Exposure to ETS (environmental tobacco smoke) is one of the most toxic environmental exposures.
To investigate the association of ETS with physiological, biochemical, and psychological indicators, as ...well as with urine antioxidant capacity (AC) and oxidative damage to lipids in a pilot sample of healthy pregnant women.
Exposure to ETS was investigated via a validated questionnaire, and urine cotinine and the marker of oxidative damage to lipids via 8-isoprostane concentrations using an ELISA kit. Urine AC was determined by the spectrophotometric Trolox-equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) method. From a sample of pregnant women (
= 319, average age 30.84 ± 5.09 years) in 80, the levels of cotinine and oxidative stress markers were analyzed.
Among the 80 pregnant women, 5% (7.4% confirmed by cotinine) reported being current smokers and 25% reported passive smoking in the household (18.8% confirmed by cotinine). The Kappa was 0.78 for smokers and 0.22 for ETS-exposed nonsmokers. Pregnant women in the ETS-exposed group had significantly reduced AC compared to both the nonsmoker (ETS-) and the smoker groups (
< 0.05). Nonsmokers had significantly lower levels of 8-isoprostane than smokers (
< 0.01) and ETS-exposed nonsmokers (
< 0.05). Correlations between urine levels of cotinine and AC were positive in ETS-exposed nonsmokers.
A harmful association of active and passive smoking and oxidative stress parameters among pregnant women has been indicated.
In the 1970s and 1980s, the occurrence of bedbugs (
Linnaeus, 1758) was noticed only sporadically in accommodation facilities in Slovakia. Under regular monitoring, it was possible to even eradicate ...its occurrence in the 1980s. Today, the problem is once again a major global health issue.
The aim of the study was to point out the occurrence of cimicosis in the case of atypical urticaria in patients referred to parasitological examination by inpatient and outpatient physicians.
During the period 2006-2015, 102 patients with suspected ectoparasitosis were examined in the Diagnostic Laboratory of Human Parasitology at the Faculty of Medicine of Comenius University in Bratislava. Specialists and general practitioners referred the patients with itching red efflorescences. Parasitological examination and entomologic analysis of insects confirmed in many of them the presence of skin ectoparasitosis caused by
, and in one case
.
A total number of 102 parasitologically patients were examined - 62 adults and 40 children. Among the 62 adults, there were 57 patients positive for cimicosis. In 5 patients cimicosis was not confirmed, in one of them (
Linnaeus, 1758) was detected. Among the 40 children, there were 34 positive for cimicosis. One female child was diagnosed with lesions caused by
.
The bed bug should again be subjected to the reporting service to public health authorities, and thus recording the monitoring of its incidence and spread in the population.
Display omitted
•Water-based wall systems for heating and cooling and thermal barriers are reviewed.•A classification scheme is proposed for heating/cooling systems and thermal barriers.•Benefits and ...drawbacks are summarized, design recommendations are provided.•Alternating between heating, cooling, and thermal barrier is perspective operation strategy.•Incorporating PCM in the wall and use in building retrofit are research opportunities.
This study reviews water-based wall systems for space heating and cooling and thermal barriers (TB) for the reduction of buildings’ thermal load. The review gives a general overview of the research and groups it into subtopics that are discussed in detail. For space heating and cooling, the subtopics entail thermal performance, thermal comfort, renewable energy sources, use for building retrofit, and combination with phase change materials (PCM). For TB, especially the working principle, types and designs, and performance are discussed. A classification system is proposed separately for wall heating and cooling systems and TB based on the designs found in scientific literature. Benefits and drawbacks are summarized, and design recommendations are provided for the wall systems.
It was shown that in certain cases, radiant wall systems can be preferable to radiant floors and ceilings, but further comparisons would be useful to provide conclusive evidence. For TB, the studies uniformly declare that TB reduce buildings’ thermal loads and energy demands. Few studies focused on the economic and environmental aspects of using TB. Most of the studies about TB are based on calculations. Measurements to quantify the benefits of TB under real operation and refine the conditions under which various types of TB are feasible are lacking. Enhancing the wall performance by PCM in the active layer, application of the wall systems in building retrofit, and alternating between the functions of heating, cooling, and TB present the biggest research opportunities and challenges.
