Hybrid BO-XGBoost and BO-RF Models for the Strength Prediction of Self-Compacting Mortars with Parametric Analysis

Self-compacting mortar (SCM) has superior workability and long-term durable performance compared to traditional mortar. The strength of SCM, including both its compressive and flexural strengths, is a crucial property that is determined by appropriate curing conditions and mix design parameters. In the context of materials science, predicting the strength of SCM is challenging because of multiple influencing factors. This study employed machine learning techniques to establish SCM strength prediction models. Based on ten different input parameters, the strength of SCM specimens were predicted using two different types of hybrid machine learning (HML) models, namely Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) and the Random Forest (RF) algorithm. HML models were trained and tested by experimental data from 320 test specimens. In addition, the Bayesian optimization method was utilized to fine tune the hyperparameters of the employed algorithms, and cross-validation was employed to partition the database into multiple folds for a more thorough exploration of the hyperparameter space while providing a more accurate assessment of the model's predictive power. The results show that both HML models can successfully predict the SCM strength values with high accuracy, and the Bo-XGB model demonstrated higher accuracy (R² = 0.96 for training and R² = 0.91 for testing phases) for predicting flexural strength with low error. In terms of compressive strength prediction, the employed BO-RF model performed very well, with R² = 0.96 for train and R² = 0.88 testing stages with minor errors. Moreover, the SHAP algorithm, permutation importance and leave-one-out importance score were used for sensitivity analysis to explain the prediction process and interpret the governing input variable parameters of the proposed HML models. Finally, the outcomes of this study might be applied to guide the future mix design of SCM specimens.

Correlation between Antero-posterior Diameter and Vertical Diameter of Both Ends of Fully Ossified Dry Human Clavicle

Clavicle is an upper limb locomotory bone which helps in formation of pectoral girdle and connected the upper limb with axial skeleton. There is no baseline data of clavicle in contrast to demographic variation in our country, so the study was designed to obtain baseline data on clavicle for anthropological, forensic and clinical use. This descriptive cross-sectional study was done among 150 (65 right and 85 left) fully ossified dry human clavicle in Mymensingh Medical College, Mymensingh, Bangladesh from January 2020 to December 2020. Sample was collected by the help of nonrandom purposive sampling technique from Department of Anatomy of Mymensingh Medical College and Community Based Medical College, Bangladesh, Mymensingh. The parameters were the antero-posterior diameter and vertical diameter of sternal and acromial ends of clavicle, measured with the help of digital vernier slide caliper and expressed in millimeter. In the current study the mean±SD antero-posterior diameter of sternal end of 65 clavicles of right side was 21.97±2.889mm and 85 clavicles of left side were 20.30±3.459mm. The mean±SD antero-posterior diameter of acromial end of 65 right sided clavicles was 21.96±5.161mm and 85 clavicles of left side were 21.00±4.002mm. Correlation was done in between antero-posterior diameter and vertical diameter of sternal end of clavicle and the differences were highly significant on both sides. Similarly, when correlation was done for the acromial end of clavicle the difference was found non-significant on right side and highly significant on left side.

Noonan Syndrome Presenting with Stunted Growth: A Case Report

Noonan syndrome is a genetic disorder of autosomal dominant inheritance that prevents normal development in various parts of the body. A spontaneous mutation without any family history may also result in the condition. Noonan syndrome can affect normal growth. Birth weight may be normal, but growth slows over time. The growth spurt usually seen during the teenage years may be delayed, and bone maturity also is delayed. In this case A 13 year's male admitted inpatient Department of Endocrinology, Mymensingh Medical College Hospital in April 2021 with not attaining appropriate height and delayed development of secondary sexual characteristics. His birth weight was normal; gestational and neonatal history was uneventful. He was diagnosed with severe pulmonary stenosis at four years and underwent cardiac surgery at his four and eleven years. He was noted to have growth failure from the age of 9 years onward. He had no family history of such type of disease. On examination, he was short statured, underweight, having an upper: lower segment ratio of 1.05 with an arm span of 126cm. He had craniosynostosis, high arched palate, the thick helix of ears (outer rim), small, upturned nose, depressed broad nose, deeply grooved philtrum, keratosis pilaris of the face and upper arm, slant eyes with proptosis, keloid scar over mid-chest, widely spaced nipple, shield chest, pectus excavatum and cubitus valgus. His sexual maturation score was A1, P1, B1. He had pulmonary stenosis with pulmonary hypertension. He had mild microcytic anemia with normal liver, renal, blood glucose, and calcium profile. His bone age was delayed (9 years), thyroid function was normal. The growth hormone dynamic test after clonidine stimulation was normal. His karyotype was 46XY. We have considered giving recombinant growth hormone therapy to accelerate his height.

Prevalence of Hepatitis B Virus Infection among Children with Liver Disease Admitted In Mymensingh Medical College Hospital

Hepatitis B virus infection is an important cause of liver disease. Hepatitis B Virus may present with varying degree of severity. In older children, 5-10% cases leading to chronic liver disease, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. This descriptive cross sectional study was done to assess the prevalence of Hepatitis B Virus infection among hospitalized children with liver disease in pediatric department of Mymensingh Medical College Hospital, Bangladesh from December 2015 to October 2016. All the children of both sexes having age between six months to twelve years admitted in the pediatric ward with acute or chronic liver disease were included in this study by purposive sampling. A written consent was obtained from legal guardian of children before inclusion. Ethical clearance was obtained from competent authority. A detailed history was taken from parents in each case according to pre-designed questionnaire about demography of the patients and the risk factors of the liver disease. A thorough clinical examination and available relevant investigations like serological testing for HBV infection was done in all patients. We had figure out the seropositivity of HBV among patients having liver disease by doing HBsAg and Anti-HBc IgM. Progress of the patient was monitored by daily clinical examinations and by investigating HBsAg and Anti-HBc IgM. Finally data analysis was done by SPSS version 21.0. Among total 100 patients most (44%) patients were in 7-10 years old and most (62%) of the participants were male. Acute liver disease was 58% cases and chronic liver disease was 42% cases. HBsAg was positive in 1 case among acute liver disease and 5 cases among chronic cases. Total 6 (six) patients were found positive for HBsAg. Anti HBc IgM was positive in 4 patients among acute liver disease. Among these Anti HBc IgM positive (4) patients only one had both HBsAg and Anti HBc IgM positive. So, four patients were confirming suffered from acute viral hepatitis because they had anti HBc IgM positive. On the contrary 5 patients suffered from chronic hepatitis by hepatitis B because they were only HBsAg positive. So, in this study 9 patients (9%) were confirming suffered from HBV infection. Possible transmission factors of hepatitis B were history of (H/O) blood transfusion/trauma/parenteral injection, H/O umbilical sepsis, H/O maternal illness/infection during pregnancy. HBV still is a major cause of morbidity. All the children with liver disease should be routinely tested for HBV.

A Prospective Study of Deep Vein Thrombosis after Major Abdominal Surgery in a Tertiary Level Hospital

This prospective study was conducted to find the rate of deep and risk factors associated with vein thrombosis following major abdominal surgery in Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital from 1st November 2017 to 30th April 2018. Total 103 patients aged above 20 years both male and female who got admitted in Department of Surgery, Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital, Sylhet for their disease requiring routine and emergency major abdominal operation during the study period and fulfilling the inclusion and exclusion criteria were selected in this study. Informed written consent was obtained from the patients after full explanation of the purpose of the study. After full investigations and proper preparation of each patient for operative procedure major abdominal surgery were done. Peroperative findings were noted and post-operative period were followed up routinely. Duplex scanning was done on 3rd POD in all cases. The age of the patients ranged from 25 to 74 years with the mean age of 49.5±13.8 years. There were 60(58.3%) male and 43(41.7%) female. Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) developed in 5(4.9%) of cases and not developed in 98(95.1%) cases. All the five cases were confirmed by color duplex scan. DVT was detected in 2(3.3%) of the 60 males and 3(7.0%) of the 43 females undergoing major general surgical procedures. Among 63 patients in whom the duration of surgery was up to 2 hours, none developed DVT, while among the 40 patients in whom the duration of surgery lasted more than 2 hours, 5(12.5%) developed DVT. Among 23 patients in whom the surgery for malignancy was done, 4(17.4%) developed DVT, while among the 80 patients in whom surgery for non-malignancy, 1(1.2%) developed DVT. The Incidence of DVT in patients undergoing major abdominal surgery is 4.9%. Patients undergoing major abdominal surgery for malignancy and duration of operation greater than 2 hours have higher risk of developing DVT. But there is no significant increase in risk of development of DVT relation to age and sex; and also in patients on oral contraceptives, diabetes mellitus, obesity and smoking. Clinical findings alone cannot be relied upon for the diagnosis of DVT. The study has to be continued with larger sample size to get statistically significant results.

