Improved preconcentration workflow for organic explosive traces in aqueous samples using solvent-assisted dispersive solid-phase extraction.

The present study deals with the development of a solvent-assisted dispersive solid phase extraction method for the extraction of HMX, RDX, and TNT from aqueous samples. Benzophenone and methanol were selected as explosives sorbent and dispersive solvent respectively. Extraction parameters like pH, extraction time, amount of sorbent, volume and type of the disperser solvent and centrifuge time were optimized. Dispersion of 0.5 mL dispersive solution (4% (w/v) benzophenone in methanol) was performed by injection into the 5 mL aqueous sample (pH=7) using a 1.0 mL syringe. After centrifuge, the extracted explosives were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection (HPLC-Uv). The results indicated that the linear ranges with the correlation coefficients of 0.99 ≤ R2 were 1.6-204.6 µg L-1, 1.4-213.7 µg L-1 and 1.3-225.9 µg L-1 for HMX, RDX and TNT respectively. The limit of detection and limit of quantification obtained for each explosive were: 0.3 µg L-1 and 0.8 µg L-1 for HMX, 0.3 µg L-1 and 0.9 µg L-1 for RDX and 0.2 µg L-1 and 0.7 µg L-1 for TNT. Finally, the practical applicability of the developed method was evaluated for the extraction of some organic explosives in water samples followed their determination by HPLC-Uv.

A comparison of nurses and elderly patients' perceptions of caring behaviors in intensive care units.

OBJECTIVE: Differences in patients and nurses' perceptions of caring behaviors arouse patient dissatisfaction. Continuous monitoring and assessment of caring behaviors has revealed its problems, and this in turn would promote care services by planning rational interventions and removing the problems. The present study aimed to compare nurses and elderly patients' perceptions of nurses' caring behaviors in intensive care units in accordance with Watson's transpersonal caring theory. METHODS: In this descriptive-analytical study, 70 nurses were selected using the census method, and 70 elderly patients over 60 years old were also selected using purposive sampling method from the intensive care units of Lorestan University of Medical Sciences during 2012-2013. Caring Behavior Inventory for Elders (CBI-E) was adopted in this research to detect the nurses and elderly patients' perceptions of caring behaviors. In the data analysis phase, Kruskal-Wallis, Mann-Whitney U, and Pearson correlation tests were used. RESULTS: The research findings revealed no statistically significant difference between the total scores of nurses' 83.80 (22.93), 95% CI [78.40, 89.20] and elderly patients' 80.09 (26.00), 95% CI [74, 86.20] perception of nurses' caring behaviors (P=0.379). From the viewpoint of the nurses and elderly patients, responding quickly to a patient's call 100.00 (0.00), 95% CI [100.00, 100.00] had the highest mean scores and patient participation in caring process had the lowest mean scores among nurses 22.86 (33.71), 95% CI [15.00, 30.80] and elderly patients 14.29 (28.41), 95% CI [7.63, 20.90]. CONCLUSION: This study indicated the elderlies and nurses' similar perceptions of caring behaviors in intensive care units. This finding would help nurses to recognize and prioritize the elderly patients' care needs, thereby promoting the quality of care services.

A comparison of nurses and elderly patients' perceptions of caring behaviors in intensive care units / Comparación de las percepciones del personal de enfermería y de los pacientes de edad avanzada sobre las conductas de cuidado en las unidades de cuidados intensivos

Objective: Differences in patients and nurses’ perceptions of caring behaviors arouse patient dissatisfaction. Continuous monitoring and assessment of caring behaviors has revealed its problems, and this in turn would promote care services by planning rational interventions and removing the problems. The present study aimed to compare nurses and elderly patients’ perceptions of nurses’ caring behaviors in intensive care units in accordance with Watson's transpersonal caring theory. Methods: In this descriptive-analytical study, 70 nurses were selected using the census method, and 70 elderly patients over 60 years old were also selected using purposive sampling method from the intensive care units of Lorestan University of Medical Sciences during 2012–2013. Caring Behavior Inventory for Elders (CBI-E) was adopted in this research to detect the nurses and elderly patients’ perceptions of caring behaviors. In the data analysis phase, Kruskal–Wallis, Mann–Whitney U, and Pearson correlation tests were used. Results: The research findings revealed no statistically significant difference between the total scores of nurses’ 83.80 (22.93), 95% CI [78.40, 89.20] and elderly patients’ 80.09 (26.00), 95% CI [74, 86.20] perception of nurses’ caring behaviors (P=0.379). From the viewpoint of the nurses and elderly patients, responding quickly to a patient's call 100.00 (0.00), 95% CI [100.00, 100.00] had the highest mean scores and patient participation in caring process had the lowest mean scores among nurses 22.86 (33.71), 95% CI [15.00, 30.80] and elderly patients 14.29 (28.41), 95% CI [7.63, 20.90]. Conclusion: This study indicated the elderlies and nurses’ similar perceptions of caring behaviors in intensive care units. This finding would help nurses to recognize and prioritize the elderly patients’ care needs, thereby promoting the quality of care services.(AU)

Objetivo: Las diferencias en las percepciones de los pacientes y las enfermeras sobre las conductas de cuidado despiertan la insatisfacción de los pacientes. El seguimiento y la evaluación continuos de las conductas de cuidado han puesto de manifiesto sus problemas, lo que a su vez promovería los servicios de cuidado mediante la planificación de intervenciones racionales y la eliminación de los problemas. El presente estudio tenía como objetivo comparar las percepciones de las enfermeras y de los pacientes ancianos sobre las conductas de cuidado de las enfermeras en las Unidades de Cuidados Intensivos de acuerdo con la teoría de Watson's Transpersonal Caring. Métodos: En este estudio descriptivo-analítico, se seleccionó a 70 enfermeras mediante el método de censo, y 70 pacientes ancianos mayores de 60 años mediante el método de muestreo intencional de las Unidades de Cuidados Intensivos de la Lorestan University of Medical Sciences durante 2012-2013. En esta investigación se adoptó el Caring Behavior Inventory for Elders (CBI-E) para detectar las percepciones de las enfermeras y de los pacientes ancianos sobre las conductas de cuidado. En la fase de análisis de datos, se utilizaron las pruebas de Kruskal-Wallis, U de Mann-Whitney y la correlación de Pearson. Resultados: Los resultados de la investigación no revelaron diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre las puntuaciones totales de las enfermeras, 83,80 (22,93), IC del 95%: 78,40-89,20, y las de los pacientes ancianos, 80,09 (26,00), IC del 95%: 74 - 86,20, de percepción de las conductas de cuidado de las enfermeras (p=0,379). Desde el punto de vista de las enfermeras y de los pacientes de edad avanzada, la respuesta rápida a la llamada de un paciente (100,00 [0,00], IC del 95%: 100,00-100,00) tuvo las puntuaciones medias más altas y la participación del paciente en el proceso de cuidados tuvo las puntuaciones medias más bajas entre las enfermeras (22,86 [33,71], IC del 95%: 15,00-30,80)...(AU)

[Knowledge of dental hygienists about cardiovascular diseases]. / Kennis van mondhygiënisten omtrent hart- en vaatziekten.

Cardiovascular diseases are among the most common disorders in the Netherlands. Dental hygienists will often be confronted with patients who suffer from these diseases. The aim of this research was to explore the current knowledge of dental hygienists in the Netherlands about cardiovascular diseases. 979 dental hygienists in the Netherlands received a written questionnaire by post. The results were tested with the Mann-Whitney tests, the chi-square tests and the Kruskal-Wallis-H tests. A total of 150 dental hygienists participated in the study. Of the 12 case-oriented statements, the dental hygienists answered just over half of the questions correctly (on average 6.59 of 12). Dental hygienists who rated their knowledge about cardiovascular diseases high gave significantly more correct answers (average 7.04 of 12) than dental hygienists who rated themselves lower (average 6.16 of 12). This suggests that dental hygienists' knowledge of cardiovascular diseases, particularly concerning blood clotting, could be improved.

Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) and its natural environmental impacts.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is the official name of a respiratory infectious disease caused by a new coronavirus that started first in Wuhan, China, and outspread worldwide with an unexpectedly fast speed. Flights have been canceled worldwide and transportation has been closed nationwide and across international borders. As a consequence, the economic activity has been stopped and stock markets have been dropped. The COVID-19 lockdown has several social and economic effects. Additionally, COVID-19 has caused several impacts on global migration. On the other hand, such lockdown, along with minimal human mobility, has impacted the natural environment somewhat positively. Overall carbon emissions have dropped, and the COVID-19 lockdown has led to an improvement in air quality and a reduction in water pollution in many cities around the globe. A summary of the existing reports of the environmental impacts of COVID-19 pandemic are discussed and the important findings are presented focusing on several aspects: air pollution, waste management, air quality improvements, waste fires, wildlife, global migration, and sustainability.

Evaluation of different gridded rainfall datasets for rainfed wheat yield prediction in an arid environment.

The accuracy of daily output of satellite and reanalysis data is quite crucial for crop yield prediction. This study has evaluated the performance of APHRODITE (Asian Precipitation-Highly-Resolved Observational Data Integration Towards Evaluation), PERSIANN (Rainfall Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information using Artificial Neural Networks), TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission), and AgMERRA (The Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications) precipitation products to apply as input data for CSM-CERES-Wheat crop growth simulation model to predict rainfed wheat yield. Daily precipitation output from various sources for 7 years (2000-2007) was obtained and compared with corresponding ground-observed precipitation data for 16 ground stations across the northeast of Iran. Comparisons of ground-observed daily precipitation with corresponding data recorded by different sources of datasets showed a root mean square error (RMSE) of less than 3.5 for all data. AgMERRA and APHRODITE showed the highest correlation (0.68 and 0.87) and index of agreement (d) values (0.79 and 0.89) with ground-observed data. When daily precipitation data were aggregated over periods of 10 days, the RMSE values, r, and d values increased (30, 0.8, and 0.7) for AgMERRA, APHRODITE, PERSIANN, and TRMM precipitation data sources. The simulations of rainfed wheat leaf area index (LAI) and dry matter using various precipitation data, coupled with solar radiation and temperature data from observed ones, illustrated typical LAI and dry matter shape across all stations. The average values of LAImax were 0.78, 0.77, 0.74, 0.70, and 0.69 using PERSIANN, AgMERRA, ground-observed precipitation data, APHRODITE, and TRMM. Rainfed wheat grain yield simulated by using AgMERRA and APHRODITE daily precipitation data was highly correlated (r2 ≥ 70) with those simulated using observed precipitation data. Therefore, gridded data have high potential to be used to supply lack of data and gaps in ground-observed precipitation data.

Evaluation of pro-oxidant-antioxidant balance (PAB) and its association with inflammatory cytokines in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Chronic low-grade inflammation has been suggested as a key contributor of the pathogenesis and development of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). To investigate the association between oxidative stress status and inflammatory cytokines in follicular fluid of 21 PCOS women compared to 21 women with normal ovarian function who underwent intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection. Concentration of IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and TNF-α was measured using sandwich ELISA. Oxidative stress was examined by measuring total oxidant status (TOS), malondialdehyde (MDA), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and thiol groups. PCOS women had an elevated concentration of MDA and TOS compared to controls. Levels of TAC and thiol groups were lower in PCOS compared to controls. PCOS patients had a higher concentration of IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α compared to controls. Concentration of IL-10 was lower in PCOS compared to controls. Significant correlations were found between MDA and TOS concentration with TNF-α and between IL-6 and MDA, IL-8 and TAC, IL-10 and TOS levels and also between IL-10 and TAC levels. TAC and thiol groups were negatively correlated with TNF-α. Increased oxidative stress in PCOS is associated with inflammation which is closely linked. Inflammation can induce production of inflammatory cytokines in this syndrome and directly stimulates excess ovarian androgen production.

A review of the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral group therapy on the reduction of body image concern in patients with breast cancer.

Objective: Taking the appropriate psychological actions to boost the mental health of patients with breast cancer is critical. This research was performed with the aim of examining the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral group therapy on reducing body image concerns in patients with breast cancer. Methodology: TThe method used was quasi-experimental with a pretest-posttest plan and control group. Therefore, 40 patients with breast cancer who had referred to the oncology and radiotherapy department of Imam Hossein Hospital of Tehran were selected by convenience sampling method and organized into two groups: experimental and control group. Both groups were pretested by using demographic and body image concern questionnaires. Then the experimental group received cognitive-behavioral group therapy training for eight sessions and the control group did not receive any intervention. Afterwards, both groups were post-tested, and the data were analyzed by using SPSS software with descriptive and inferential statistics methods. Findings: The findings showed that the cognitive-behavioral group therapy training significantly contributed to the reduction of body image concern in patients with cancer (p < 0.001). Conclusions: It was concluded from this research that cognitive-behavioral group therapy training is an effective strategy to help patients with breast cancer who suffer from the concern about body image due to its high efficiency, especially when it was held in groups, it had low cost, and it was acceptable by the patients.

The Prevalence of Asthma in an Adult Population in Khorramabad, Iran.

OBJECTIVE: Asthma is one of the most common respiratory disorders. There have not been any studies assessing the prevalence rate for asthma based on spirometry in an adult population in the west of Iran. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of asthma in an adult population in Khorramabad, in the west of Iran. METHODS: This prospective cross-sectional study was done on adult residents in Khorramabad between 2009 and 2010. The samples were selected by cluster and systematic sampling methods. The interviewers went to the selected homes and evaluated the samples by the standard questionnaire of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey. The individuals who were susceptible to asthma were evaluated using a hand-held spirometer (ZAN 100, Obertulba, Germany). Also, in the patients whose first spirometry had been normal, a more than 10% reduction in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) after the exercise and more than 12% rise in FEV1 after the salbutamol spray inhalation was considered as having asthma. Finally, the data were summarized using means and percentages. RESULTS: Eight hundred and fifty-seven adults were evaluated by the questionnaire and 450 were referred to the pulmonologist office. The frequency of spirometry-diagnosed asthma in the adult residents of Khorramabad was 9.45%. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of asthma in Khorramabad in our study was more than in similar studies in Iran and other countries. Doing analytical studies on the prevalence of asthma and its risk factors is recommended.

A case series of a luteolin formulation (NeuroProtek®) in children with autism spectrum disorders.

There has been an impressive, little understood increase in cases of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The lack of any distinctive pathogenetic mechanism has hampered the development of any effective treatments. Increasing evidence indicates oxidative stress, brain inflammation, gastrointestinal (GI) dysfunction and allergic symptoms may be present in ASD patients. The flavone luteolin has anti-oxidant, anti-flammatory, anti-allergy and neuroprotective properties. Given these findings, a dietary supplement was developed with a unique mixture of luteolin with the related flavonoids quercetin and rutin in a liposomal formulation of olive kernel oil (OKO), which increases their absorption. Results are presented for children with ASD (n=37, 4-14 years old) who had not obtained any benefit from multiple other regimens and who used this formulation for at least 4 months. GI and allergy symptoms improved in about 75 percent of children, eye contact and attention in 50 percent, social interaction in 25 percent and resumption of speech in about 10 percent. There were no adverse effects. Even though these results represent an uncontrolled open case series, they are encouraging because they suggest good tolerability and potential effectiveness.

Prevalence of zinc deficiency in 3-18 years old children in shiraz-iran.

BACKGROUND: Zinc is an essential trace element with a prominent role in human nutrition. Zinc deficiency has been linked to growth retardation, hypogonadism in males, and lack of sexual development in females. It ranges from 50% in sub-Saharan Africa to 5% in high income countries. The aim of this study is to evaluate the prevalence of zinc deficiency in healthy children in Shiraz, southern Iran. METHODS: In this study, 902 children aged 3-18 years old were randomly sampled for serum zinc level. Age, sex, weight, height, BMI, stunting and wasting indices were also recorded. With atomic absorption spectrophotometry method, the serum level of zinc less than 70 µg/dL was considered as deficient. RESULTS: Mean serum level of zinc was 122.3±55 µg/dL. The prevalence of zinc deficiency was 7.9%. There was no relationship among serum zinc level and age, sex, height, weight or BMI, but mild wasting (weight for age) and mild stunting (height for age) were significantly more prevalent among zinc deficient children compared to children with normal or high level of zinc. CONCLUSION: Zinc deficiency in Shiraz is not as prevalent as other areas of Iran. It was significantly more frequent among stunted and wasted (malnourished) children. Difference in soil zinc level, recent wide prescription of zinc supplements by pediatricians and especial pattern of nutrition, considered as possible factors responsible for lower prevalence of zinc deficiency in Shiraz, deserve more investigations.

HSV-2 Seroepidemiology and Risk Factors among Iranian Women: A Time to New Thinking.

BACKGROUND: Genital herpes is a common sexually transmitted disease in many developed and developing countries mostly caused by Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2). This study determines the prevalence of HSV-2 infection between two groups of women with high and low risk behaviors. METHODS: In this seroepidemiologic study, 362 women attending obstetrics and gynecology clinics as low risk group and 156 prisoners and drop in center resident women in Tehran as high risk group were enrolled. HSV infection was identified by serologic tests on blood samples. RESULTS: The prevalence of IgG antibody in high risk group was significantly more than low risk women (26.3% vs. 2.5%). The prevalence of IgM antibody in high risk group was less than low risk group (3.8% vs. 7.1%) but the difference was not statistically significant. In high risk group, there was significant association between positive IgG and anal/oral sex, use of condom, smoking and drug addiction as well as genital pain, burning, itching, ulcer, dysuria, and history of genital infection. In low risk group, association between positive IgM and IgG test results and risky behaviors were not significant. There was significant association between IgM and genital itching, rash, and ulcer. CONCLUSION: Relatively high seroprevalence of anti-HSV-2 IgG and high frequency of genital Herpes among high risk women necessitates regular screening and safe sex education programs. Moreover, risk of acute infection in this group should not be ignored and its distribution in Iranian population should be alarmingly concerned.

Iron status in female athletes participating in team ball-sports.

Iron deficiency anemia is the most prevalent micronutrient deficiency in the world, affecting 20-50% of the world's population. It is estimated that 10 and 20% of male and female athletes are iron deficient, respectively. Iron deficiency has deleterious effects on the physical performance of athletes. It decreases aerobic capacity, increases heart rate and elongates the recovery time after exercise. In this cross-sectional study, 42 semi-professional female athletes who had been playing in basketball, volleyball and handball super league teams served as subjects. Data on socioeconomic and fertility status as well as the type of sport were obtained through a questionnaire. Nutritional data were gathered with a 3 day dietary recall. Total intake of calorie, iron, zinc, folate, vitamin C and B12 were also analyzed. In addition, ferritin and TIBC were measured and a CBC test was done for each subject. The results showed that the mean total calorie intake of women was 2049.79 +/- 735.12 kcal, where their iron intake was 22.33 +/- 9.24 mg day(-1). There was a significant difference between the iron intake of basketball and volleyball players (p = 0.036). Of our subjects, 33.33% had low ferritin levels (< 30 ng mL(-1)) and it was lowest in handball players. Higher than normal ferritin levels were seen in 12.5% of the subjects. We saw a significant difference in ferritin levels of basketball and handball players (p = 0.047). We conclude that the intake of calorie and iron is low in female athletes and therefore, their hematological indices such as ferritin level are below standard values.

Luteolin and thiosalicylate inhibit HgCl(2) and thimerosal-induced VEGF release from human mast cells.

HgCl2 is a known environemental neurotoxin, but is also used as preservative in vaccines as thimerosal containing ethyl mercury covalently linked to thiosalicylate. We recently reported that mercury choloride (HgCl(2)) can stimulate human mast cells to release vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), which is also vasoactive and pro-inflammatory. Here we show that thimerosal induces significant VEGF release from human leukemic cultured LAD2 mast cells (at 1 microM 326 ± 12 pg/106 cells and 335.5 ± 12 pg/106 cells at 10 microM) compared to control cells (242 ± 21 pg/106 cells, n=5, p less than 0.05); this effect is weaker than that induced by HgCl2 at 10 microM (448 ± 14 pg/106 cells) (n=3, p less than 0.05). In view of this finding, we hypothesize that the thiosalicylate component of thimerosal may have an inhibitory effect on VEGF release. Thimerosal (10 microM) added together with the peptide Substance P (SP) at 2 microM, used as a positive control, reduced VEGF release by 90 percent. Methyl thiosalicylate (1 or 10 microM) added with either SP or HgCl2 (10 microM) inhibited VEGF release by 100 percent, while sodium salicylate or ibuprofen had no effect. Pretreatment for 10 min with the flavonoid luteolin (0.1 mM) before HgCl2 or thimerosal compeletly blocked their effect. Luteolin and methyl thiosalicylate may be useful in preventing mercury-induced toxicity.

Folic acid efficacy as an alternative drug added to sodium valproate in the treatment of acute phase of mania in bipolar disorder: a double-blind randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of adding folic acid to sodium valproate in the acute phase of mania. METHOD: Following a double-blind randomized controlled trial, 88 clinically manic patients with diagnosis of type I bipolar disorder (BID) were divided randomly into two groups (case and control). The case group was treated with folic acid and sodium valproate and the control group with sodium valproate and placebo. The severity of mania was assessed using the Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS) at the beginning and end of the first, second and third weeks of the study. RESULTS: The case group's mean manic YMRS measurements (SD) before the initiation of therapy and in the first, second and third weeks of treatment were 34.0 +/- 7.7, 26.7 +/- 2.1, 18.1 +/- 2.1 and 7.1 +/- 0.9 respectively. The control group's measurements were 34.7 +/- 3.8, 27.3 +/- 2.3, 20.7 +/- 2.5 and 10.1 +/- 1.1. There was a statistically significant difference in YMRS scaling results between the case and control groups after 3 weeks of treatment (7.1 +/- 0.9 vs. 10.1 +/- 1.1, P = 0.005). CONCLUSION: Based on our findings, folic acid seems to be an effective adjuvant to sodium valproate in the treatment of the acute phase of mania in patients with bipolar disorder.

Remote sensing and GIS techniques for evaluation of groundwater quality in municipal corporation of Hyderabad (Zone-V), India.

Groundwater quality in Hyderabad has special significance and needs great attention of all concerned since it is the major alternate source of domestic, industrial and drinking water supply. The present study monitors the ground water quality, relates it to the land use / land cover and maps such quality using Remote sensing and GIS techniques for a part of Hyderabad metropolis. Thematic maps for the study are prepared by visual interpretation of SOI toposheets and linearly enhanced fused data of IRS-ID PAN and LISS-III imagery on 1:50,000 scale using AutoCAD and ARC/INFO software. Physico-chemical analysis data of the groundwater samples collected at predetermined locations forms the attribute database for the study, based on which, spatial distribution maps of major water quality parameters are prepared using curve fitting method in Arc View GIS software. Water Quality Index (WQI) was then calculated to find the suitability of water for drinking purpose. The overall view of the water quality index of the present study area revealed that most of the study area with >50 standard rating of water quality index exhibited poor, very poor and unfit water quality except in places like Banjara Hills, Erragadda and Tolichowki. Appropriate methods for improving the water quality in affected areas have been suggested.

Assessment and mapping of water pollution indices in zone-III of municipal corporation of hyderabad using remote sensing and geographic information system.

A preliminary survey of area under Zone-III of MCH was undertaken to assess the ground water quality, demonstrate its spatial distribution and correlate with the land use patterns using advance techniques of remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS). Twenty-seven ground water samples were collected and their chemical analysis was done to form the attribute database. Water quality index was calculated from the measured parameters, based on which the study area was classified into five groups with respect to suitability of water for drinking purpose. Thematic maps viz., base map, road network, drainage and land use/land cover were prepared from IRS ID PAN + LISS III merged satellite imagery forming the spatial database. Attribute database was integrated with spatial sampling locations map in Arc/Info and maps showing spatial distribution of water quality parameters were prepared in Arc View. Results indicated that high concentrations of total dissolved solids (TDS), nitrates, fluorides and total hardness were observed in few industrial and densely populated areas indicating deteriorated water quality while the other areas exhibited moderate to good water quality.

The aetiology of mandibular fractures at an urban centre.

The objectives of this study were to determine the common aetiological factors leading to the fracture of the lower jaw (mandible) at an urban centre in England. A total of 96 patients presented to the Manchester Royal Infirmary with mandibular fractures during the calendar years 1991 and 1992. It was determined that the main aetiological factor leading to the disturbance of the mandibular contours was assault or interpersonal violence (74%) followed by falls, road traffic accidents and sporting injuries. The majority of the subjects were males and most of the patients were in the age group of 20-29 years. In most of the patients there was a unilateral pattern of injury and the angle was the most vulnerable area of the lower jaw to be traumatised.