Accuracy of working length determination with root ZX apex locator and radiography: An in vivo and ex vivo study

The purpose of this study was to clinically compare working length (WL) determination with root ZX apex locator and radiography, and then compare them with direct visualization method ex vivo. A total of 75 maxillary central and lateral incisors were selected. Working length determination was carried out using radiographic and electronic apex locator methods. Subsequently, the tooth under study was extracted and actual working length was determined directly under a stereomicroscope. Data were analyzed by Wilcoxon signed-rank, Spearman’s correlation coefficient and intra-class correlation tests. All the statistical analyses were set with a significance level of α = 0.05. The absolute measurement errors of the two methods were compared using Wilcoxon signed test, exhibiting no statistically significant difference in measurement errors between the two methods. Descriptive evaluation revealed that in 72% (n = 54) of the specimens, both methods had errors in the same direction and in 28% (n = 21) of the specimens, the two methods had errors in opposite directions. Intra-class correlation coefficient test demonstrated a high degree of agreement between the two methods. In conclusion, this study did not show any difference between radiography, root ZX and direct visualization in WL determination.Key words: Working length, electronic apex locator, root ZX, radiography

Expression of S-locus inhibitor gene (Sli) in various diploid potatoes

Current guidelines recommend immunosuppressive treatment (IT) in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and elevated aminotransferase levels more than five times the upper limit of normal and elevated serum IgG-levels above twice the upper limit of normal. Since there is no evidence to support this recommendation, we aimed to assess the criteria that guided clinicians in clinical practice to initiate IT in patients with previously diagnosed PSC.This is a retrospective analysis of 196 PSC patients from seven German hepatology centers, of whom 36 patients had received IT solely for their liver disease during the course of PSC. Analyses were carried out using methods for competing risks.A simplified autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) score >5 (HR of 36, p5 and a mHAI score >3, suggesting concomitant features of AIH, influenced the decision to introduce IT during the course of PSC. In German clinical practice, the cutoffs used to guide IT may be lower than recommended by current guidelines

A review of women\'s sexual dysfunction during postpartum

Introduction: Sexual dysfunctions are more common than previously thought. These types of disorders have many negative consequences. Sexual dysfunctions are closely linked to the social problems, such as crimes, mental illness and divorce. Lack of quality of life, anxiety, low self-esteem, selfishness, nervousness, tenderness of pain and discomfort, inability to concentrate on thinking and even inability to performing the ordinary tasks are also other consequences of failure to satisfying the sexual instinct. The purpose of this review was evaluation of the sexual dysfunction of women during the postpartum period. Methods: In this study, a comprehensive overview of the articles was conducted in English and Persian. In order to search for articles in Persian, we used Iranian databases SID, IranMedex and Magiran and to search for English articles, we use Proquest, PubMed, Ovid, Science Direct, EBSCO, MD consult Cochrane Library, Sciruse, and Google Scholar. Conclusion: Sexual function is like a cycle and various factors affect on it. Among the various factors that affect the person's tendencies, sexual function and behavior, it can point out to the other factors such ass physiological, anatomical, psychological, socio-cultural, economic-political factors, etc. Understanding the sexual experiences of women during the postpartum period will have an important role in the maintaining of the family health and also establishing the natural and instinctive relationships. Therefore, attention to the sexual health should be one of the main components of cares in order to taking a step to resolve women's problem

Soil stabilization for dunes fixation using microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation

Climate change and desertification caused increases in sandstorms and sand movements due to the erosive force of the wind. Wind erosion is a phenomenon depending on the climatic components and surface roughness in arid and semi-arid regions responsible for health and economic loss. The phenomenon is controlled by increasing the resistance of soils using chemical, physical and biological methods. Due to the high cost and environmental issues of conventional techniques, the use of alternative green stabilization methods is inevitable. Therefore, in the present study, the effect of microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP) on the fixation of in situ dunes in north-east of Iran was assessed. The cementation solution of 0.1–0.5 M was sprayed and evaluated after 7, 15, and 30 days. The MICP treated samples were exposed to wind tunnel for the variation of wind threshold detachment velocity (TDV) as well as other macro/micro evaluation such as unconfined compressive strength, seed germination, scanning electron microscope (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscope (EDX). The results suggested the critical impact of both geotechnical and geoenvironmental parameters for the selection of soil stabilizers on the fixation of dunes. It can be stated that the bio-crust formation with 0.3 M showed 123 kPa and no wind erosion potential after 30 days under the wind speed of 30 m/s. The results of the germination of H. persicum demonstrated that the contemporaneous of MICP treatment with native plants positively affect the TDV.Published versionThis paper was extracted from the project entitled "Studying the Feasibility of using Modern Technologies based on Geopolymer in Dust Control of Critical Foci." with the number of "2-09-09-085-000731" funded by Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands (RIFR)

Factors Affecting the Quality and Quantity of Sleep in Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Patients

Introduction: Sleep disturbance is common in patients undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Graft surgery and has been recognized for more than 30 years. New literature suggests the importance of sleep and rest for restoration, protection and promotion of function and wellbeing of these patients. Because of the importance of the role of nurses in diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders, this study was conducted to determine possible effective factors on sleep quality and sleep quantity of patients after CABG. Methods: This longitudinal, descriptive and correlational study was conducted on 91 patients admitted to Imam Reza Hospital in Mashad City in 2005-2006. Subjects were selected according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data was collected by interview in three stages: 24 hours before surgery, as well as 6 weeks and 10 weeks after surgery. Subjective sleep quality was measured with PSQI and sleep quantity was measured with sleep log. The first two interviews were done at the hospital clinic and the last via telephone. Data was analyzed in SPSS using student T test, Pearson correlation coefficient and General Linear Model. Results: According to Univariable analysis, variables such as age (p=0.03), aorta clamp time (p=0.003), mechanical ventilation time (p=0.01), staying time in hospital (p=0.04) can affect sleep quantity 10 weeks after surgery. Previous history of sleep disorder (p=0.005), diabetes (p=0.02), use of diuretic drugs before surgery (p=0.04) and ACEI drugs after surgery (p=0.01) can affect sleep quality 10 weeks after surgery. Conclusion: Sleep disorder history (p=0.01), use of diuretic drugs before surgery (p=0.04) and sleep quantity 6 weeks after surgery (p=0.01) have been the most effective factors on sleep quality 10 weeks after surgery, whereas quality of life 10 weeks after surgery (p=0.04) has been the most effective factor on sleep quantity 10 weeks after surgery. There is therefore a necessity for presenting approaches in order to eliminate and minimize modifiable factors

Optimization of essential oil extraction from orange peels using steam explosion

In this work, a new extraction process using steam explosion at high temperature and pressure was developed, to drastically shorten the extraction time and improved extraction of the essential oil from citrus peels. In steam explosion process, the material is subjected to the high-pressure saturated steam following by substantially dropping the pressure through an angle valve to a vacuum tank. The optimum essential oil yield by the steam explosion was obtained at the 170 degrees C, 8 bar in 240 seconds duration time. The essential oil extraction of a certain amount of citrus peels by hydro-distillation took nearly eight times longer than explosion extraction process. The obtained citrus oil from hydro-distillation processes had 10 to 13 major components more than the steam explosion, as shown by gas chromatography (GC-MS). The maximum product yield of Limonene, a major favorable component, were 77% and 100% in hydrodistillation and steam explosion processes, respectively