Salinity Influences Plant-Pest-Predator Tritrophic Interactions

Climate change-induced salinity intrusion into agricultural soils is known to negatively impact crop production and food security. However, the effects of salinity increase on plant-herbivore-natural enemy systems and repercussions for pest suppression services are largely unknown. Here, we examine the effects of increased salinity on communities of rice (Oryza sativa), brown planthopper (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens, and green mirid bug (GMB), Cyrtorhinus lividipennis, under greenhouse conditions. We found that elevated salinity significantly suppressed the growth of two rice cultivars. Meanwhile, BPH population size also generally decreased due to poor host plant quality induced by elevated salinity. The highest BPH density occurred at 2.0 dS/m salinity and declined thereafter with increasing salinity, irrespective of rice cultivar. The highest population density of GMB also occurred under control conditions and decreased significantly with increasing salinity. Higher salinity directly affected the rice crop by reducing plant quality measured with reference to biomass production and plant height, whereas inducing population developmental asynchrony between BPH and GMB observed at 2 dS/m salinity and potentially uncoupling prey-predator dynamics. Our results suggest that increased salinity has harmful effects on plants, herbivores, natural enemies, as well as plant-pest-predator interactions. The effects measured here suggest that the bottom-up effects of predatory insects on rice pests will likely decline in rice produced in coastal areas where salinity intrusion is common. Our findings indicate that elevated salinity influences tritrophic interactions in rice production landscapes, and further research should address resilient rice insect pest management combining multipests and predators in a changing environment.

Comparison of Nutritional Status of Children with Congenital Heart Diseases with Minor Illness of Other Children in a Tertiary Level Hospital

This cross sectional comparative analytical study was undertaken with the objectives to find out the nutritional status of children with congenital heart disease by anthropometric measurement and was compared it with those of children having minor illness and without any congenital heart disease in indoor and outdoor Department of Paediatrics of Mymensingh Medical College Hospital (MMCH), Mymensingh, Bangladesh from December 2015 to November 2016. Purposive sampling was done. One hundred children aged 6 to 60 months with congenital heart disease confirmed by echocardiogram were taken as Group A and one hundred children of same age and sex matched having minor illness and without any congenital heart disease were taken as Group B. Age of the patients ranged from 6 to 60 months. There was no obvious difference of socio-demographic status between two groups. Most of the patient (64.0%) had acyanotic congenital heart disease among them VSD was commonest (68.8%). Thirty-six percent (36.0%) patient had cyanotic congenital heart disease and among them Tetralogy of Fallots (83.3%) was commonest. There were significant differences regarding weight, height and MUAC values in between two Groups. Underweight (51%), Stunting (50%) and Wasting (29%) all were higher in congenital heart disease than that of Group B where they were 28%, 31% and 13% respectively and the differences were statistically significant (p<0.05). The findings of this study imply that malnutrition is very common among children with congenital heart disease. So, anthropometric measurement should be done in each and every child with congenital heart disease.

Seasonal analysis of food items and feeding habits of endangered riverine catfish Rita rita (Hamilton, 1822)

This investigation presents the food and feeding activity of and endangered riverine catfish Rita rita, during February 2017-January 2018. A total of 225 fish individuals was analyzed for stomach contents by characterizing the dominant food items and morphometric features. The results divulged ten major food items consumed, preferably fish scales and eggs, teleost fishes, copepods, cladocerans, rotifers, and mollusks. Total length and body weight of fish varied between 9-34 cm (20.53 ± 6.90 cm) and 10-400 g (9125.94 ± 102.07 g), respectively. The index of relative importance (IRI%) showed the importance of rotifers over the other food items. Morisita's index of diet overlap indicated seasonal variations in catfish diets with summer and monsoon displaying the least overlap, while maximum overlap during monsoon and winter seasons. The non-metric multidimensional scaling (nMDS) indicated the close association between the food items available during summer and winter seasons with a significant difference among the seasons (ANOSIM, R = 0.638, P = 0.013). Levin's niche breadth index arranged in the order of 0.88>0.81>0.78>0.63>0.43 for the size classes of V, IV, III, II and I, respectively. The PCA explained 95.39% of the total variance among the food items and fish size groups. Small-sized fish individuals displayed a greater correlation with food items suitable for their mouth size. In conclusion, the variety and frequency of food items recorded indicated considerable feeding plasticity and opportunistic feeding behavior with a shift from carnivorous to omnivorous feeding nature. This study could render useful information on the food and feeding habits of R. rita and provide background for preparing its diet for future aquaculture practices.

Study on Alanine Aminotransferase in Patients of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Type 2 Diabetes mellitus (DM) is associated with various types of liver disorders including elevated liver enzymes. This study was carried out to observe hepatocellular injury in type 2 Diabetes mellitus as evidenced by raised Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) among the type 2 Diabetes mellitus patients and to find out association between elevated ALT and glycaemic control. This was a descriptive cross-sectional comparative study carried out in Department of Medicine, Rajshahi Medical College Hospital and Rajshahi Diabetic Association Hospital, Rajshahi, Bangladesh from July 2009 to June 2010. One hundred (100) diagnosed type 2 diabetic patients according to WHO criteria and 30 apparently healthy people of both sexes were included. Age of the study people were >40 years. All of those study population were free from taking any hepatotoxic drugs, inj. Insulin, alcohol and preexisting liver disease. Detailed History, thorough clinical examination and relevant investigations were done for exclusion. The frequency of abnormal ALT, Serum bilirubin, Aspartate aminotransferase (AST), Alkaline phosphatase, Prothrombin time and Serum albumin were 30%, 6%, 7%, 6%, 54% and 12% respectively in type 2 diabetic patients and 3.3%, 00%, 00%, 6.7%, 10% and 3.3% respectively in normal people. Serum ALT (U/L) level (mean±SD) of the type 2 diabetic patients and normal people were (39.00±24.21) and (28.26±6.67) respectively. This difference is highly significant (p<0.001). Elevated serum ALT level of type 2 diabetic patients showed positive association with increased Body mass index (BMI) (p<0.05) and poor glycaemic control (p<0.05) and fatty liver (p=0.055). So, a high proportion of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus have raised serum Alanine aminotransferase level. Elevated serum ALT level was also associated with high BMI, poor glycaemic control and fatty liver which may be a marker of NAFLD and insulin resistance.

Sustainability assessment of arsenic-iron bearing groundwater treatment soil mixed mortar in developing countries, Bangladesh

The open disposal of groundwater treated soil containing arsenic (As) and iron (Fe) is a critical environmental issue in developing countries like Bangladesh. The current study attempts to use the arsenic-iron soil (AIS) as partial replacement of aggregate for preparing the sustainable solid mortar composite. Four dosages (2.5-10%) of AIS were applied as the substitution of fine aggregate for finding the optimum quantity of AIS, justifying by strength and nominal leaching content of As and Fe in pH solution 4.0 and 7.0 and curing temperatures of 25, 30, and 35 °C. Also, the external surfaces of solidified matrices were modified with cement grouting solution and cement plaster to resist the migration of concerned contaminants to curing media. The analytical compressive and flexural strength results showed that the solid mortars blended with 2.5 and 5% AIS obtained over 80% of the control specimens throughout the testing ages. Moreover, the study found that 5% AIS bearing hardened composition with exterior cement plaster exhibited the releasing contents of As and Fe below the drinking water standard in both pH solutions and adopted three curing temperatures, which is safe as well as economical to use as a construction material. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis also demonstrated the encapsulation patterns of target contaminants by forming hard microstructures of calcium silicate hydrate, ettringite and calcium-arsenic compounds. The outcomes of the study showed the potentiality of recycling the contaminated groundwater treatment soil as building materials in an eco-friendly way.

