Mathematical modeling and experimental study of VOC adsorption by Pistachio shell-based activated carbon.

The adsorption of benzene vapor, as a volatile organic component, from inert gas (N2) by activated carbon was studied experimentally in the isothermal fixed bed reactor at various operating conditions. The activated carbon used in this study had pistachio shell base with high surface area. To improve the adsorption capacity of VOC vapor, the activated carbon was chemically treated with H2SO4, HNO3, NaOH, and NH3 solutions. The saturated adsorption capacities of benzene on initial activated carbon and treated samples were measured and compared. The results showed that the activated carbon treated with nitric acid had higher adsorption capacity than others samples, 640 mg/g. In addition, a mathematical model for adsorption in a fixed bed reactor was proposed in this study. The model results had good agreement with experimental data. In order to demonstrate the effects of operating conditions on adsorption and breakthrough curve, the experimental tests and simulation runs were carried out at various gas flow rate, temperature, and benzene concentration. The results showed that with increase VOC concentration from 700 to 1000 ppm, the total time of adsorption was decreased from 25 to 21 h and breakthrough point appeared earlier.

Hip arthroplasty in haemophilia: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Rigorous haemostatic control and careful rehabilitation are essential for haemophilic patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty (THA). AIM: to examine the current literature regarding THA in patients with haemophilia in order to determine clinical outcomes and complication rates. METHODS: We included 11 case reports/series and 9 original articles. There was a total of 206 patients who underwent 226 THAs. FINDINGS: The number of patients enrolled in the selected articles varied from 1 in case reports to 34 in the original articles. Gender was documented in 10. Mean age at surgery was 41 years. Mean follow-up was 73 months (standard deviation [SD] 35 months). All but 4 articles specified whether implants were cemented or uncemented, with 95% being uncemented, 3.5% being cemented, and 1.5% being hybrid (uncemented acetabular component, cemented femoral stem). CONCLUSION: Controlled hypotensive anaesthesia (to reduce preoperative blood loss), consult with haematologist, precise control of haemostasis status per the guidelines defined by the World Federation joint replacement, can improve the success rate and hip replacement surgery can be performed safely.

Hip Surgery in Quiescent or Active Tubercular Hip Arthritis; Is Reactivation Risk Really a Matter.

About 15 % of all musculoskeletal tuberculosis (TB) have hip involvement. Early anti-tubercular drug therapy and other conservative treatment including short-term traction and mobilization programs could prevent hip joint destruction. Reactivation of TB accounts for a significant of active TB incidence, especially in the developed countries with a low TB prevalence. The risk of TB activation for population with the latent form of disease is about 5-10%. According to the existing literature surgery in tubercular hip arthritis would be safe once sufficient debridement and precise anti tubercular chemotherapy has been done.

Lipid and carotenoid synthesis by Rhodosporidium diobovatum, grown on glucose versus glycerol, and its biodiesel properties.

Relationships between lipid and carotenoid synthesis by Rhodosporidium diobovatum were investigated for cell cultures in nitrogen-limited medium (GMY) containing equimolar amounts of carbon of glucose or glycerol. The cultures were also supplemented with additional substrate at 120 h postinoculation (pi) and during a fed-batch experiment. Growth of R. diobovatum on glucose resulted in higher yields of triacyglycerides (TAGs) and carotenoid than when grown on glycerol, even though the cultures contained equimolar amounts of carbon. After the addition of fresh substrate at 120 h pi, total carotenoid concentrations were significantly different from the concentrations measured at 120 h pi in both glucose and glycerol cultures, with no concomitant increase in lipid concentrations, suggesting that carotenoid synthesis is linked to exponential-phase growth, while lipid synthesis is linked to stationary phase. We also compared the calculated properties of biodiesel that could be made with TAGs derived from R. diobovatum with properties of biodiesel made from TAGs of other oleaginous yeasts, microalgae, vegetable oils, and animal fats. This study shows that R. diobovatum can be an effective strain for production of neutral lipids containing high percentages of oleic acid, palmitic acid, and linoleic acid, as well as carotenoids.

Suitable intravenous fluid for preventing dysnatremia in children with gastroenteritis; a randomized clinical trial.

INTRODUCTION: Gastroenteritis (GE) is one of the most common pediatric diseases. Hyponatremia commonly occurs by administering hypotonic fluids to GE and hospitalized children. Yet, there is no consensus on the ideal method of treatment. OBJECTIVES: we aimed to assess suitable intravenous (IV) fluid for preventing dysnatremia in children with GE. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This is a double blind randomized clinical trial, which was conducted on infants of 6 months up to 14 years children with GE. Children were randomly assigned in 2 different groups. Group A; received 20 cc/kg 0.9% isotonic saline as a bolus, and 0.45% hypotonic saline as sum of maintenance fluid and volume deficit. Group B was treated with the same bolus and 0.9% isotonic saline with 20 mEq/L KCl as sum of maintenance fluid and volume deficit. Blood and urine samples were taken at admission, 4 and 24 hours. Data were analyzed by independent t test, Mann-Whitney U test, Friedmann test, chi-square and 2-tailed repeated measurements by SPSS version 19. RESULTS: Baseline hyponatremia and isonatremia were detected in 24 (31.5%) and 51 (67.1%) patients, respectively. Mean level of sodium at T0, T4 and T 24 mentioned no significant difference between groups. No hypernatremia was noted by administering isotonic saline. RESULTS showed that 4 and 24 hours after administration isotonic saline, the mean plasma sodium differed significantly in baseline hyponatremic patients. However, no significant difference was noted after 4 and 24 hours in group A. CONCLUSION: According to the considerable effect of isotonic saline on hyponatremic patients, it seems that administering isotonic fluids regardless of the types of dysnatremia can be recommended to lessen clinicians' conflicting decision-making in selecting an appropriate fluid.

