It is known, that track deterioration (loss of its geometry) strongly depends on track support conditions, particularly on the ballast. In this paper a novel approach is presented to predict the evolution of track vertical irregularities due to vehicle-track dynamic interaction taking into account ballast stiffness with dry friction. An applied vehicle-track model is composed of a railway car a...

The ASTM D 1037 six-cycle accelerated-aging test for wood-based panel products was analyzed to determine how each successive aging cycle and selected steps in each cycle contribute to panel deterioration. Hardboard, particleboard, flakeboard, waferboard, and oriented strandboard were evaluated. The rate of panel deterioration generally decreased with each successive aging cycle. Four cycles of ...

INTRODUCTION Even in asymptomatic patients, the result of atherosclerosis progression is deterioration of the function and morphology of the artery wall. Two-dimensional speckle-tracking (2DST) is a sonographic technique that allows for precise evaluation of arterial wall compliance. Together with measurement of intima-media thickness (IMT), it can be applied for quick and non-invasive assessme...

INTRODUCTION Hepatic dysfunction is a common finding in critically ill patients on the ICU and directly influences survival. Liver stiffness can be measured by the novel method of transient elastography (fibroscan) and is closely associated with hepatic fibrosis in patients with chronic liver disease, but also is increased in patients with acute hepatitis, acute liver failure and cholestasis. W...

Objective: Depression and anxiety are associated with both subclinical and clinical cardiovascular disease. Endothelial dysfunction, atherosclerosis, and inflammation are some of the underlying mechanisms. Pulse wave velocity (PWV) and augmentation index (AIx) are noninvasive markers for evaluation of arterial stiffness. The aim of this study was to examine the association between arterial stif...

BACKGROUND Aortic stiffness is a marker of cardiovascular disease and an independent predictor of cardiovascular risk. Although an association between inflammatory markers and increased arterial stiffness has been suggested, the causative relationship between inflammation and arterial stiffness has not been investigated. METHODS AND RESULTS One hundred healthy individuals were studied accordi...