Immobilization possibility of tannery wastewater contaminants in the tiles fixing mortars for eco-friendly land disposal

The Hazaribagh tannery area of Bangladesh is currently facing an enormous problem regarding the harmful impacts of wastewater produced from leather industries on the surrounding environment due to the presence of contaminants at a toxic level. As such, the current study aims to analyze the entrapment of tannery wastewater's pollutants inside the mortar specimens for sustainability. Two types of binding agents such as Portland Composite Cement (PCC) and Ready Mixed Dry Mortar (RMDM) were employed to prepare separate mortar pastes in which the collected tannery wastewater was used as mixing liquid. Also, five types of samples including brick walls made with only the PCC, where tiles walls and blocks constructed with both types of binding agents were built. Analytical results show that the surrogate contaminated water mixed mortar blocks possessed about 6-14% lower compressive strength than that of the blocks prepared with drinking water. Moreover, the examined heavy metals were observed below the limit of detection in the curing liquid of studied tiles walls during the whole test protocol of 360 days period. The explicit outcomes of this study might be a promising solution to minimize the effects of tannery wastewater contaminants on the environment by utilizing this wastewater as a mixing component in the tiles fixing mortar of walls and floors.

Metal-Adapted Bacteria Isolated From Wastewaters Produce Biofilms by Expressing Proteinaceous Curli Fimbriae and Cellulose Nanofibers

Bacterial biofilm plays a pivotal role in bioremediation of heavy metals from wastewaters. In this study, we isolated and identified different biofilm producing bacteria from wastewaters. We also characterized the biofilm matrix [i.e., extracellular polymeric substances (EPS)] produced by different bacteria. Out of 40 isolates from different wastewaters, only 11 (27.5%) isolates (static condition at 28°C) and 9 (22.5%) isolates (agitate and static conditions at 28 and 37°C) produced air–liquid (AL) and solid–air–liquid (SAL) biofilms, respectively, only on salt-optimized broth plus 2% glycerol (SOBG) but not in other media tested. Biomass biofilms and bacteria coupled with AL biofilms were significantly (P ≤ 0.001) varied in these isolates. Escherichia coli (isolate ENSD101 and ENST501), Enterobacter asburiae (ENSD102), Enterobacter ludwigii (ENSH201), Pseudomonas fluorescens (ENSH202 and ENSG304), uncultured Vitreoscilla sp. (ENSG301 and ENSG305), Acinetobacter lwoffii (ENSG302), Klebsiella pneumoniae (ENSG303), and Bacillus thuringiensis (ENSW401) were identified based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images revealed that biofilm matrix produced by E. asburiae ENSD102, uncultured Vitreoscilla sp. ENSG301, A. lwoffii ENSG302, and K. pneumoniae ENSG303 are highly fibrous, compact, and nicely interlinked as compared to the biofilm developed by E. ludwigii ENSH201 and B. thuringiensis ENSW401. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results indicated that biofilm matrix produced by E. asburiae ENSD102, uncultured Vitreoscilla sp. ENSG301, and A. lwoffii ENSG302 are non-crystalline amorphous nature. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy showed that proteins and polysaccharides are the main components of the biofilms. Congo red binding results suggested that all these bacteria produced proteinaceous curli fimbriae and cellulose-rich polysaccharide. Production of cellulose was also confirmed by Calcofluor binding- and spectrophotometric assays. E. asburiae ENSD102, Vitreoscilla sp. ENSG301, and A. lwoffii ENSG302 were tested for their abilities to form the biofilms exposure to 0 to 2000 mg/L of copper sulfate (for Cu), zinc sulfate (for Zn), lead nitrate (for Pb), nickel chloride (for Ni), and potassium dichromate (for Cr), several concentrations of these metals activated the biofilm formation. The polysaccharides is known to sequester the heavy metals thus, these bacteria might be applied to remove the heavy metals from wastewater.

Psychiatric Disorders in Drop out from Educational Attainment Attending Mental Health Facilities: A Descriptive Cross Sectional Study

Studies of the impact of mental disorders on educational attainment are rare. Mental disorders, those beginning in childhood or adolescence may increase the risk of early drop out from education. The latter has been shown to have adverse life-course consequences on individuals such as greater demand on social welfare entitlements. A descriptive cross sectional study was carried out at the department of Psychiatry, Comilla Medical College, Comilla, Bangladesh. All cases were selected from patients attending at Comilla Medical College Hospital and Private Mental Health Facilities in Comilla City from March 2015 to February 2016. We found out the psychiatric disorders and socio-demographic status of patients with educational drop out over the early life course. A total of 50 dropout patients aged 10 to 30 years who fullfiled the enrolment criteria included in the study. Sociodemographic questionnaires, diagnostic information (DSM-5 and ICD-10) as well as an account of a various level of education were used as research instruments. The Frequency tables, summary tables and appropriate graphs were prepared to describe the population characteristics and study finding. The most of the psychiatric morbidity presents in male (62%) and age group of 18-24 years (54%). In this study, anxiety disorders was 8%, behaviour/ impulse control disorders was 8%, mood disorders was 16%, substance use disorders was 24%, schizophrenia spectrum disorders was 12% and composite psychiatric disorders was 32%. Among drop out patient's non- completion of primary education was 14%, non-completion of secondary education was 20%, non- completion of higher secondary education was 24%, not entry to tertiary education was 12% and non-completion of tertiary education was 30%. Among behaviour/impulse control disorders non-completion of primary education was 6%, substance use disorders non-completion of higher secondary education was 10%, mood disorder both non-completion of higher secondary education and non-completion of tertiary education were 6%. Among composite psychiatric disorders non-completion of secondary education, non-completion of higher secondary education and non-completion of tertiary education were 8%, 6% and 12% respectively. Onset of mental disorders and subsequent drop out from education was found in this study. Further multi-centered prospective and population-based studies should be designed to find out the exact situation.

Effects of specimen size and mix ratio on the nickel migration behavior of landfill waste mixed mortar

Landfill solid waste management system poses the potential source of silent wide-spread heavy metals like nickel poisoning in the entire ecosystem of nearby environment. Nickel containing demolish solid wastes are disposed at landfill zones to a great extent from where nickel migrate into the food chain through the surface water body as well as groundwater. Consequently, nickel exposure may cause different environmental problems. From this sense, it may be an attractive proposal to recycle the waste as a sustainable product. Herein is presented a long-term feasibility study on potential leaching behavioral pattern of nickel from different sizes and mixes based solidified landfill waste mixed mortar block. The calculated results revealed the larger sizes block entrapped more nickel content than the smaller in relation to the available for leaching. Moreover, the specimen bearing the higher amount of waste resulted the significant nickel immobilization within the crystalline structure. The study observed the fixation results 97.72%-99.35%, 97.08%-99.11%, 96.19%-98.58% and 95.86%-91.6% under the stabilizing agent to fine aggregate mixing combination 1:1, 1:1.5, 1:2 and 1:2.5 respectively where 30% of the total volume of fine aggregate was replaced by landfill waste. Although, mechanical strength test of all surrogate waste forms was also conducted that showed acceptable performance for land disposal, the current research pointing out that constructed green products were non-hazardous except the specimens having mixture ratio 1:2.5 because nickel ion release mechanism was observed under this ratio by surface decay or physical erosion of the monolithic matrices. Furthermore, semi-empirical based dominant leaching mechanism models were justified against the goodness of fit statistical parameters for interpreting the experimental observations of nickel transport profile where the adopted models possessed strong potential for predicting Ni content with high accuracy.