A Case of Recurrent Kikuchi-Fujimoto Disease.

INTRODUCTION: Kikuchi-Fujimoto Disease (KFD) is a benign, self-limited, inflammatory disorder, first reported in Japan. This condition is more prevalent among women and typically occurs in the third decade of life. It normally manifests as persistent, isolated cervical adenopathy with a recurrence rate of 3%. The identification of this condition is of high significance, given the risk of misdiagnosis with other disorders such as malignant lymphoma and extensive necrosis. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient was a 32-year-old female diagnosed with Kikuchi-Fujimoto disease via neck lymph node biopsy in August 2006 in the city of Mashhad, Iran. The disease regressed with proper follow-up, although after eight years the patient was readmitted to the hospital with severe weight loss, high fever, and uncommon symptoms of generalized adenopathy in cervical, axillary and inguinal regions. CONCLUSIONS: Although KFD is an uncommon condition, it should be featured in the list of differential diagnoses of tender lymphadenopathy, especially lymphadenopathy localized to the cervical region. We reported a case of KFD with a prolonged relapse of eight years. Full recovery with a good response to corticosteroid regimen was achieved after the recurrence.

Demographic and Socioeconomic Factors of Patients With Coronary Artery Diseases Undertreatment of Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting, Percutaneous Coronary Intervention and Drug Therapy in Mashhad, Iran.

BACKGROUND: Considering the importance of preventing cardiovascular diseases, determining the contributing risk factors for ischemic heart disease which leads to atherosclerotic plaque, could be effective in selecting the required interventions. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate socioeconomic factors in patients with Coronary Artery Diseases (CAD) in three treatment groups: Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG), Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) and drug therapy. By identifying and comparing the underlying factors in treatment groups, we can gather useful information for future planning and policy making in order to reduce and eliminate the contributing factors. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 760 patients with CAD referred to cardiovascular health centers in Mashhad, Iran, including Javad-Al-Aeme Heart Hospital, Qaem, Imam Reza and Dr. Shariati educational Hospital. Samples were collected through purposive sampling from January to March 2014. Based on the experts' opinion, the subjects were categorized into three treatment groups: CABG, PCI, and drug therapy. RESULTS: The mean age of total patients was 58.3 ± 11.5 years (P = 0.09). The proportion of rural patients in the PCI (26.7%) and drug therapy (27.5%) groups was twice as high as the CABG group (11.7%) (P < 0.001). The proportion of patients with higher educational level (higher than high school diploma) in the CABG group (35.9%) was higher than PCI and drug therapy groups (26.7%, 24.3%) (P = 0.006). Smoking, drinking and drug abuse were more common in the drug therapy group (P = 0.03, P = 0.02, and P < 0.001, respectively). One-vessel and three-vessel coronary artery diseases were more common in the drug and CABG groups, respectively (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: In total, application of therapeutic approaches in patients with CAD depends on many factors. In our study not only risk factors such as gender, lifestyle, smoking, alcohol abuse, diabetes and hypertension were associated with the incidence of CAD, but also they were highly correlated with the severity of the disease.

Epidemiology of hand injuries in children presenting to an orthopedic trauma center in southeast of iran.

BACKGROUND: Hand injuries are among the most common childhood injuries. No study has been performed regarding the epidemiology of hand injuries in the pediatric population of Iran. This study aimed to examine the epidemiology of hand injuries among children in southeast of Iran. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed via census sampling on patients, aged 16 years or less, with a final diagnosis of hand injury. Patients presenting to the orthopedic department of Khatam-al-Anbia General Hospitalof Zahedan, Iran, were selected from March 2012 to December 2013. Data were analyzed retrospectively, using a chart review. RESULTS: Two-hundred patients (136 males and 64 females with the mean age of 13±2.8 years) with 205 hand injuries were included in this study. As the results indicated, door-related injuries were the most common type (25%), accounting for 24% and 28% of injuries in male and female patients, respectively (P=0.016). Most injuries occurred at home (64%) and the lowest number was reported at school(22%) (P=0.012). Compared to boys, girls were more likely to be injured at home (78% vs. 57%) (P=0.13). In addition, the dominant hand was mostly injured by doors (28%). The most common type of injury was laceration(81%) and the least common type was finger amputation (7%); also, children with finger amputation were significantly younger than those with other types of hand injuries (P<0.001). Thumb alone (20%) and index and middle fingers together with anequal percentage (3.5%) were the most commonly injured digits. Also, the mean hospitalization cost was 297± 38 dollars. CONCLUSIONS: Most hand injuries occurred at home and were door-related; they were also more frequentamong younger children. Prospective studies in order to identify specific protective door devices could potentially decrease the frequency of these injures.

Interventricular Septum Hydatid Cyst: Successful Seven-Year Follow Up- Case Report.

Hydatid cyst disease should be considered in differential diagnosis in many doubtful clinical situations as can present with non-specific symptoms especially in the endemic areas. Cardiac involvement should be considered in patients with history of previous hydatid cyst disease.. Cardiac hydatid cysts account for less than 2% of all hydatid diseases. In this report we aimed to present a case of 14-year-old boy with the diagnosis of occlusion of artery of the right lower extremity. Surgical exploration of the femoral artery revealed multiple hydatid cysts. Echocardiography showed a mobile mixed mass lesion. Complete resection of the mass was done from interventricular septum. Histo-pathological examination of the removed tissue revealed a complicated hydatid cyst and complete mass excision was confirmed. In this case a 7 year clinical and serological tests evaluation follow-up after surgical treatment showed no evidence of recurrence. The finding of this case emphasizes that in endemic countries, primary cardiovascular echino-coccosis should be considered in differential diagnosis.