Background: Chronic periodontitis is an inflammatory disease that affects the supporting tissues of the teeth and it’s common among adults. Smoking is an important risk factor for periodontitis induces alveolar bone loss. Alkaline phosphatase enzyme is involved in the destruction of the human periodontium. It is produced by many cells such as polymorphonuclear leukocytes, osteoblasts, macrophages and fibroblasts within the area of the periodontium and gingival crevice. Osteocalcin is one of the most abundant matrix proteins found in bones and the only matrix protein synthesized exclusively there. Smaller Osteocalcin fragments are found in areas of bone remodeling and are actually degradation products of the bone matrix.The purpose of this study was to evaluatethe effect of smoking on the salivary alkaline phosphatase and Osteocalcin in subjects with chronic periodontitis compared to control subjects. Materials and Methods: Five ml of unstimulated whole saliva samples and full-mouth clinical periodontal recordings (plaque index, gingival index, bleeding on probing, probing pocket depth and clinical attachment level) were obtained from study groups (25 light smokers and 33 non-smokerssubjects, both with chronic periodontitis) and control groups (8 light smokers and 13 non-smokers subjects, both with healthy periodontium). All subjects were systemically healthy males, with age range (30-50) years. Salivary Alkaline phosphatase and Osteocalcin levels were determined by Colorimetric and Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assays, respectively. Results: Smoker chronic periodontitis patients revealed non-significant differences in clinical periodontal parameters with non-smoker counterparts (P˃o.o5) in terms of Plaque index, Probing pocket depth and Clinical attachment loss, with slight increase in plaque index value in smoker chronic periodontitis group(1.42±0.46) than non-smoker chronic periodontitis group, while there were highly significant differences in terms of Gingival index and Bleeding on probing(P ≤ 0.01).Osteocalcin levels were lower in smoker chronic periodontitis group (0.13±0.20) than non-smoker chronic periodontitis group (1.09±2.26) with significant difference (0.05 ≥ P > 0.01). Mean of Alkaline phosphatase level was lower in smoker chronic periodontitis (11.14±4.53) than non-smoker chronic periodontitis (11.45±4.17) with a non-significant difference, while there was a significant difference inAlkaline phosphatase concentrations between smoker and non-smoker control groups.There were non-significant differences between smoker chronic periodontitis and smoker control groups in terms of Osteocalcin and Alkaline phosphatase concentrations. There were non-significant differences between non-smoker chronic periodontitis and non-smoker control groups in terms of Osteocalcin and Alkaline phosphatase concentrations. Conclusion: Within the limits of this study, it may be suggested that suppression of salivary Osteocalcin levels by smoking and slight increase in alkaline phosphatase in smokers groups, may explain the deleterious effects of smoking on periodontal health status.
Background: Extracorporeal Shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) is widely used in treating patients with ureteralstones because it is effective, safe, and noninvasive. Based on factors such as size and the location of stones,there is a significant variation in the overall stone-free rate (SFR).Aim of the study: To evaluate the effect of ureteral wall thickness (UWT), stone attenuation, the time fromfirst attack of pain till first session of ESWL and stone/ rib density on the outcome of SWL in the treatmentof upper ureteral stones (UUS).Patient and methods: A prospective study when 127 patients with radio-opaque UUS ranging from 7 to 20mm and treated by ESWL were included in this study. The effect of (stone/ 12th rib) density by KUB, ureter
... Show MoreAn experimental study was carried out to improve the surface roughness quality of the stainless steel 420 using magnetic abrasive finishing method (MAF). Four independent operation parameters were studied (working gap, coil current, feed rate, and table stroke), and their effects on the MAF process were introduced. A rotating coil electromagnet was designed and implemented to use with plane surfaces. The magnetic abrasive powder used was formed from 33%Fe and 67% Quartz of (250µm mesh size). The lubricant type SAE 20W was used as a binder for the powder contents. Taguchi method was used for designing the experiments and the optimal values of the selected parameters were found. An empirical equation representing the r
... Show MoreEco-friendly concrete is produced using the waste of many industries. It reduces the fears concerning energy utilization, raw materials, and mass-produced cost of common concrete. Several stress-strain models documented in the literature can be utilized to estimate the ultimate strength of concrete components reinforced with fibers. Unfortunately, there is a lack of data on how non-metallic fibers, such as polypropylene (PP), affect the properties of concrete, especially eco-friendly concrete. This study presents a novel approach to modeling the stress-strain behavior of eco-friendly polypropylene fiber-reinforced concrete (PFRC) using meta-heuristic particle swarm optimization (PSO) employing 26 PFRC various mixtures. The cement was partia
... Show MorePultruded materials made of Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (FRP) come in a broad range of shapes, such as bars, I-sections, C-sections, etc. FRP materials are starting to compete with steel as structural materials owing to their great resistance, low self-weight, and cheap maintenance costs, especially in corrosive conditions. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a novel concrete Composite Column (CC) using Encased I-Section (EIS) as a reinforcement in contrast to traditional steel bars by using Glass Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) as I-section (CC-EIS) to evaluate the effectiveness of the hybrid columns which have been built by combining GFRP profiles with concrete columns. To achieve the aims of this study, nine circular co
... Show MoreYouTube is not just a platform that individuals share, upload, comment on videos; teachers and educators can utilize it to the best maximum so that students can have benefits. This study aims at investigating how active and influential YouTube can be in the educational process and how it is beneficial for language teachers to enhance the skills of students. The study demonstrates different theoretical frameworks that tackle the employment of technology to enhance the learning/teaching process. It relies on the strategies of Berk (2009) for using multimedia media, video clips in particular to develop the abilities of teachers for using technology in classrooms. To achieve the objective of the study, the researchers develop a questionnair
... Show MoreIn every country in the world, there are a number of amputees who have been exposed to some accidents that led to the loss of their upper limbs. The aim of this study is to suggest a system for real-time classification of five classes of shoulder girdle motions for high-level upper limb amputees using a pattern recognition system. In the suggested system, the wavelet transform was utilized for feature extraction, and the extreme learning machine was used as a classifier. The system was tested on four intact-limbed subjects and one amputee, with eight channels involving five electromyography channels and three-axis accelerometer sensor. The study shows that the suggested pattern recognition system has the ability to classify the sho
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