Trunk Dimensions Research Articles

Morphometric Measurements of Root Anatomic Areas of Maxillary First Premolar Teeth in a Representative Nepalese Population

Background The prognosis of furcation involved maxillary first premolar is typically guarded to poor. The presence of concavities in the root trunk and the positioning of the roots in the buccal and palatal regions of the teeth are responsible for its challenges during instrumentation and control plaque. We aimed to access the presence of concavities on the root surface as well as morphometric measurement of the root trunk dimensions in the maxillary first premolar teeth in Nepalese population.MethodsA cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted in the Department of Periodontics and Oral Implantology, College of Medical Sciences (CoMS). Extracted Maxillary first premolar teeth were evaluated for the number of roots, morphometric measurement of the root trunk, root divergence, and root length. The presence of concavities was recorded on the mesial and distal root surface at cervical, middle, and apical thirds of the root.ResultsThe overall mean root trunk length was less on the mesial aspect than on the distal aspect (6.39 ± 2.54 and 8.08 ± 3.48 respectively). The prevalence of root surface concavity on the cervical third at the mesial aspect (90 %) was found to be higher than in the distal aspect (15%) Conclusions Owing to the higher prevalence of root surface concavity on the cervical third of mesial aspect, use of mini-bladed curettes is recommended for the effective root surface debridement of the periodontally involved maxillary first premolar tooth. Patients with periodontally involved maxillary first premolar should be advised to use interdental brushes rather than dental floss.

Finding the Optimal Timing for Repair of Standard Tetralogy of Fallot: Analysis of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance and Echocardiography Parameters Related to Intermediate Term Outcomes in a Pediatric Population.

Right ventricular (RV) dilatation is the determining prognostic factor in the long-term follow up of patients with repaired Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF). The objective of this study is to analyze whether the results vary depending on the timing of the complete repair and on the surgical technique applied. This is a retrospective longitudinal study in which patients with standard TOF were divided into 3 groups depending on their age at surgical repair: group 1 = Early repair (n = 12,1-8months), group 2 = Late repair (n = 26, > 8months), and group 3 = Late repair with previous palliative surgery (n = 17, > 8months). Clinical, echocardiographic and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) data from patients that had received complete reparative surgery in our institution from January 2000 to March 2014 were analyzed and compared. 55 patients with echocardiogram and CMR studies (13.39 ± 3.59years) were reviewed. All patients had at least moderate pulmonary regurgitation (PR). We observed a positive correlation between PR and right ventricular end-diastolic volume (r2 = 0.418; p = 0,004). Group 3 had more severe right ventricular dilatation than patients in groups 1 and 2 (p = 0.001). No differences in right ventricular end-diastolic volume, PR, and pulmonary trunk dimensions were observed between groups 1 and 2. Patients in group 3 had a longer hospital stay. Although all patients from our cohort had significant PR, age at surgery was not related to RV or pulmonary trunk dilatation. Previous palliative surgery was associated with more severe right ventricular dilatation and longer hospital stays. No differences were observed between early and late repair groups. Our study suggests that postponing TOF repair to a late stage does not improve the degree of PR or long-term morbidity from RV dilatation. Palliative surgery should be avoided if possible.

Assessing peculiarity of molar root trunk dimensions in a sample of Saudi population – A radiographic analysis

ObjectiveTo assess the dimensions of root trunk lengths (RTL) in maxillary and mandibular molars and evaluate their correlation with the mesio-distal (MD) width of the tooth at the level of cemento enamel junction and Inter-Radicular Angle (IRA) at the point of roots separation. Materials and methodsRadiographic measurements of a total of 955 molars from 120 study subjects satisfying the inclusion criteria were analyzed. The sampling frame consisted of radiographs from the outpatient dental clinic of the College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The linear measurements, including the width, length and depth of the root trunks under investigation were made using flexible translucent plastic grid while; the angles were measured by rotary German caliper protractor. ResultThe mean RTL dimension for molars were 4.31 mm (3–8 mm). The mean MD width of the molars was 10.02 mm and the mean measured IRA was 34.12°. The longest RT was observed in maxillary 1st molar (4.40 mm) while the shortest radiographic RT length was recorded for the mandibular 2nd molars (4.13 mm). Statictically insignificant correlation (p = 0.090) was observed between RTL with the MD width of the tooth, whereas appreciable significance resulted between RTL and IRA (p < 0.001). ConclusionKnowledge about the molar teeth RT length of the study population will aid the dental clinician in better decision making during management of periodontal disease conditions.

