Ground-level ozone (O3) and atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution are the major challenges for continually improving air quality in Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region of China. Understanding regional transport patterns PM2.5 O3 is essential development cooperative prevention strategies. This study shows annual concentration YRD decreased by 18.5% from 2015 to 2018, while mean valu...

The regional distribution of a bolus of gas inhaled at residual volume (RV) is attributed to regional airway closure and is responsible for the phase IV of the single-breath washout during the following deflation. As bronchospasm increases the range of airway opening pressures through the lung, the regional distribution of the bolus could change with effects on the shape of the single-breath wa...

To determine the spatial distributions of pulmonary perfusion, shunt, and ventilation, we developed a compartmental model of regional (13)N-labeled molecular nitrogen ((13)NN) kinetics measured from positron emission tomography (PET) images. The model features a compartment for right heart and pulmonary vasculature and two compartments for each region of interest: 1) aerated alveolar units and ...

Previous studies of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have evaluated the union’s success in comparison to other integration initiatives and according to traditional theory on the optimum currency area, which calls for high intraregional trade and correlated business cycles. This study seeks to determine the prospects for further integration in West Africa given the region’s...

BACKGROUND The United States is divided currently into 11 transplant regions, which vary in area and number of organ procurement organizations (OPOs). Region size affects organ travel time and organ viability at transplant. PURPOSE To develop a methodologic framework for determining optimal configurations of regions maximizing transplant allocation efficiency and geographic parity. METHODS ...

In the present study, the frequency distributions of 20 discrete cranial traits in 70 major human populations from around the world were analyzed. The principal-coordinate and neighbor-joining analyses of Smith's mean measure of divergence (MMD), based on trait frequencies, indicate that 1). the clustering pattern is similar to those based on classic genetic markers, DNA polymorphisms, and cran...

The incidence of motor neurone disease in the Northern Region was studied for the year 1981 by means of hospital activity analysis records and questionnaire. The crude incidence rate was 2.2 per 100,000. This was not significantly different from the rate determined by using death certification. The age standardised incidence ratio for the region was 163 using the 1976 population and deaths from...

Ð We use Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) to compare ``poverty'' at two or more points in time within and between African countries. Our welfare measure is an index resulting from a factor analysis of various household characteristics, durables, and household headsÕ education. An advantage of this measure is that for intertemporal and intraregional comparisons, we need not rely on suspect p...