A Statistical Comparison of Mathematical Models for Heavy Metal Leaching Phenomena from Solidified Landfill Waste Mortar

In this research, landfill solid waste was solidified as cement-waste matrix to protect the environment from excessive intrusive contaminants like Fe, Cu and Ni and minimize the waste load. Within this context, ingredients of cement-waste mortar were characterized to determine their physical properties. Long-term feasibility study was conducted to examine the metal contents stabilization by employing the standard mass transfer-leaching test. The cumulative leaching concentration of Fe, Cu and Ni were found to be 1.29 mg/l, 0.18 mg/l and 0.63 mg/l respectively up to 180 days static leaching test period that satisfied the surface water quality standard. Mechanical strength test was also conducted to characterize the solidification technique. Five well-established non-linear mathematical Models were conducted to evaluate the mechanisms of Fe, Cu and Ni migration. Goodness of fit statistical parameter analysis and visual examination indicated that polynomial equation Model is better for explaining the experimentally generated data. Moreover, parameter of polynomial equation was extended from five to nine for examining the best calibration profile to the observations. In context of slope-intercept and visual observation analysis resulted that polynomial equation based Model bearing five parameters with 0.5 power interval of each parameter describes the leaching phenomena quite similar with the experimental observations whereas goodness of fit parameters and information criterion shows reverse. It was found that the studied immobilized landfill waste mortar have acceptable mechanical performance that confirms to be used as construction material.

Niemann-Pick Disease Type B in a 21 Year Old Male

Niemann-pick disease is a group of autosomal recessive disorder of lipid storage with progressive accumulation of sphingomyelin and other lipids in the lysosomes of various tissues. We are reporting a 21 year old male who had hepatosplenomegaly, cherry red macula and normal cognitive function. Bone marrow biopsy showed plenty of foam cells and sphingomyelinase level was low, thus conforming our diagnosis. Survival into adulthood and absence of gross neurological involvement suggests Niemann-Pick disease type B.

Status of Serum Zinc in Multidrug Resistant Tuberculosis

Zinc plays a vital role in the immune status. Its deficiency affects host defense by reducing the number of circulating T cells and phagocytosis activity of other cells which ultimately impair cell mediated immunity. The cell-mediated immunity plays a major role in the causation of pulmonary tuberculosis. The present study was carried out to estimate serum zinc level in newly detected multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in adult population. In this study total fifty (50) MDR-TB patients were enrolled conveniently from the in-patients departments of National Institute of Diseases of the Chest Hospital (NIDCH), Bangladesh. Serum zinc was estimated by atomic absorption spectrophotometry method from early morning fasting blood sample. Serum zinc level was assessed according to normal cut-off value 70-120 μgm/dl and 76% studied population were found lower than this value. The mean±SD serum zinc level was observed 60.40±8.91 μgm/dl. No associations were found between serum zinc level with age (p=0.11) and with sex (p=0.085) of the study population respectively. The low level of serum zinc in MDR-TB patients suggested impaired immune status of our study population.

Biomass Fuel Smoke and Tuberculosis: A Case-Control Study

This case control study was done to ascertain the association between exposures to biomass cooking fuel smoke and pulmonary tuberculosis. Cases were all newly diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis patients, randomly collected from the Hospital (DOTS centers) Registry from January 2012 to June 2012 from two Upazillas of Sirajganj district, Bangladesh. A home visitation program was done subsequently. Healthy controls were recruited from the neighbourhood of each case through a predefined procedure. Total 276 new pulmonary tuberculosis cases and 276 neighbourhood controls were enrolled. A semi-structured questionnaire containing demographic information, smoking habits, cooking place, kitchen condition, use of biomass fuel for cooking was used for interview. Crude (unadjusted) odd ratios and their corresponding 95% confidence limits for independent variables were determined by binary logistic regression. All significant variables were entered into a multivariate conditional logistic regression model and a final fitted model was determined by backward elimination methods. In univariate analysis, member of a nuclear family {Unadjusted odd ratio (Unadj. OR) 1.570, 95% CI 1.008-2.44)}, having non-formal education (Unadj. OR 2.739, 95% CI 1.219, 6.153) or primary (Unadj. OR 3.407, 95% CI 1.492, 7.782) to secondary level (Unadj. OR 2.392, 95% CI 1.032, 5.544) education, using cow dung (Unadj. OR 3.961, 95% CI 1.267, 12.376) and biomass fuel i.e. plant origin (Unadj. OR 3.382, 95% CI 1.087, 10.518) for cooking, past smoker (Unadj. OR 2.504, 95% CI 1.061, 5.910), using open oven (Unadj. OR 3.109, 95% CI 0.995, 9.716), having small kitchen area (Unadj. OR 0.99, 95% CI 0.989, 0.999) all were significantly associated with tuberculosis. When all significant variables were entered into a multivariate conditional logistic regression model nuclear family {Adjusted odd ratio (Adj OR) 1.808, 95% CI 1.127, 2.9)}, primary level education (Adj OR 2.86, 95% CI 1.23, 6.647) and non formal education (Adj OR 2.312, 95% CI 1.013, 5.276), biomass fuel (plant origin, Adj OR 3.497, 95% CI 1.059, 11.55), and cow dung (Adj OR 4.368, 95% CI 1.319, 14.464)) used in cooking and irregular smoker (who stop smoking at least 6 month back) (Adj OR 2.806, 95% CI 1.141, 6.901) were significantly associated with tuberculosis cases. From this study significant association have been found between exposure to combustion of biomass cooking fuel and tuberculosis.

Gender Variation in the Risk Factors with Ischemic Stroke: Bangladesh Perspective

It is suggested in different studies that gender has a great impact on the distribution of risk factors of stroke. This study aims at determining the gender differences in risk factors of acute ischemic stroke among male and female patients. Data extracted for this study were taken from a case control study which was carried out in the departments of Neurology and Medicine of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) and Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital (ShSMCH) Dhaka from July 2009 to June 2011. We collected data of 125 patients with ischemic stroke and 129 healthy controls from the primary source. All secondary data were divided on the basis of gender. Among all male respondents 70 stroke patients were considered as case and 72 healthy respondents were considered as control and in female group 55 were stroke patients (case) and 57 were healthy control. Risk factors of stroke for male and female were evaluated separately. After multivariate analysis ever smoking (both present and ex smoker) (adj. OR 3.799, 95% CI 1.416, 10.19), diabetes mellitus (adj. OR 5.687, 95% CI 1.99, 16.26), hypertension (adj. OR 18.53, 95% CI 6.43, 53.4) and total cholesterol (adj. OR 1.017, 95% CI 1.01, 1.03) were found significant predictors for stroke in male whereas diabetes mellitus (adj. OR 6.989, 95% CI 1.54, 31.64), hypertension (adj. OR 17.85, 95% CI 5.1, 62.38), serum low density lipoprotein (LDL) (adj. OR 1.04, 95% CI 1.013, 1.07) and serum triglyceride (TG) (adj. OR 1.012, 95% CI 1.004, 1.02) were found significant in female. Besides taking the controlling measure for hypertension and diabetes mellitus, life style modification is an important factor to prevent stroke in both sexes.

In situ degradation studies of two-dimensional WSe₂-graphene heterostructures

Heterostructures of two-dimensional materials can be vulnerable to thermal degradation due to structural and interfacial defects as well as thermal expansion mismatch, yet a systematic study does not exist in the literature. In this study, we investigate the degradation of freestanding WSe2-graphene heterostructures due to heat and charge flow by performing in situ experiments inside a transmission electron microscope. Experimental results show that purely thermal loading requires higher temperatures (>850 °C), about 150 °C higher than that under combined electrical and thermal loading. In both cases, selenium is the first element to decompose and migration of silicon atoms from the test structure to the freestanding specimen initiates rapid degradation through the formation of tungsten disilicide and silicon carbide. The role of the current flow is to enhance the migration of silicon from the sample holder and to knock-out the selenium atoms. The findings of this study provide fundamental insights into the degradation of WSe2-graphene heterostructures and inspire their application in electronics for use in harsh environments.