PR221: Root trunk dimensions of first maxillary premolars: gender and sex influence. A cone beam computed tomography study

PR221: Root trunk dimensions of first maxillary premolars: gender and sex influence. A cone beam computed tomography study

In-situ preliminary assessment of centennial olive trees in Lebanon indicates a high potential for selection

Olive has a long and majestic history in Lebanon, and centennial trees are still growing in the country as an integral part of the agricultural system. No information is yet available on the fruit and oil traits of these trees. In this study, we characterized a set of 28 olive centennials growing in five locations in the south (Hasbaya, Quawqaba, Deir Mimas), the north (Bcheale) and Mount Lebanon (Kfar Matta) between 300 and 1200 m a.s.l. Thirty-one traits related to foot and trunk dimensions, fruit and endocarp descriptors, oil content by Abencor system and fatty acids of the extracted oil by gas chromatography-flame ionization detector (GC-FID) were assessed. We noted a large variability among the centennials for most of the traits studied. The largest trees in terms of foot, trunk and cavity dimensions were those from Bcheale, followed by those from Hasbaya and Kawkaba. Small to medium-sized fruits were found in most of the centennials studied, varying between 1.11 and 3.38 g fruit-1. Endocarp morphological traits varied slightly among the centennial trees, while oil traits presented significant variability. Oil content was the highest in Kawkaba centennials, with values up to 25-28%. As to the fatty acid composition, Bcheale centennials were distinguished by their highest content of oleic acid (C18:1 up to 77.64%) and Hasbaya centennials by their highest content of both linoleic (C18:2 up to 15.2%) and palmitic (C16:0 up to 17.33%) acids. Our results indicate the technological potential of the monumental olive trees of Lebanon that should be further investigated in order to understand their performance and to evaluate them in selection programs.

Optimal Positioning of the Nipple-Areola Complex in Men Using the Mohrenheim-Estimated-Tangential-Tracking-Line (METT-Line): An Intuitive Approach.

The reconstruction of the body shape after post-bariatric surgery or high-grade gynecomastia involves, besides skin tightening, the repositioning of anatomical, apparent landmarks. The surgeon usually defines these during the preoperative planning. In particular, the positions of the nipple-areola complexes (NAC) should contribute to the gender-appropriate appearance. While in the female breast numerous methods have been developed to determine the optimal position of the NACs, there are only a few, metric and often impractical algorithms for positioning the nipples and areoles in the male. With this study, we show the accuracy of the intuitive positioning of the nipple-areola complex in men. From a pre-examined and measured quantity of 10 young and healthy men, six subjects were selected, which corresponded, on the basis of their chest and trunk dimensions, to the average of known data from the literature. The photographed frontal views were retouched in two steps. Initially, only the NACs were removed and the chest contours were left. In a second step, all contours and the navel were blurred. These pictures were submitted to resident and consultant plastic surgeons, who were asked to draw the missing NACs without any tools. The original positions of the nipples were compared with the inscriptions. Furthermore, the results were compared between the contoured and completely retouched pictures and between the residents and consultants. A total of 8 consultants and 7 residents were included. In the contoured and completely retouched images, a significant deviation of the marked positions of the missing features was found. The height of the NAC was determined somewhat more precisely than the vertical position. There was no significant difference between the contoured and completely retouched images, with a discretely more accurate tendency on the contoured images. In comparison with the professional experience, the consultants were tangentially more precise, but without a statistically significant impact. The intuitive determination of the NACs is a challenge for the plastic surgeon. In this study, a statistically significant deviation was seen in almost all dimensions, although the clinical relevance cannot be conclusively assessed. We found a positional relationship of the NAC to the infraclavicular groove ("Mohrenheim pit") in the vertical and 4-4.5cm above the submammary fold. The position of the NAC can be satisfactorily determined by a combination of plastic surgical intuition, patient wishes and practical metric methods using the Mohrenheim-Estimated-Tangential-Tracking-Line (METT-Line). This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .

