistani aborigine women (in both groups the number of subjects was 200) within the age range of 18&#8211;25 years. Anthropometric data were obtained from all subjects using standard anthropometric methods with a sliding calliper. The data were analyzed using SPSS 11.0. Values were expressed as mean &#177; standard deviation (SD). Student t-test was used to compare the results. A p value of less than 0.05 was considered significant. The mean total length and height of the nose in the Sistani group was significantly (p < 0.001) lower than in the Baluch group (46.5 &#177; 1.8 vs. 53.0 &#177; 1.3; 44.0 &#177; 2.2 vs. 49.5 &#177; 2.0). The mean anatomic width of the nose in the Sistani group was higher than in the Baluch group (32.3 &#177; 1.3 vs. 31.4 &#177; 1.5 mm). The nasal index in the Sistani group was significantly (p < 0.001) higher than in the Baluch group (69.7 &#177; 3.5 vs. 59.2 &#177; 3.3). The most common type of nose was leptorrhine (fine nose), accounting for 55.5% in the Sistani group and 98.5% in the Baluch group. The most common type of face in both groups was leptoprosopic. In spite of significant differences in measurements of noses in the Sistani and Baluch groups, the most common types of nose and face were similar in these two groups

Maternal Experiences of Their Unborn Child's Spiritual Care: Patterns of Abstinence in Iran

Preparing for pregnancy and childbirth has significant association with spirituality. Review of the literature shows that the spirituality of the “unborn child” has not yet attracted much critical attention. This study was conducted with the aim of exploration of maternal behaviors associated with the spiritual health of the unborn child. A qualitative approach was used to investigate the research question. Twenty-seven in-depth unstructured interviews were conducted with 22 Iranian mothers in Tehran city (Iran) who were pregnant or had experienced pregnancy in 2012-2013. Data analysis was carried out using a conventional content analysis approach. “Refusing to eat forbidden food,” “Overcoming mental adversity,” “Regulating one’s social interactions,” “Preventing the effects of harmful environments on the senses,” “Avoidance of using insulting and abusive language,” “Keeping one’s mind and spirit free from evil traits,” and “Refraining from damaging behaviors” were important experiences that the mothers used for “Holistic Abstinence.” The results provide new information about the subjective experiences of Iranian women on the patterns of abstinence for the midwives, research community, policy makers, and planners of maternal and child health care services in order to contribute to holistic, culturally, and religiously competent prenatal care for Muslim pregnant women throughout the world

Three Dimensional Dynamic Analysis of Alborz Dam with Asphalt and Clay Cores

Alborz rockfill dam with a clay core is under construction in North of Iran, an area of heavy rainfall. Because of the difficulties in the construction of a clay core in a wet area, an alternative for the watertight element (asphalt core) was considered. During the design of Alborz dam, a dynamic response analysis of the asphalt core was performed using two-dimensional modeling based on the equivalent linear method. Considering the shortage of study on the seismic behavior of asphalt core dams and also the high level of risk of earthquakes in Iran, it was necessary that the dynamic behavior of this dam was studied using three-dimensional models. In this study, the dynamic response of Alborz dam for both variants of clay and asphalt cores has been investigated and three-dimensional dynamic (non-linear) analyses have been carried out using the explicit finite-difference program, FLAC3-D, under various hazard levels of earthquakes (DBL and MCL). The results obtained included: time histories of the response acceleration, displacement, shear stress and shear strains are presented in this paper. The dynamic response of the dam with a clay core and asphalt core are compared with each other

Investigation of Dynamic Behavior of Asphalt Core Dams

In this research, dynamic behavior of a rockfill dam with asphalt-concrete core has been studied utilizing numerical models and centrifuge model tests with material parameters determined by laboratory tests including static and cyclic triaxial tests and also wave velocity measurements. The case study selected is the Meyjaran asphalt core dam, recently constructed in Northern Iran, with 60 m height and 180 m crest length. The seismic response analyses have been performed using a non-linear three dimensional finite difference software under various hazard levels of earthquake loadings. Their results showed that the induced shear strains in the asphalt core are less than 1% during an earthquake with amax=0.25g and the asphalt core remains watertight. Also, the small scale physical models of the asphalt core dam have been tested on centrifuge, under impact loading and response accelerations and induced deformations were recorded by instruments installed within and on the models. The recorded data and observations of the centrifuge model tested at 80g acceleration showed that the induced deformations in the asphalt core under an impact load with a large acceleration of 7.6 m/s2 were very small. Comparing the results of centrifuge tests with the results of numerical dynamic analyses of a prototype dam indicated that the numerical results corresponded well with the data recorded during centrifuge tests

Triple-Modal Imaging of Magnetically-Targeted Nanocapsules in Solid Tumours In Vivo

Triple-modal imaging magnetic nanocapsules, encapsulating hydrophobic superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles, are formulated and used to magnetically target solid tumours after intravenous administration in tumour-bearing mice. The engineered magnetic polymeric nanocapsules m-NCs are ~200 nm in size with negative Zeta potential and shown to be spherical in shape. The loading efficiency of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in the m-NC was ~100%. Up to ~3- and ~2.2-fold increase in tumour uptake at 1 and 24 h was achieved, when a static magnetic field was applied to the tumour for 1 hour. m-NCs, with multiple imaging probes (e.g. indocyanine green, superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles and indium-111), were capable of triple-modal imaging (fluorescence/magnetic resonance/nuclear imaging) in vivo. Using triple-modal imaging is to overcome the intrinsic limitations of single modality imaging and provides complementary information on the spatial distribution of the nanocarrier within the tumour. The significant findings of this study could open up new research perspectives in using novel magnetically-responsive nanomaterials in magnetic-drug targeting combined with multi-modal imaging

Pilot Clinical Trial of Indocyanine Green Fluorescence-Augmented Colonoscopy in High Risk Patients

White light colonoscopy is the current gold standard for early detection and treatment of colorectal cancer, but emerging data suggest that this approach is inherently limited. Even the most experienced colonoscopists, under optimal conditions, miss at least 15–25% of adenomas. There is an unmet clinical need for an adjunctive modality to white light colonoscopy with improved lesion detection and characterization. Optical molecular imaging with exogenously administered organic fluorochromes is a burgeoning imaging modality poised to advance the capabilities of colonoscopy. In this proof-of-principle clinical trial, we investigated the ability of a custom-designed fluorescent colonoscope and indocyanine green, a clinically approved fluorescent blood pool imaging agent, to visualize polyps in high risk patients with polyposis syndromes or known distal colonic masses. We demonstrate (1) the successful performance of real-time, wide-field fluorescence endoscopy using off-the-shelf equipment, (2) the ability of this system to identify polyps as small as 1 mm, and (3) the potential for fluorescence imaging signal intensity to differentiate between neoplastic and benign polyps