•Thermally active wall with pipes arranged in thermal insulation was investigated.•The wall’s function can be alternated between space heating and a thermal barrier.•The system has the potential to ...reduce heat loss when used as a thermal barrier.•Heating capacity is reduced compared to walls with pipes outside thermal insulation.•Embedding pipes in thermally conductive material is crucial for heating capacity.
Numerical simulations and experiments were performed for a thermally active wall with pipes arranged in milled channels in the thermal insulation. The advantage of this system is its suitability for installation in both new and existing buildings in the form of precast heat insulation panels attached to their facades. The study shows that by active control of the supply water temperature, it is possible to alternate the walĺs function between space heating and a thermal barrier. The wall system has the potential to significantly reduce heat loss when used as a thermal barrier. When operated as space heating, embedding the pipes in thermal insulation reduced the heating capacity by 50% as compared to systems with pipes arranged in a concrete core and by 63% for pipes arranged in a layer underneath the surface. It is crucial that pipes arranged in channels are embedded in a thermally conductive material. Failing to do so can substantially diminish the heating capacity due to the imperfect contact between the pipes and radiant surface and also due to the air gap that may form around the pipes. The thickness of the thermal insulation, spacing of the pipes, and supply water temperature also have a substantial effect on the heating capacity, whereas the thickness of the concrete core does not.
A radiant wall heating and cooling system with pipes attached to thermally insulating bricks was tested using climate chambers and a hotbox. This system is especially suitable for building retrofit ...due to its affordability and ease of installation but can be also applied in new buildings. Besides walls, the design tested can be also used for ceilings. Thermal output and response, wall surface and cross-section temperature, and water temperature were measured under a range of thermal loads. The thermal response was fast despite the coupling of the pipe with the bricks; the time constant τ63 was 0.5 h. The low-conductivity core substantially reduced thermal losses meaning that the system can properly function even without thermal insulation. These qualities may present an advantage compared to systems with pipes coupled to a conductive core which require insulation and have longer response times. The difference between water and average surface temperature was small, up to 7.0 °C at the peak output of 100 W/m2, which benefits the energy source efficiency. However, the surface temperature was non-uniform, which should be considered to prevent local condensation. Numerical simulations at room level showed that locating the system at one wall leads to a non-homogeneous thermal environment. Installation at multiple walls can be preferable to attain more uniform conditions.
•Construction rules were studied for wall and ceiling systems suitable for retrofit.•Adding insulation was not necessary with insulating core even for low wall thickness.•Increase in output per 1 cm ...of pipe spacing was maximal at 6 cm.•A dense spacing maximized the system output per energy input.•A metal fin attached to a pipe in insulation led to the highest output.
The application of radiant heating and cooling systems in building retrofit could facilitate the use of renewable energy sources in existing buildings. This research focused on adapting the design of a ceiling and wall system with pipes underneath the surface and a wall system with the pipe embedded in a bricklayer. These systems are suitable for installation in retrofitted rooms, but the findings are also applicable to new buildings. Heat transfer was computed using a validated numerical model. With a conductive core, insulation thickness of up to 3 cm was appropriate for an internal wall. With an insulating core, insulation was not necessary even if the core was only 15 cm thin. The increase in output per 1 cm of pipe spacing was maximal at 6 cm. Spacing below 3 cm was inefficient. A dense spacing maximized the system output per energy input by creating a uniform surface temperature, while also shortening the response time. Attaching a metal fin to a pipe in plaster increased the output by as much as reducing the pipe spacing from 10 to 6 cm (14 W/m2, i.e. 20%). Attaching a metal fin to a pipe embedded in insulation for a compact design led to the highest output of all cases studied. Placing the pipe in a brick layer added to a conductive wall did not increase the heat storage capacity of the wall.
