Comparison of Vascular Density and Structural Patterns Between Primary Open Angle Glaucoma and Primary Angle Closure Glaucoma.

PURPOSE: To compare the pattern of vascular density and structural damage in primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) with primary angle closure glaucoma (PACG) using optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA) in the optic nerve head, circumpapillary, and macular regions, respectively. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred thirty-one eyes of 82 patients (53 eyes with PACG and 78 eyes with POAG) were enrolled in this study. The patients underwent complete ophthalmic examination, Bruch membrane opening minimum rim width, circumpapillay retinal nerve fiber layer (cpRNFL), and macular ganglion cell complex (GCC) measurements and vascular density determination of the peripapillary and macular area with OCT and OCTA. A linear mixed model was used for the statistical analysis. RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the 2 groups in terms of age ( P =0.94) and visual field mean deviation ( P =0.78). Female-to-male ratio was higher in PACG patients than the POAG group ( P =0.02), and AL was shorter in PACG eyes ( P <0.001). cpRNFL and GCC were not different between the 2 groups (all P values>0.05, except for nasal segment cpRNFL). Vessel densities in the peripapillary and macular areas were comparable between the 2 groups (all P values>0.05). Although Bruch membrane opening minimum rim width was thicker in PACG eyes on univariate analysis, the multivariable analysis showed no significant difference between the 2 groups ( P >0.05). CONCLUSIONS: PACG and POAG eyes with similar visual field damages have comparable structural damage patterns in the peripapillary and inner macular thickness and vessel density measurements.

The spectrum of ß-thalassemia mutations in Kermanshah Province in West Iran and its association with hematological parameters.

ß-Thalassemia (ß-thal) is a hereditary autosomal disorder with decreased or absent ß-globin chain synthesis. Two hundred and one unrelated ß-thal carriers, attending the Kermanshah Medical Genetics Laboratory, Kermanshah, Iran, were investigated for ß-globin gene mutations by amplification refractory mutation system-polymerase chain reaction (ARMS-PCR) and direct sequencing. Eighteen different mutations were identified in these subjects. Four of the mutations accounted for about 75.0% of the studied cases. IVS-II-1 (G>A) was the most frequent (45.8%) followed by codons 8/9 (+G) (15.9%), IVS-I-110 (G>A) (8.0%), IVS-I-6 (T>C) (5.5%), IVS-I-1 (G>A) (3.5%) and codon 44 (-C) (3.5%); the remaining 12 mutations were present with a frequency less than 3.0%. The mean corpuscular volume (MCV) values for males and females were 63.7 ± 3.7 and 63.2 ± 3.2 fL, respectively, while these values were 19.3 ± 1.6 and 19.3 ± 1.4 pg for mean corpuscular hemoglobin (Hb) (MCH). The mean Hb A2 values for males and females were 4.4 ± 0.5 and 4.1 ± 0.6%, respectively. This study provides a distribution guide for ß-thal mutations in Kermanshah Province, West Iran.

Effects of engine speed and accessory load on idling emissions from heavy-duty diesel truck engines.

A nontrivial portion of heavy-duty vehicle emissions of NOx and particulate matter (PM) occurs during idling. Regulators and the environmental community are interested in curtailing truck idling emissions, but current emissions models do not characterize them accurately, and little quantitative data exist to evaluate the relative effectiveness of various policies. The objectives of this study were to quantify the effect of accessory loading and engine speed on idling emissions from a properly functioning, modern, heavy-duty diesel truck and to compare these results with data from earlier model year vehicles. It was found that emissions during idling varied greatly as a function of engine model year, engine speed, and accessory load conditions. For the 1999 model year Class 8 truck tested, raising the engine speed from 600 to 1050 rpm and turning on the air conditioning resulted in a 2.5-fold increase in NOx emissions in grams per hour, a 2-fold increase in CO2 emissions, and a 5-fold increase in CO emissions while idling. On a grams per gallon fuel basis, NOx emissions while idling were approximately twice as high as those at 55 mph. The CO2 emissions at the two conditions were closer. The NOx emissions from the 1999 truck while idling with air conditioning running were slightly more than those of two 1990 model year trucks under equivalent conditions, and the hydrocarbon (HC) and CO emissions were significantly lower. It was found that the NOx emissions used in the California Air Resources Board's (CARB) EMFAC2000 and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) MOBILE5b emissions inventory models were lower than those measured in all of the idling conditions tested on the 1999 truck.