Pylorus Preserving Pancreaticoduodenectomy vs. Standard Whipple's Procedure in Case of Carcinoma head of the Pancreas and Periampullary Carcinoma

Pancreatic carcinoma is a life threatening condition. Surgical resection is the only hope of cure. Advances in surgical technique have reduced the mortality rate. Nevertheless, operative complications related with morbidity still remains high. Two operation techniques in the treatment of periampullary and pancreatic head cancer: the Standard Whipple operation (SW) and Pylorus Preserving Pancreaticoduodenectomy (PPPD) are performed predominantly. This study was performed to compare the results of Pylorus Preserving Pancreaticoduodenectomy (PPPD) with that of the Standard Whipple's (SW) procedure. This prospective study was carried out in the Department of General Surgery, BSMMU in two years duration. All admitted patient's with periampullary carcinoma and carcinoma of the head of the pancreas were included and randomized for a SW or a PPPD resection. Data regarding patients demographics, preoperative assessment, intraoperative and postoperative findings were collected and analyzed. Less blood loss (2.67±0.65 units in Group I and 2.88±0.64 units in Group II), fewer need of blood transfusions and shorter hospital stay in the PPPD group were observed. Gastrointestinal leakage was similar in both groups of patients (1:1). One pancreatic fistula (8.3% in Group I) was observed in PPPD group and one intra-abdominal abscess developed in Standard Whipple's procedure (00.0% in Group I and 12.5% in Group II). Bile leakage was higher in standard Whipple procedure (8.3% in Group I and 37.5% in Group II). Morbidity was more or less similar in both groups (58.0% in Group I and 50.0% in Group II) but one patient (12.5% in Group II) died in standard Whipple's resection. PPPD procedure is more effective treatment for periampullary carcinoma and cancer of the pancreatic head region than the standard Whipple's operation.

Association of hypoglycemia, hypocalcemia and hypomagnesemia in neonates with perinatal asphyxia

The clinical evidence of neurological menifestations associated with asphyxia is described as hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE). A variety of metabolic problems are present in asphyxiated newborns including hypoglycemia, hypocalcemia, hypomagnesemia and others metabolic abnormalities. Some of these biochemical disturbances may trigger seizure or potentiate further brain damage. This cross sectional case-control study was done in Mymensingh Medical College Hospital, to identify the association of hypoglycemia, hypocalcemia, hypomagnesemia in neonates with perinatal asphyxia. Study period was six months. Sample size was 60. Among total sample 30 term asphyxiated newborns of <24 hours age were case and equal number term healthy newborns <24 hours age were control. The main clinical presentations were delayed cry after birth along with respiratory distress, convulsion and absence of cry in asphyxiated newborns. Major physical findings were cyanosis, convulsion and tachypnoea in asphyxiated group. The mean value of serum calcium level was significantly lower in asphyxiated newborns (7.37 ± 0.10mg/dl) than control value (8.04±0.09mg/dl). Hypocalcemia was found among 23.33% babies in case group. On the contrary, hypocalcemia was found in single baby among control group. The mean value of serum magnesium was significantly lower in asphyxiated newborns (1.83 ± 0.04mg/dl) than control value (1.96 ± 0.05mg/dl). Hypomagnesemia was found among 3(10%) newborns but none was found among control group. Hypoglycemia was found in 7(23.33%) cases though the mean value of blood glucose was higher in case group (5.72 ± 0.62mmol/l) than control group (4.87 ± 0.15mmol/l) difference was not statistically significant. Combined hypoglycemia, hypocalcemia and hypomagnesemia were found in 1(3.33%) case; combined hypoglycemia and hypocalcemia were found in 2(6.67%) cases; and combined hypocalcemia and hypomagnesemia were found in 1(3.33%) case. During the study period, 3(10.0%) cases were expired but no death occurred among control group. This study shows isolated or combined hypoglycemia, hypocalcemia, hypomagnesemia are frequently found in newborns with perinatal asphyxia. So, it is necessary to monitor blood glucose, serum calcium and also serum magnesium among asphyxiated newborns for proper management.

Morphometric study of dentate nucleus of cerebellum in Bangladeshi cadaver

This cross sectional descriptive study was done by using nonprobability sampling technique and performed by examining 63 (sixty three) cerebellum. Out of them 40 postmortem human cerebellum collected from Bangladeshi cadavers of both sexes (male 25 and female 15) age ranging from 5 to 60 years and 23 cerebellums from caesarian section of intrauterine death cases of both sexes (male 14 and female 9) age ranging from 34 to 41 weeks of gestation. Specimens were collected from dead bodies autopsied on different dates from April' 2009 to September' 2009 at the autopsy laboratory of department of Forensic Medicine and prenatal cases from Gynaecology and Obstetrics Department of Mymensingh Medical College, Mymensingh. The collected specimens were grouped into three age groups like Group A (28 to 42 weeks of gestation), Group B (5 to 30 years) and Group C (31 to 60 years) and, two sex groups (male and female) and two sides (right and left). A transverse section was made at the level of horizontal fissure, and length and breadth of dentate nucleus were measured by divider and scale. The mean (±SD) length and breadth of dentate nucleus was 8.619±2.995mm and 14.770±3.604mm respectively and it was observed that length and breadth of dentate nucleus increased with age upto certain level then slightly decreased in the late age Group C. In this study, differences of the mean length of dentate nucleus on both right and left sides were statistically moderately significant between age Groups A&B. The differences of mean breadth of dentate nucleus on both right and left side were statistically highly significant between age Groups A&B and moderately significant between age Groups A&C on right side and only significant on left side. The differences between male & female were statistically insignificant in length and breadth of dentate nucleus.

Case report on carotid body tumor

A 40 years old lady presented to us with the complaints of repeated attack of syncope with left sided neck swelling. Ultrasonography, Color Doppler study and arteriography were done which revealed a solid vascular mass in the carotid bifurcation. Mass was resected and histopathology was done. Histopathologic findings were typical of a carotid body tumour. As carotid body tumour is a rare disease. So, we are going to present this in this article.

Pattern of dyslipidaemia among the Bangladeshi type 2 diabetic patients presented with acute coronary syndrome

Increasing prevalence of diabetes and its complications in the developing communities would pose a threat in respect to their existing health care service. An increased incidence of atherosclerosis in insulin-dependent diabetic patients has long been recognized. Hyperlipidaemia, a common finding in these patients, may be one of the contributing factors. The objective of our study is to find out the patterns of dyslipidaemia among the Bangladeshi patients with type-2 diabetes mellitus presented with acute coronary syndrome. This study was conducted in the department of cardiology of BIRDEM and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka, Bangladesh during the period of January 2009 to December 2009. A total of 100 patients were included in this study, according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Diabetes Mellitus and Acute Coronary Syndrome was diagnosed according to the guideline of American Diabetic Association and American College of Cardiology respectively. Among the respondents Mean±SD of fasting blood sugar and 2 hours ABF were 9.23±3.6mmol/L and 12.61±8.52mmol/L respectively. Mean±SD of HbA1C of the respondents was 7.23±2.12. Total cholesterol level <150mg/dl, 150-200mg/dl and >200mg/dl were 27.0%, 42.0% and 31.0% respectively. HDL cholesterol <40mg/dl and >40mg/dl were 76.0% and 24.0% respectively. LDL cholesterol <150mg/dl and >150mg/dl were 43.0% and 57.0% respectively. TG within 40 to 160mg/dl and >160mg/dl were 73.0% and 27.0% respectively, Mean±SD of Total Cholesterol, HDL Cholesterol, LDL Cholesterol and Triglyceride were 162.43±38.62, 37.41±8.59, 137.43±22.73 and 156.43±41.92mg/dl respectively.

The site of attachment of umbilical cord and branching pattern of umbilical arteries within the placenta

Placenta is the mirror of maternal and fetal status; it reflects the changes due to complication in pregnancy of mother. Numerous common and uncommon findings of the placenta, umbilical cord and membranes are associated with abnormal fetal development and perinatal morbidity. So, the examination of the placenta can yield information that may be important in the immediate and later management of mother and newborn. This information may also be essential for protecting the attending physician in the event of an adverse maternal or fetal outcome. This cross sectional descriptive study was carried out to determine the incidence of different types of placenta depending on attachment site and branching pattern of arteries of umbilical cord in Bangladeshi Women. To achieve this aim sixty placenta with umbilical cord were collected. Placenta was from 28 weeks to 42 weeks gestational age of normal pregnancy during normal labour at gynaecology and obstetric department of Mymensingh Medical College Hospital. After preservation in 10% formol saline, study was done in the Department of Anatomy of Mymensingh Medical College. In the present study, incidence of different types of placenta depending on attachment site of umbilical cord was 50% Central, 46% Paracentral and 18% Marginal in type. In this study it was also observed that 58% placenta were Disperse in type and 42% were Magistral in type depending on the distribution of umbilical arteries. Observed findings of this study were compared with those of Western and Bangladeshi researchers.

