The embodied carbon of building materials and the energy consumed during construction have a significant impact on the environmental credentials of buildings. The structural systems of a building present opportunities to reduce environmental emissions and energy. In this regard, mass timber materials have considerable potential as sustainable materials over other alternatives such as steel and concrete.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWith the growth of the number of old buildings in urban cities, there is an imperative demand for retrofitting those buildings to minimize their energy consumption and maximize their sustainability. This article seeks to provide a multi-criteria assessment of different retrofitting scenarios in the Malaysian context, focusing replacement of windows. Four different criteria assessed operation energy usage, global warming potential (GWP) emission, embodied energy, and the cost of each alternative.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis research aims to assess the sustainability of the most common earth-retaining walls (Gravity Walls and Cantilever Walls) in terms of environmental impacts, economic issues, and their combination. Gravity walls observed in this study consist of Gabion Wall, Crib Wall, and Rubble Masonry Wall, while Cantilever Walls include Reinforced Concrete Wall. Six different criteria were taken into account, including global warming potential, fossil depletion potential, eutrophication potential, acidification potential, human toxicity potential, and cost.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: The ankylosed spine is prone to trauma even with after application of force at low energy levels. Multi-level vertebral bony fusions produce long lever arms, susceptible to fracture, with an increased risk of neurological injury. Additional problems result from delayed presentation and osteoporosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA reduced range of motion post total knee replacement (TKR) is a recognised problem. Manipulation under anaesthesia (MUA) is commonly performed in the stiff post-operative TKR. Long-term results are variable in the literature.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe most common indication for knee arthrodesis is pain and instability in an unreconstructable knee following an infected knee arthroplasty. In this study, we compare the use of the Mayday arthrodesis nail (Orthodynamics, Christchurch, UK) versus external fixation, Orthofix (Berkshire UK) and Stryker Hoffman II (County Cork, