Diagnostic and Therapeutic Costs of Patients With a Diagnosis of Or Suspected of Coronavirus Disease in Iran

Objectives: To understand the social and individual effects of the disease and make decisions on the allocation of health resources, it is necessary to understand the economic burden of coronavirus disease (COVID-19); however, there are limited data in this field. This study aimed to estimate diagnostic and therapeutic costs of patients with a diagnosis of or suspected of COVID-19 disease admitted to hospitals in northeast Iran. Methods: This descriptive and analytical research was conducted as a retrospective study using the data collected from 2980 patients admitted to 30 hospitals from February to April 2020 in Iran. For data collection, an appropriate data capture tool was designed to record detailed resource use. A multivariate regression analysis was performed to examine the association between the treatment costs and sociodemographic, disease severity, and underlying diseases. Data were analyzed using Excel 2017 (Microsoft, Redmond, WA) and SPSS version 21 software (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL). Results: The inpatient costs per patient were Int$416, of which 74% were paid by social health insurance systems, 19% by the government, and 7% by the patients. The largest cost components were hoteling (37%) and medicine (36%). The 4 subscales of age, sex, underlying disease, and severity predicted 48.6% of the cost variance. Conclusion: Understanding the economic consequences of diseases can help policymakers to make plans to reduce out-of-pocket payments and make plans for funding. Since COVID-19 is a newly emerging disease and there is no definitive cure for the disease, the discovery of an effective medicine may alter medical costs and reduce the hospital length of stay, therefore significantly reducing treatment costs

Association between Randall's Plaque and Calcifying Nanoparticles

Randall's plaques, first described by Alexander Randall in the 1930s, are small subepithelial calcifications in the renal papillae (RP) that also extend deeply into the renal medulla. Despite the strong correlation between the presence of these plaques and the formation of renal stones, the precise origin and pathogenesis of Randall s plaque formation remain elusive. The discovery of calcifying nanoparticles (CNP) and their detection in many calcifying processes of human tissues has raised hypotheses about their possible involvement in renal stone formation. We collected RP and blood samples from 17 human patients who had undergone laparoscopic nephrectomy due to neoplasia. Homogenized RP tissues and serum samples were cultured for CNP. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analysis were performed on fixed RP samples. Immunohistochemical staining (IHS) was applied on the tissue samples using CNP-specific monoclonal antibody (mAb). Randall s plaques were visible on gross inspection in 11 out of 17 collected samples. Cultures of all serum samples and 13 tissue homogenates had CNP growth within 4 weeks. SEM revealed spherical apatite formations in 14 samples, with calcium and phosphate peaks detected by EDS analysis. IHS was positive in 9 out of 17 samples. A strong link was found between the presence of Randall s plaques and the detection of CNP, also referred to as nanobacteria. These results suggest new insights into the etiology of Randall's plaque formation, and will help us understand the pathogenesis of stone formation. Further studies on this topic may lead us to new approaches on early diagnosis and novel medical therapies of kidney stone formation

Feasibility studies of time-like proton electromagnetic form factors at PANDA at FAIR

Simulation results for future measurements of electromagnetic proton form factors at \PANDA (FAIR) within the PandaRoot software framework are reported. The statistical precision with which the proton form factors can be determined is estimated. The signal channel $\bar p p \to e^+ e^-$ is studied on the basis of two different but consistent procedures. The suppression of the main background channel, $\textit{i.e.}$ $\bar p p \to \pi^+ \pi^-$, is studied. Furthermore, the background versus signal efficiency, statistical and systematical uncertainties on the extracted proton form factors are evaluated using two different procedures. The results are consistent with those of a previous simulation study using an older, simplified framework. However, a slightly better precision is achieved in the PandaRoot study in a large range of momentum transfer, assuming the nominal beam conditions and detector performance

Feasibility studies for the measurement of time-like proton electromagnetic form factors from p¯ p→ μ+μ- at P ¯ ANDA at FAIR

This paper reports on Monte Carlo simulation results for future measurements of the moduli of time-like proton electromagnetic form factors, | GE| and | GM| , using the p¯ p→ μ+μ- reaction at P ¯ ANDA (FAIR). The electromagnetic form factors are fundamental quantities parameterizing the electric and magnetic structure of hadrons. This work estimates the statistical and total accuracy with which the form factors can be measured at P ¯ ANDA , using an analysis of simulated data within the PandaRoot software framework. The most crucial background channel is p¯ p→ π+π-, due to the very similar behavior of muons and pions in the detector. The suppression factors are evaluated for this and all other relevant background channels at different values of antiproton beam momentum. The signal/background separation is based on a multivariate analysis, using the Boosted Decision Trees method. An expected background subtraction is included in this study, based on realistic angular distributions of the background contribution. Systematic uncertainties are considered and the relative total uncertainties of the form factor measurements are presented

Study of doubly strange systems using stored antiprotons

Bound nuclear systems with two units of strangeness are still poorly known despite their importance for many strong interaction phenomena. Stored antiprotons beams in the GeV range represent an unparalleled factory for various hyperon-antihyperon pairs. Their outstanding large production probability in antiproton collisions will open the floodgates for a series of new studies of systems which contain two or even more units of strangeness at the P‾ANDA experiment at FAIR. For the first time, high resolution γ-spectroscopy of doubly strange ΛΛ-hypernuclei will be performed, thus complementing measurements of ground state decays of ΛΛ-hypernuclei at J-PARC or possible decays of particle unstable hypernuclei in heavy ion reactions. High resolution spectroscopy of multistrange Ξ−-atoms will be feasible and even the production of Ω−-atoms will be within reach. The latter might open the door to the |S|=3 world in strangeness nuclear physics, by the study of the hadronic Ω−-nucleus interaction. For the first time it will be possible to study the behavior of Ξ‾+ in nuclear systems under well controlled conditions

Precision resonance energy scans with the PANDA experiment at FAIR: Sensitivity study for width and line shape measurements of the X(3872)

This paper summarises a comprehensive Monte Carlo simulation study for precision resonance energy scan measurements. Apart from the proof of principle for natural width and line shape measurements of very narrow resonances with PANDA, the achievable sensitivities are quantified for the concrete example of the charmonium-like X(3872) state discussed to be exotic, and for a larger parameter space of various assumed signal cross-sections, input widths and luminosity combinations. PANDA is the only experiment that will be able to perform precision resonance energy scans of such narrow states with quantum numbers of spin and parities that differ from J P C = 1 - -

Comparison of Deciduous Dental Occlusion in Breastfed Versus Bottle-Fed Children

Background and aim: The effect of different milk consumption patterns in infants on the formation of dental occlusion is one of the issues under discussion. Due to the lack of specific results in this regard, the purpose of this study was to determine the occlusion of deciduous teeth in breastfed and bottle-fed infants. Materials and methods: This is a descriptive-analytical study on 316 children aged 4-5 years old. This study was based on clinical examination and filling questionnaires. The examination was done at kindergartens and in sitting position using a dental mirror and with exposure to natural light. The occlusal relationship, overjet, overbite, and crossbite were examined through direct observation in the centric occlusion. The questionnaires were completed by the mothers. The basis of this study was the responses that mothers gave in the questionnaire based on the type and duration of breastfeeding or bottle-feeding. The collected data were statistically analyzed by Chi-square test. Significance was considered at the level of P<0.05. Results: The results of this study showed a significant relationship between nutrition with dry milk and increased overjet (P=0.048) and distal step occlusion (P=0.001). The duration of milk consumption showed no significant relationship with any of the studied variables. Conclusion: Malocclusion was more frequently observed in bottle-fed children