Intermittent prophylaxis of recurrent febrile seizures with clobazam versus diazepam

Febrile seizures are the most common type of seizure among children that can be prevented by using prophylactic drugs like Clobazam and Diazepam. The present prospective study was conducted in the Department of Pediatrics, Mymensingh Medical College Hospital and Community Based Medical College Hospital, Bangladesh over a period of 1 year from July 2012 to June 2013 to compare the effectiveness of intermittent Clobazam versus Diazepam therapy in preventing the recurrence of febrile seizures and assessed adverse effects of each drug. A total of 65 patients (32 children administered Clobazam and rest 33 children received Diazepam) of simple and complex febrile seizures aged 6 months to 5 years of both sexes were the study population. Data were collected by interview of the patients, clinical examination and laboratory investigations using the research instrument. Data were analyzed by using Chi-square (χ2) Test, Student's 't' Test and Fisher's Exact Test. For all analytical tests, the level of significance was set at 0.05 and p<0.05 was considered significant. The proportion of patients was higher between age 12-36 months and male was predominant in the both Clobazam and Diazepam groups. Over 31% of patients in Clobazam group who experienced episode of fever within 3 months, 40.6% within 6 months and 9.4% within 9 months compared to 36.4% in Diazepam group within 3 months, 45.5% within 6 months & 12.1% within 9 months after discharge from the hospital. Three (9.4%) patients in Clobazam group and 7(21.3%) in Diazepam group who experienced febrile convulsion during the follow up period. From the data adverse effects within 3 and 6 months experienced by the patient's drowsiness, sedation and ataxia were higher in Diazepam group than those in Clobazam group. However, within 9 months lethargy and irritability were somewhat higher in Clobazam group than those in Diazepam group. The mean duration of hospitalization was significantly higher in Diazepam group compared to Clobazam group (6.0±1.0 vs. 4.6±0.08 days, P<0.001). Seven (21.2%) out of 33 children with febrile seizures in Diazepam group had a history of recurrent seizures, whereas 3(9.4%) of 32 children in the Clobazam group. The risks of recurrent febrile seizure in the Diazepam group was 2.6 times greater compared to those in the Clobazam group (P=0.186). The result indicates that Clobazam is safe, efficacious, requires less frequent dosing and has less adverse effects such as drowsiness, sedation, ataxia and irritability as compared to Diazepam. So, Clobazam may be an alternative to Diazepam given intermittently for prevention of recurrent febrile seizures.

Comparison between azithromycin and cefixime in the treatment of typhoid fever in children

An intervention study was carried out in the department of paediatrics of Mymensingh Medical College Hospital, Mymensingh to compare the clinical efficacy of Azithromycin in the treatment of childhood typhoid fever with that of cefixime for a period of one year from January 2011 to December 2011. A total of 60 cases of typhoid fever were enrolled in to a randomized clinical trial and was divided into two groups. The inclusion criteria of the cases were: Documented fever for more than 4 days plus two or more of the following clinical features: toxic physical appearance, intestinal complaints, coated tongue, ceacal gurgling, hepatomegaly and splenomegaly, diarrhoea and constipation plus positive Widal test and/or blood culture positivity. Patients who had complication like GIT heamorrhage; intestinal perforaion and/or shock were excluded from the study. Data were collected in a structured questionnaire. Azithromycin was given at a dose of 10mg/kg/day for a period of 07 days Cefixime was given at a dose of 20mg/kg/day in two divided dose for 14 days. The mean time of defervesence was 4.05+1.14 days with azithromycin and 3.41+0.95 with cefixime respectively. The minimum defervesence time was 02 days and maximum defervesence time was 07 days. Clinical cure rate was 87% in azithromycin group and 93% in cefixime group. No serious adverse effect was noted related to azithromycin and cefixime therapy except nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and jaundice. It was found that azithromycin is almost as effective as cefixime in the treatment of typhoid fever.

Vaginal rhinosporidiosis: a case report

The female genital tract is an extremely rare site for Rhinosporidiosis. Here we described a 13 year old girl who presented with a slow growing polypoid fleshy mass in the posterior vaginal wall near the orifice for 6 months with scanty bleeding from the mass. The girl was admitted to hospital with profuse watery vaginal discharge. Excision of the mass was followed by histopathological examination which confirmed the diagnosis Rhinosporidiosis.

Comparison of coronary CT angiography with conventional coronary angiography in the diagnosis of coronary artery disease

Noninvasive CT coronary angiography is a promising coronary imaging technique. In spite of the unprecedented temporal and spatial resolution and the inability to perform therapeutic interventions in the same session multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) has been considering a promising alternative, non invasive tool for coronary artery imaging due to its high sensitivity and specificity for the detection of significant coronary artery stenosis. To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of 64-slice MDCT for assessing haemodynamically significant stenoses of the coronary arteries in comparison with the conventional standard cardiac angiography. Fifty patients scheduled for conventional coronary angiography at the department of Radiology and Imaging, United Hospital, Dhaka were enrolled between July 2007 and June 2008. All patients underwent both conventional and MDCT angiography within mean 10.70 days. Overall sensitivity of 64-slice MDCT for the detection of stenosis ≤ 50%, stenosis > 50%, and stenosis > 75% was 90.0%, 83.8%, and 80.7%, respectively, and specificity was 96.5%, 98.4%, and 98.3% respectively and accuracy was 96.0 %, 96.5%, and 96.6% respectively. Contrast-enhanced 64-slice MDCT allows the identification of coronary stenosis with excellent accuracy. Measurements of stenosis derived by MDCT correlated well with conventional angiogram. A major limitation is the insufficient ability of CT to exactly quantify the degree of stenosis.

Duodenal carcinoid tumor - a case report

Carcinoid tumors are well differentiated neuroendochrine tumors which most frequently involve the gastrointestinal tract; however duodenal carcinoid tumors are rare. They can present with various clinical symptoms and are difficult to diagnose. A 52 years old lady presented with the symptoms of recurrent upper abdominal pain, burning sensation of whole body and passage of loose stool. On endoscopy of upper GIT, there was a duodenal polyp. Polyp was removed by endoscopic resection and tissue was taken for biopsy. Histological findings of biopsy specimen shows carcinoid tumor. As duodenal carcinoid tumor is a rare presentation so we are going to present this case in this article.

Dieulafoy's lesion: an overview

Dieulafoy's lesion accounts for 1-5.8% of cases of acute upper GI bleeding. The two largest retrospective series, both from North America, found Dieulafoy's lesion as the source of hemorrhage in 1.9% and 1.2% of all endoscopies performed for acute GI bleeding. In the prospective study of Chung et al., Dieulafoy's Lesion was found in 3.4% of all patients with acute GI bleeding referred to their unit. The Dieulafoy's Lesion accounted for up to 40% of all causes of nonvariceal upper GI bleeding not caused by gastric or duodenal ulceration or esophageal varices in the prospective study of Matsui et al. In the study of Schmulewitz and Bailli, colonic Dieulafoy's Lesion were only found in 0.09% of all colonoscopies performed for lower GI bleeding. The actual incidence of both upper and lower GI bleeding from Dieulafoy's Lesion is likely higher than estimated because the diagnosis remains difficult. Recent advances in endoscopy have led to an increased detection of Dieulafoy's lesions. Initial GI endoscopy is effective in diagnosing up to 70% of patients. Several endoscopies may be required with 6% of patients, requiring three or more to establish the diagnosis. Angiography and/or red cell scanning can be used when endoscopy fails to diagnose a doubtful case. There is no definite unique policy for the treatment of Dieulafoy's lesions. Therapeutic endoscopy remains the first line of treatment option for controlling the bleeding while angiography is considered as a valuable alternative. Surgical intervention is kept for failure cases where it should be guided by preoperative localization. The mortality rate has decreased dramatically from 80% to 8.6% in recent times due to advancement in both diagnostic and therapeutic tools.

A high risk critical mitral valve stenosis with emergency management at Apollo Hospitals Dhaka

Heart valve surgery in high-risk patients with severe jaundice, congestive hepatomegaly and renal impairment is associated with considerable morbidity and mortality. Without operation the consequences are invariably grave. A 35 years old gentleman with congestive cardiac failure was initially treated in coronary care unit (CCU). Mitral valve area was 0.5cm², pulmonary arterial systolic pressure (PASP) was 110mmHg, serum bilirubin was 20mg/dl, SGPT & SGOT were 1024iu/l and 1027iu/l respectively. Serum creatinine was 3.35mmol/l. Serum bilirubin gradually diminished to 3.1mg/dl after 12 days treatment in Coronary Care Unit but next day it increased to 3.6mg/dl. Mitral valve was replaced on an emergency basis. Echocardiogram on the 5th post operative day showed well functioning prosthetic mitral valve in situ. Serum bilirubin decreased to 2.2mg/dl, SGPT, SGOT and serum creatinine to 43iu/l, 40iu/l and 1.34mmol/l respectively. After 8 weeks of postoperative follow up his serum bilirubin decreased to 0.8mg/dl.

Morphometric study of thyroid angle in different age and sex in Bangladeshi cadaver

This cross sectional descriptive study was to measure the thyroid angle and to establish the difference between sexes of different age groups in Bangladeshi cadaver. A total 60 human larynges were collected by purposive sampling from October 2008 to March 2009. Among them 45(male 23 and female 22) were collected from Bangladeshi cadavers (9 to 60 years) at the autopsy laboratory of Department of Forensic Medicine and 15 (male 6 and female 9) from stillborn infants of viable age (28 to 40 weeks of gestation) from Gynaecology and Obstetrics Department of Mymensingh Medical College, Mymensingh. The thyroid angle was measured and significant differences of the dimensions between different age and sex groups were observed. In the present study observed findings was compared with those of other researchers. The mean±SD thyroid angle was found as 65.00±11.65 degree in age Group A (28 to 40 weeks of gestation), 73.69±6.56 degree in age Group B (9 to 16 years) and 77.76±7.76 degree in age Group C (17 to 60 years). The mean thyroid angle was higher in female (83.1667±5.78220 degree) than that in male (73.9412±7.09460 degree) and statistically moderately significant in Group C, where t = 3.853 and p = 0.001. In statistical analysis, differences between age and sex groups were calculated by using Students (unpaired) 't' test. The present study revealed that the value was significantly greater in adult female than male and the value increased with age.

Groundwater irrigation and crop economy in the lower Gangetic plain at Matbarer Char, Madaripur, South-Central Bangladesh

Attempts have been made in this paper to overview the present agricultural inputs for crop production and crop economy in the lower Gangetic plain. Results of the field survey show that the average labour requirement of Boro rice production is 35 person-days/acre. The fertilizer application by the farmers is not balanced and is well below the recommended doses. N, P2O5, K2O ratio used by the farmers was 7:3:1 against the appropriate ratio of 5:4:3 for HYV Boro rice. The cost of Boro rice cultivation has been estimated on the basis of input use. The rice cultivation costs were Tk.14,335, Tk 13,875 and Tk. 11,271 per acre for the water buyer, water seller with diesel pump and water seller with electric pump respectively. Labour and irrigation costs together normally account for two- thirds of the total cost of production - increases in the prices of these inputs can greatly depress Boro rice profitability. Moreover, Gross income of the water sellers from major crops is about 32% higher than that of the water buyers. The study also shows that the total cost for a Shallow Tube Well (STW) run by diesel motive power is almost twice that for electric motive power. If groundwater irrigated agriculture system is framed in a comprehensive manner, this could play an important role in poverty alleviation. DOI: DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jasbs.v38i1.15318 J. Asiat. Soc. Bangladesh, Sci. 38(1): 29-39, June 2012

Characterizing microscale biological samples under tensile loading: stress-strain behavior of cell wall fragment of onion outer epidermis

PREMISE OF THE STUDY

The results of published studies investigating the tissue-scale mechanical properties of plant cell walls are confounded by the unknown contributions of the middle lamella and the shape and size of each cell. However, due to their microscale size, cell walls have not yet been characterized at the wall fragment level under tensile loading. It is imperative to understand the stress-strain behavior of cell wall fragments to relate the wall's mechanical properties to its architecture. •

METHODS

This study reports a novel method used to characterize wall fragments under tensile loading. Cell wall fragments from onion outer epidermal peels were cut to the desired size (15 × 5 µm) using the focused ion beam milling technique, and these fragments were manipulated onto a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) tensile testing device. The stress-strain behavior of the wall fragments both in the major and minor growth directions were characterized in vacuo. •

KEY RESULTS

The measured mean modulus, fracture strength, and fracture strain in the major growth direction were 3.7 ± 0.8 GPa, 95.5 ± 24.1 MPa, and 3.0 ± 0.5%, respectively. The corresponding properties along the minor growth direction were 4.9 ± 1.2 GPa, 159 ± 48.4 MPa, and 3.8 ± 0.5%, respectively. •

CONCLUSIONS

The fracture strength and fracture strain were significantly different along the major and minor growth directions, the wall fragment level modulus of elasticity anisotropy for a dehydrated cell wall was 1.23, suggesting a limited anisotropy of the cell wall itself compared with tissue-scale results.

Emotional and behavioral disorders in children with epilepsy

This cross sectional study was done to observe the prevalence of emotional and behavioral disorders in children with epilepsy, in the Department of Psychiatry, Pediatrics and Neurology, of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Bangladesh from July 2007 to June 2008. In this study, information about psychiatric disorders of 50 epileptic children, age ranging from 5-17 years with mean±SD (11.1±1.43) years, and 50 age, sex and socio-demographic status matched controls children (age ranging from 5-18 years with mean±SD (11.6±1.82) years were enrolled by parent, teacher and self version of Development And Well-Being Assessment (DAWBA) (Validated Bangla Version). Emotional disorders are more prevalent than behavioral disorders among epileptic children. Forty four percent (44%) of children with epilepsy had psychiatric disorder and this rate was significantly higher than that of healthy control (p>0.05). Disorders include major depressive disorder (20%), obsessive compulsive disorder (25%), other anxiety disorders (25%), specific phobia (15%), separation anxiety disorder (10%) and panic disorder with agoraphobia (5%).

Parathyroid failure following thyroid surgery

This cross-sectional study was done to see the association of post thyroidectomy parathyroid failure with thyroid disease and type of surgery. It was carried out in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka during the period of July 2008 to June 2010. Total 50 cases of thyroid malignancy and multinodular goiter who had undergone total or near total thyroidectomy with or without neck dissection were studied. In this study highest number of cases were found in 3rd decade of age (28%) and there was female predominance (M:F=1:3.54). Overall frequency of post operative hypocalcaemia was 30% (26% was temporary hypocalcaemia and 4% was permanent). Hypocalcaemia revealed clinically in 20% cases and remained subclinical in 10% cases. Hypocalcaemia developed in 42.30% cases of malignant thyroid disease and 16.66% cases of benign thyroid disease (p<0.05). It was found in 54.54% cases with neck dissection and 23.07% cases without neck dissection (p<0.05). Hypocalcaemia developed in 62.5% cases where parathyroid gland were not identified and 23.8% cases where parathyroid gland was identified. Hypocalcaemia developed most commonly on the 2nd post operative day (73.33%). There is a significance difference with development of parathyroid failure after thyroid surgery between benign and malignant thyroid disease and also between thyroid surgery with or without neck dissection.