Debate on the Multiculturalism: Issues and Particularism

In its appearances and its contemporary manifestation, the challenges provoked by the thrust of cultural identities have up to half a century of history. Since the 60s, it unveiled the broad social fragility and the problem of coexistence between cultures in democratic countries. This challenge has shacked the dictatorial, the authoritarian regimes, in particular when it alludes to the religious organizations, or national liberation groups. And it taps well our countries, under the shape of religious, nationalist movements, either still fights which recover from what we call indigenism. Faced with this challenge, we cannot formulate summary hypotheses. We are not any more at the beginning phase made by unknowns: we are engaged deeply in conflicts, tensions and transformations which we know already are not ephemeral .It does not obviously mean that their expressions are stabilized, or that their senses are fixed to the long term. To bring knowledge and more clarity on the nature of the problems in cause and on the way they are envisage in the public debate. We suggest analyzing in what the multiculturalism is a solution of the identical crises. Produce knowledge on the cultural differences, their production, their transformation and their reproduction; examine the problems which they generate in the social life, the meanings which they dress for the interested and for others; report their difficulties and their internal tensions: all is within the competence of the sociological analysis and requires as such specific theoretical and methodological tools. To return our coherent and practical work we are going to support our reflection with a case study, at least comparative between several multiculturalists’ models in particular French, American, Canadian and British. This exercise will allow us to kick away hypotheses which will be used as runway to the scientific community and to all society in the grip of the identical crises. However, the elaboration of a theoretical frame of the multiculturalists question stays a preliminary tool. As mentioned theoretical frame elaboration will serve as support of reflection .It will allow us to seize better the notion of the multiculturalism .it will include three main trunk dimensions which are: the Definition of the multiculturalism, the management of the multiculturalism and the identical tensions connected to the vertical and horizontal inheritances. According to Amnesty International multiculturalism is defined as a policy to maintain and to value the various cultures and the communities living within a society. It also implies fighting against the discriminations and promoting the whole and fair individuals participation and the communities of any origins to the social life. This definition brings to light the objectives of an ideal policy of the multiculturalism. We shall also retain of this definition which the multiculturalism can be understood under three approaches: sociological, institutional and ideological. The sociological approach is interested in the ethnic and cultural composition and interactions in the public area. It reports the facts state and the problem aroused by the intercultural relations. The institutional approach is more pragmatic, because it refers to the means of multiculturalism management: in the laws, in the policies, in the regulations, etc. The ideological approach recovers from the philosophic domain. It is the reflection which joins in reaction to the governmental policies about the multiculturalism management.

Evaluation of the reproducibility of the formetric 4D measurements for scoliosis

Frequent assessment and monitoring of AIS patients is necessary to determine the progression of spinal deformity. Radiographs are used as the standard-of-care for evaluation, but have negative long-term effects. Surface topography is a safer option for assessment in these patients. The Formetric 4D (DIERS, International GmbH of Schlangenbad, Germany) provides fast and radiation-free mages of the spine position using surface topography. The goal of this study was to measure the reproducibility of the Formetric 4D system in measuring trunk dimensions and scoliosis Cobb angles.

Do Waistline and Umbilical Position Really Change after Abdominoplasty?

Sir: Do the horizontal and vertical dimensions of the trunk truly change after abdominoplasty? Previous studies have focused on the umbilical position during preoperative evaluation, but alterations in waistline size, trunk dimensions, and umbilical position following abdominoplasty have not been evaluated thoroughly.1,2 This study sought to investigate these changes following traditional full abdominoplasty. Baseline measurements were obtained preoperatively that included waist circumference at the level of the umbilicus and distances from the xiphoid to the umbilicus and from the umbilicus to the most superior aspect of the labia majora (Fig. 1). Eleven female patients with abdominal lipodystrophy ranging in age from 28 to 72 years were treated with a standard full abdominoplasty procedure over a 6-month period (June of 2005 to January of 2006) by a single surgeon (A.M.), according to previously published methods at the Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital.3,4 Postoperative measurements at 1 week and 6 months were then recorded.Fig. 1.: Measurements obtained preoperatively and postoperatively. W, waist circumference at the level of the umbilicus; XU, distance from the xiphoid to the umbilicus; UV, distance from the umbilicus to the superior aspect of the labia majora. (Courtesy of Thanapong Waitayawinyu.)All 11 patients completed the study without complications. There were statistically significant net reductions in waist diameter (net mean decrease of 5.0 cm at 7 days and 7.9 cm at 6 months), xiphoid to umbilical distance (net mean decrease of 2.2 cm at 7 days and 2.8 cm at 6 months), and umbilicus to labia majora distance (net mean decrease of 4.4 cm at 7 days and 5.09 cm at 6 months) (Table 1).Table 1: Measurements of Waist Circumference, Xiphoid to Umbilicus, and Umbilicus to Superior Aspect of Labia MajoraVan Uchelen et al. evaluated the long-term durability of plication with ultrasonography. Six percent of the patients felt that their waist had gained in size, 60 percent felt it was unchanged, and 33 percent felt their waists had become slimmer.5 Our study is limited because of the small study group and does not take into account changes in diet or exercise or use fixed bony reference points. However, the data demonstrate consistent reductions in waist diameter (net mean decrease of 5.0 cm at 7 days and 7.9 cm at 6 months), xiphoid to umbilical distance (net mean decrease of 2.2 cm at 7 days and 2.8 cm at 6 months), and umbilicus to labia majora distance (net mean decrease of 4.4 cm at 7 days and 5.09 cm at 6 months). Comparison of preoperative and postoperative circumferential waist measurements revealed a significant decrease following plication that tightens the rectus fascia in the horizontal vector and persists because of the continual resolution of postoperative edema. This study also shows that the position of the umbilicus is displaced cephalically following abdominoplasty. Vertical plication and the superior pull of the tightened skin flap shortens the distance between the xiphoid and the umbilicus. Finally, our data display the decrease in distance between the umbilicus and the labia majora postoperatively. Removal of excess abdominal tissue below the umbilicus decreases the distance between the two points. The vertical pull of the infraumbilical rectus plication combines with the former to pull on the mons, which rejuvenates the aging vulva by unraveling and elevating the mons ptosis. This study demonstrates reductions in waist diameter and vertical trunk dimensions along with changes in umbilical position after abdominoplasty that persist at 6 months after surgery. DISCLOSURE The authors have no financial interests to declare in relation to the content of this article. Simon H. Chin, M.D. W. Jason Martin, M.D. Department of Plastic Surgery; Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital; Institute of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery; New York University School of Medicine Alan Matarasso, M.D. Department of Plastic Surgery; Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital; New York, N.Y.

Secular Trends in Measures of Cephalo-Facial Traits among Bengalee Boys Aged 7.0–16.0 Years from Kolkata between 1982–1983 and 1999–2001

While a large number of studies on secular trends have been performed on measures of stature, weight, trunk and limb dimensions, subcutaneous fatness and body composition, etc., less attention has been paid to cephalo-facial traits. This study reports on secular trends in five cephalo-facial traits (head length, head breadth, head circumference, bizygomatic breadth and morphological facial height) and two indices (cephalic index and facial index) in Bengalee Hindu boys between ages 7.0 and 16.0 years. The data set comes from two cross-sectional growth surveys carried out among the students of one particular Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) boys school with an interval of about 20 years (1982–1983 and 1999–2001). Identical protocol with respect to sampling, data collection, measuring technique and data analysis has been followed in both surveys. Except for morphological facial height (which showed negative secular trends), the other four cephalo-facial traits showed positive secular trends with varying magnitudes over the two decades. Cephalic index did not reveal any consistent pattern of change, while facial index showed a declining trend in the later survey.

Exposure to maternal diabetes is associated with altered fetal growth patterns: A hypothesis regarding metabolic allocation to growth under hyperglycemic-hypoxemic conditions.

The prevalence of diabetes is rising worldwide, including women who grew poorly in early life, presenting intergenerational health problems for their offspring. It is well documented that fetuses exposed to maternal diabetes during pregnancy experience both macrosomia and poor growth outcomes in birth size. Less is known about the in utero growth patterns that precede these risk factor expressions. Fetal growth patterns and the effects of clinical class and glycemic control were investigated in 37 diabetic pregnant women and their fetuses and compared to 29 nondiabetic, nonsmoking maternal/fetal pairs who were participants in a biweekly longitudinal ultrasound study with measurements of the head, limb, and trunk dimensions. White clinical class of the diabetic women was recorded (A2-FR) and glycosylated hemoglobin levels taken at the time of measurement assessed glycemic control (median 6.9%, interquartile range 5.6-9.2%). No significant difference in fetal weight was found by exposure. The exposed sample had greater abdominal circumferences from 21 weeks (P < or = 0.05) and shorter legs, but greater upper arm and thigh circumferences accompanied increasing glycemia in the second trimester. In the third trimester, exposed fetuses had a smaller slope for the occipital frontal diameter (P = 0.00) and were brachycephalic. They experienced a proximal/distal growth gradient in limb proportionality with higher humerus / femur ratios (P = 0.04) and arms relatively long by comparison with legs (P = 0.02). HbA1c levels above 7.5% accompanied shorter femur length for thigh circumference after 30 gestational weeks of age. Significant effects of diabetic clinical class and glycemic control were identified in growth rate timing. These growth patterns suggest that hypoxemic and hyperglycemic signals cross-talk with their target receptors in a developmentally regulated, hierarchical sequence. The increase in fetal fat often documented with diabetic pregnancy may reflect altered growth at the level of cell differentiation and proximate mechanisms controlling body composition. These data suggest that the maternal-fetal interchange circuit, designed to share and capture resources on the fetal side, may not have had a long evolutionary history of overabundance as a selective force, and modern health problems drive postnatal sequelae that become exacerbated by increasing longevity.

