Background:-The Modified Alvarado Scoring System (MASS) has been reported to be a cheap and quick diagnostic tool in patients with acute appendicitis. However, differences in diagnostic accuracy have been observed if the scores were applied to various populations and clinical settings.
Objectives:- The purpose of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of Modified Alvarado Scoring System in patients with acute appendicitis in our setting.
Methods:-one hundre twenty eight patients ,were included in this study, admitted to Al-Kindy teaching hospital from June 2009 to June 2010. Patients’ age ranged from 8 to 56 years (21±10) they were divided into three groups; paediatrics, child bearing age females & adult males,. MASS was calculated for each patient included as the diagnosis & treatment were done on the bases of surgeon's clinical decision,confirmation was done by histopathological examination. Finally statistics done included negative appendectomy rate, sensitivity,specificity,positive predictive value,negative predictive value & accuracy.
Results:- Our negative appendectomy rate was 19.5% (22.22% for paediatrics 40.9% for females 4.2% for males). MASS showed sensitivity of 61%(92.8% for paediatrics 38% for females & 58% for males), specificity 80% (75% for paediatrics 88% for females & 50% for males), positive predictive value 92%(92.8% for paediatrics 83% for females 50% for males), negative predictive value 33% ( 75%for paediatrics 50% for females 5% for males) & accuracy 65% ( 88.9% for paediatrics 59% for females 58% for males).
Conclusion:- MASS was of limited help to junior doctors in our setting,clinical assessment & experience are still the gold standard for acute appendicitis.
A simple straightforward mathematical method has been developed to cluster grid nodes on a boundary segment of an arbitrary geometry that can be fitted by a relevant polynomial. The method of solution is accomplished in two steps. At the first step, the length of the boundary segment is evaluated by using the mean value theorem, then grids are clustered as desired, using relevant linear clustering functions. At the second step, as the coordinates cell nodes have been computed and the incremental distance between each two nodes has been evaluated, the original coordinate of each node is then computed utilizing the same fitted polynomial with the mean value theorem but reversibly.
The method is utilized to predict
... Show MoreThis project sought to fabricate a flexible gas sensor based on a short functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (f-MWCNTs) network for nitrogen dioxide gas detection. The network was prepared by filtration from the suspension (FFS) method and modified by coating with a layer of polypyrrole conductive polymer (PPy) prepared by the oxidative chemical polymerization to improve the properties of the network. The structural, optical, and morphological properties of the f-MWCNTs and f-MWCNTs/PPy network were studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourie-transform infrared (FTIR), with an AFM (atomic force microscopy). XRD proved that the structure of f-MWCNTs is unaffected by the synthesis procedure. The FTIR spectra verified the existence o
... Show MoreAtmospheric residue fluid catalytic cracking was selected as a probe reaction to test the catalytic performance of modified NaY zeolites and prepared NaY zeolites. Modified NaY zeolites have been synthesized by simple ion exchange methods. Three samples of modified zeolite Y have been obtained by replacing the sodium ions in the original sample with lanthanum and the weight percent added are 0.28, 0.53, and 1.02 respectively. The effects of addition of lanthanum to zeolite Y in different weight percent on the cracking catalysts were investigated using an experimental laboratory plant scale of fluidized bed reactor.
The experiments have been performed with weight hourly space velocity (WHSV) range of 6 to 24 h
... Show MoreHydrated lime has been recognized as an effective additive used to improve asphalt concrete properties in pavement applications. However, further work is still needed to quantify the effect of hydrated lime on asphaltic concrete performance under varied weather, temperature, and environmental conditions and in the application of different pavement courses. A research project was conducted using hydrated lime to modify the asphalt concretes used for the applications of wearing (surface), leveling (binder), and base courses. A previous publication reported the experimental study on the resistance to Marshall stability and the volumetric properties, the resilient modulus, and permanent deformation at three different weather temperatures. This
... Show MoreConclusion The observation of the phenomenon of structural evolution of the international system and its instability on a particular situation, by its transition from unipolar to polarity to bipolarism and then to unilateralism in the early 1990s led by the United States, and to the present moment, To say that the structure by which the hierarchy of superpowers or the regime is directed in terms of its various capacities that qualify it, and with the consent of the rest of the States directing the regime to lead and lead the world's first place, has no direct relation to the stability of this system, I hope other more influential in its stability. The structure of the new international order will be completely different in terms of the r
... Show MoreThis paper studies the adaptive coded modulation for coded OFDM system using punctured convolutional code, channel estimation, equalization and SNR estimation. The channel estimation based on block type pilot arrangement is performed by sending pilots at every sub carrier and using this estimation for a specific number of following symbols. Signal to noise ratio is estimated at receiver and then transmitted to the transmitter through feedback channel ,the transmitter according to the estimated SNR select appropriate modulation scheme and coding rate which maintain constant bit error rate
lower than the requested BER. Simulation results show that better performance is confirmed for target bit error rate (BER) of (10-3) as compared to c
With the high usage of computers and networks in the current time, the amount of security threats is increased. The study of intrusion detection systems (IDS) has received much attention throughout the computer science field. The main objective of this study is to examine the existing literature on various approaches for Intrusion Detection. This paper presents an overview of different intrusion detection systems and a detailed analysis of multiple techniques for these systems, including their advantages and disadvantages. These techniques include artificial neural networks, bio-inspired computing, evolutionary techniques, machine learning, and pattern recognition.
In this work a Nd:YVO4 thin disc laser setup is designed and fabricated. The disk laser system
is designed to be compact. The laser crystal was pumped by a 808 nm diode laser. The effect of input
current and pulse frequency on the output energy at pulse operation mode, and the effect of the input
current on the output power at CW mode operation are tested. At the pulsed mode, the output energy
increased linearly with the input current and decreased with pulse frequency. The threshold current
increased with increasing pulse frequency increasing. The maximum output energy from the thin disc
laser was 0.98 μJ at 1.3 kHz frequency, with 0.49A. A minimum threshold current for CW mode of
operation. The maximum outpu
The paper deals with the traveling wave cylindrical heating systems. The analysis presented is analytical and a multi-layer model using cylindrical geometry is used to obtain the theoretical results. To validate the theoretical results, a practical model is constructed, tested and the results are compared with the theoretical ones. Comparison showed that the adopted analytical method is efficient in describing the performance of such induction heating systems.