Association of serum uric acid with ischemic stroke

The present study has examined the association between ischemic stroke and hyperuricemia in Bangladeshi population. This age and sex matched case control study was carried out in the Department of Neurology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Dhaka, Bangladesh during the period of January 2007 to December 2008. A total of 120 subjects were included in this study, among them 60 were cases and another 60 were controls. Data were collected purposively. Multiple logistic regressions were done to identify the risk factors for ischemic stroke. In this study 68.3% were male and 31.7% were female in both the groups. Male and female ratio of stroke patients was 2.16:1. Mean±SD of serum uric acid level of case and control group was 4.94±1.76 and 3.72±1.09 respectively. Among the case group 76.7% had normal and 23.3% had abnormal serum uric acid level. On the other hand, 93.3% respondents of control group had normal and 6.7% had abnormal serum uric acid (SUA) level. Significant differences was found between case and control group in term of SUA level (p<0.05). Since SUA level is a quantitative numerical variable, an increase in 1mg/dl has a 47.0% (95% CI 1.0% to 2.16%) increase in odds ratio (OR) of having ischemic stroke. This 47.0% is obtained by taking OR for uric acid-1. Elevated serum uric acid level is not significant for ischemic stroke among the Bangladeshi population.

Factors affecting the first service conception rate of cows in smallholder dairy farms in Bangladesh

The successful outcome of an insemination is a combination of both male and female fertility-linked factors. We investigated the first service conception rate of cows at artificial insemination (AI) in the smallholder dairy farms in Bangladesh. Frozen straws were prepared from ejaculates of Bos indicus (n = 7) and Bos indicus × Bos taurus (n = 7) AI bulls. Fertility was determined from 6101 first services in cows that were performed by 18 technicians in four regions between April 2004 and March 2005. Pregnancy was diagnosed by rectal palpation between 60 and 90 days post-insemination. The Asian version of Artificial Insemination Database Application (AIDA ASIA) was used for bulls-, cows- and AI-related data recording, and later retrieved for analysis. The mean ± SD number of inseminations performed from individual bulls and their conception rates were 436.0 ± 21.6 and 50.7 ± 1.9%, respectively. Logistic regression demonstrated body condition scores (BCS), heat detection signs, months of AI and their interactions had greatest effects (odds ratios: 1.24-16.65, p < 0.04-0.001) on first service conception rate in cows. Fertility differed (p < 0.02-0.001) between the regions, previous calving months, months of AI, BCS, parity and heat detection signs of cows. Inseminations based on mounting activity (n = 2352), genital discharge (n = 3263) and restlessness and/or other signs (n = 486) yielded a conception rate of 53.6%, 48.8% and 50.1%, respectively (p < 0.05). Conception rate between technicians ranged between 43.4% and 58.6% (p < 0.05). The days interval from calving to first service (overall mean ± SD = 153.4 ± 80.6) had relationship (p < 0.001) with BCS, months of previous calving and parity of the cows. Fertility at AI in smallholder farms can be improved by training farmers on nutrition and reproductive management of the cows.

Psychiatric and psychological comorbidities in patients with psoriasis- a review

Psoriasis is a common inflammatory skin disease. The impact of psoriasis on quality of life is significant even when it involves relatively limited body surface area (BSA). Life stresses have been found as both a cause of psoriasis and as an aggravating factor in the disease. In different large epidemiological studies up to 79% patients of psoriasis had a negative impact on their lives, and Psoriasis was reported to be associated stressful life event in 10-90%, depression in 24-51%, felt shame and embarrassment over their appearance in 89%, lack of confidence in 42%, family friction in 26%, wish to be dead to active suicidal ideation in 9.7-5.5%, addiction and alcoholism in 18% and also significant impact upon sexual function. Children with psoriasis had 25-47% higher risk of developing any psychiatric disorder, 23-62% higher risk of develop depression and 32-250% higher risk of anxiety.

Health related Quality of Life with HIV/AIDS in different stages of HIV infection

Disease stages of HIV infection is one of the important predictor of Health related Quality of Life (HQoL) of the people living with HIV/AIDS. This cross sectional study was an attempt to compare the HQoL of HIV-infected patients across the three CDC stages of HIV-infection namely, asymptomatic, symptomatic, and AIDS-related conditions. A total of 82 patients, 28 in asymptomatic, 26 in symptomatic, and 28 in AIDS-related conditions, from three NGOs and one Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH) were interviewed using interviewer administered semi structured questionnaire developed by adopting "World Health Organization Quality of Life HIV BREF (WHOQOL-HIV BREF) instrument". Analysis revealed that AIDS-related conditions and symptomatic patients were experiencing significantly poorer quality of life than asymptomatic patients in the domain of physical (F=7.006, p <0.005), level of independence) F=6.552, p<0.005(, overall perception of health related quality of life (F=3.634, p<0.05) and overall general health perception (F=7.842, p<0.001).

Primary total hip arthroplasty by cemented prosthesis in secondary osteoarthritis of the hip joint

Cemented total hip arthroplasty has been being practiced successfully all over the world for the last 5 decades. Osteoarthritis is the most common indication of total hip arthroplasty. This study was done to observe the outcome of primary total hip arthroplasty by cemented prosthesis in secondary osteoarthritis of the hip joint. This prospective study was conducted at the department of Orthopaedics, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University and some private hospitals in Dhaka, Bangladesh from May 2008 to December 2009. Total 21 patients were evaluated. Among them 38.1% had rheumatoid arthritis, 19.1% had ankylosing spondylitis and 42.8% had avascular necrosis. Average duration of postoperative hospital stay was 14.09 days. Regarding the functional outcome, 76.2% patients had excellent, 19.1% had good and 4.8% had fair outcome. So out of 21 cases, 95.2% had satisfactory and 4.8% had unsatisfactory outcome. Cemented total hip arthroplasty is an effective procedure for the management of secondary osteoarthritis of the hip joint.

Evaluation of transurethral ethanol ablation of prostate for symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia

Evaluating short-term (03 months) efficacy and safety of transurethral intraprostatic injection of absolute ethanol to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). This intervention study was conducted to evaluate 30 patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia treated by transurethral injection of dehydrated ethanol. Mean age was 69.96 years. Endoscopic injection of 6-13.5 ml ethanol was carried out at 4-8 sites in the prostate. International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), maximum flow rate, prostate volume, postvoid residual and side effects or complications were measured postoperatively. Mean IPSS (SD) improved significantly from 18.43 ± 2.38 preoperatively to 6.80 ± 1.34 at 03 months of follow-up, mean peak urinary flow rate increased from 7.33 ± 1.19 ml/s to 16.31 ± 1.69 ml/s after 3 months, mean residual urine volume had decreased from 54.16 ± 30.93 ml to 17.01 ± 9.59 ml after 3 months (p<0.05). The prostate volume decreased from 44.66 ± 9.52 gm preoperatively to 32.46 ± 7.78 gm after 3 months (statistically significant at 5% level). There were no intra-operative complications but post-operative haematuria occurred in two patients, urinary retention occurred in two patients after removal of the catheter. Urinary tract infection developed in one patient. Transurethral ethanol ablation of prostate appears to be safe and cost effective. No occurrence of retrograde ejaculation was detected. The short-term effects of ethanol injection at prostate were satisfactory and acceptable as a minimally invasive therapeutic modality in selected patients.

Can amorphization take place in nanoscale interconnects?

The trend of miniaturization has highlighted the problems of heat dissipation and electromigration in nanoelectronic device interconnects, but not amorphization. While amorphization is known to be a high pressure and/or temperature phenomenon, we argue that defect density is the key factor, while temperature and pressure are only the means. For nanoscale interconnects carrying modest current density, large vacancy concentrations may be generated without the necessity of high temperature or pressure due to the large fraction of grain boundaries and triple points. To investigate this hypothesis, we performed in situ transmission electron microscope (TEM) experiments on 200 nm thick (80 nm average grain size) aluminum specimens. Electron diffraction patterns indicate partial amorphization at modest current density of about 10(5) A cm(-2), which is too low to trigger electromigration. Since amorphization results in drastic decrease in mechanical ductility as well as electrical and thermal conductivity, further increase in current density to about 7 × 10(5) A cm(-2) resulted in brittle fracture failure. Our molecular dynamics (MD) simulations predict the formation of amorphous regions in response to large mechanical stresses (due to nanoscale grain size) and excess vacancies at the cathode side of the thin films. The findings of this study suggest that amorphization can precede electromigration and thereby play a vital role in the reliability of micro/nanoelectronic devices.