Low prevalence of bodyweight-for-height deficit: comparison of stunned and no-stunned Brazilian children

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between abdominal circumference and weight-for-height in children. The average of 18 anthropometric and body proportionality indexes were compared among four groups of children: stunted and non-stunted Brazilians, Peruvians and North-Americans. There were studied 386 children aged 6-59 months living in a poor neighborhood in Pelotas, Brazil. Anthropometric measurements (weight, recumbent length or height, sitting height or crown-rump length; head, chest, upper arm and abdominal circumferences; triceps, biceps, subescapular and suprailiac skinfold thickness; biacromial and biiliac breadths) were obtained. Muscle, fat, total upper arm areas, leg length and body proportionality indexes were calculated. The study sample showed high levels of morbidity, low parental educational levels, poor access to health services and poor housing conditions. Stunted Brazilian children had lower means for most of the anthropometric measurements when compared to non-stunted Brazilians and North-American children. However, stunted children showed larger abdominal, head and thoracic circumference in relation to their stature than non-stunted children. The low prevalence of weight-for-height among the children of this study is not a result of excess of fat or muscle tissue, and may be partly explained by an increase in head and trunk dimensions (including abdominal circumference) relative to the child's stature.

How Old are Tropical Trees? the Persistence of a Myth

The recent report of ancient trees in the Amazon region (Chambers et al. 1998) with a maximum radiocarbon dated age of about 1400 years for the long-living pioneer species Cariniana micrantha is discussed in the light of dendrochronological age determinations from Africa and South America together with the results of indirect age estimations from other sources. There is a tendency in the literature to considerably overestimate the maximum ages of tropical trees. Age determination by the direct counting of annual rings and making estimations for hollow trees by measuring growth rates and diameters result in ages between 400 and 500 years for the largest trunk dimensions, e.g. in Cariniana legalis.

Patch level variation of bark beetle attack (Col., Scolytidae) on snapped and uprooted trees in Norway spruce primeval natural forest in endemic condition: proportions of colonized surface and variability of ecological conditions

Abstract: From two snapped and five uprooted trees, 452 samples were obtained. Ips typographs, Jps amitinus, Dryocoetes spp., Hylurgops palliaus, Hylurgops glabratus, Pityogenes chalcographus, Polygraphus polygraphus, P. subopacus, Pityophthorus pityographus, Xyloterus lineatus and Xilechinus pilosus were present. Single and multiple linear regression were used for assessing the influence of insolation and host factors on the proportion of bark attacked by individual species, on the proportion of bark attacked by all bark beetle groups taken together and on the number of bark beetle groups present on individual trunks. Results show that the proportion of bark colonized by I. typographus is related to the connection of the trunk to roots and to insolation. The proportion of bark attacked by all species together was a function of trunk dimensions. Shaded trunks are attacked only by shade and moisture preferring species, while trunks exposed to higher levels of solar insolation are attacked by higher temperature preferring species on the sunny parts and by shade and moisture preferring species on shady parts.

Size factors in apple fruit

Eight ‘Golden Delicious’ apple trees on an experimental plot were systematically thinned to give different numbers of fruit per spur, per branch, and per tree. At harvest, fruits were weighed individually and their positions on spurs and branches noted. Trunk and branch girths were measured. Mean fruit weights were not significantly affected by the presence of several fruits on a spur, or by the degree of local crowding on branches, compared with the general mean for the whole tree. However, mean fruit weight varied between trees, depending on the number of fruits carried per unit of trunk girth of cross-sectional area. μ (mean fruit weight) = a — bN (number of fruit per unit trunk dimension) The distribution of fruit weights on each tree can be regarded as normal and on the 8 trees examined, standard deviations did not differ significantly. An equation was derived relating total crop per tree and fruit-size distribution to trunk dimensions and fruit number, both of which were variable from tree to tree, involving 2 coefficients of the mean size equation and the standard deviation of the weight distribution, which seem to be constant for the 8 trees under the prevailing conditions. Using the equations, it could be shown that although fruit thinning would increase the proportion of larger fruit in the crop, in only one case would careful thinning have increased the total weight of larger fruit.

Multiplexed Receiver for 2 MHz Transit Time Measurements for Implantation

Changes in the trunk dimensions of fetal sheep in utero have been monitored using ultrasonic transit-time measurements. The circuitry and operation of a multi-channel receiver and its associated driving circuitry, which enables up to eight distances to be measured in rapid sequence, are described in detail.

Multiplexed receiver for 2 MHz transit time measurements for implantation

Changes in the trunk dimensions of fetal sheep in utero have been monitored using ultrasonic transit-time measurements. The circuitry and operation of a multi-channel receiver and its associated driving circuitry, which enables up to eight distances to be measured in rapid sequence, are described in detail.