We tested the performance of a radiant wall system that involves pipes attached to a thermally insulating core made of aerated concrete. The potential benefits of such a system include the ...possibility of operation as cooling in summer and heating in winter, easy installation in new as well as existing buildings, minor space requirements, and eliminating the need to reduce the story height when installed in existing buildings. Laboratory measurements of a wall fragment located between two climate chambers have been performed under design boundary conditions to measure the wall surface temperature and output in heating and cooling mode. A hotbox attached to the inner wall surface allowed precise control of the test conditions. The fragment consisted of the concrete core insulated from the exterior by a layer of thermal insulation and a densely spaced pipe register attached to the core and located in a plaster. The response curves indicated a fast thermal response of the wall system. With realistic air velocities at the wall surface, the heat flux per m.sup.2 of the active surface and 1 K of the temperature difference between water and room air was 5.1 W/(m.sup.2.K) in heating and 4.8 W/(m.sup.2.K) in cooling mode. The results suggest that a relatively large area of the active surface may be needed underpeak cooling conditions due to the limited permissible range of surface temperatures. However, under heating conditions, the calculations indicated that the active surface area needed at the heating load of 0.8 kW was only 8 m.sup.2 assuming a wellinsulated room under severe climatic conditions.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
This study aimed to evaluate the impact of selected pregnancy pathologies statistically depending on overweight/obesity and excessive maternal weight gain during pregnancy on women who gave birth in ...the years 2013-2015 at the Second Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics at the University Hospital in Bratislava, Slovakia. In a retrospective study, we analyzed data gathered from the sample, which consisted of 7122 women. Our results suggest a statistically significant, higher risk for the groups of women with overweight and obesity and gestational hypertension (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 15.3; 95% CI 9.0-25.8 for obesity), preeclampsia (AOR = 3.4; 95% CI 1.9-6.0 for overweight and AOR = 13.2; 95% CI 7.7-22.5 for obesity), and gestational diabetes mellitus (AOR = 1.9; 95% CI 1.2-2.9 for overweight and AOR = 2.4; 95% CI 1.4-4.0 for obesity). A higher incidence of pregnancies terminated by cesarean section was observed in the group of obese women. Gestational weight gain above IOM (Institute of Medicine) recommendations was associated with a higher risk of pregnancy terminated by C-section (AOR = 1.2; 95% CI 1.0-1.3), gestational hypertension (AOR = 1.7; 95% CI 1.0-2.7), and infant macrosomia (AOR = 1.7; 95% CI 1.3-2.1). Overweight and obesity during pregnancy significantly contribute to the development of pregnancy pathologies and increased incidence of cesarean section. Systematic efforts to reduce weight before pregnancy through prepregnancy dietary counseling, regular physical activity, and healthy lifestyle should be the primary goal.
Thermal output, surface temperatures, and supply and return water temperature were measured for a wall cooling system involving pipe attached to a wall section made of thermally insulating blocks. ...The experiment was performed for warm climatic conditions typical of, e.g., summer in Central and Northern Europe. The outdoor environment was simulated by a climatic chamber while the indoor climate was simulated by attaching a hotbox to the wall surface. The sensitivity of thermal output to several design parameters was investigated by 2D numerical simulations. The measurements showed a fast thermal response of the wall system. The cooling output was 38.3 W per m2 of the cooling area which equalled about 4.8 W/m2 per 1 K temperature difference between water and hotbox. The lowest surface temperature of 19.6 °C was measured at the pipe. Thus, the cooling output could be enhanced by reducing the surface temperature closer to the dew point temperature. The temperature of water in the pipe was very close to the surface temperature. It was illustrated how this characteristic of the wall cooling system tested positively affects the efficiency and cooling capacity of an air-to-water heat pump.
The aim of our study was to examine the role of low density lipoprotein (LDL)-subfractions in individuals with the atherogenic and non-atherogenic phenotype and the gender differences in lipoprotein ...subfractions including small dense LDL (sdLDL) and small high density lipoprotein (sHDL) subfractions representing the most atherogenic lipoprotein subfractions.
35 persons in the atherogenic group (AG) (with sdLDL3–7 subfractions ≥6 mg/dl) and 104 individuals in the non-atherogenic group (NAG) (sdLDL3–7 subfractions <6 mg/dl) were included in our study. To analyze plasma lipoprotein subfractions, a polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis–the Lipoprint system was used.
Males compared to females in the AG had significantly higher levels of atherogenic lipoprotein subfractions such as HDL8, HDL9 and HDL10. All participants in AG had significantly lower levels of intermediate density lipoprotein IDL-A than those in NAG but significantly higher levels of IDL-B and IDL-C. Males in the AG compared to NAG had significantly lower levels of LDL1 and higher levels of LDL2 and LDL3–7 subfractions. In the NAG LDL2 positively correlated with sHDL subfractions while in the AG with the large HDL subfraction.
Results of our study demonstrate more atherogenic profile in males compared to females and a double role of LDL2 subfraction in the atherogenic process depending on the phenotype (atherogenic/non-atherogenic) of individuals.
PDF
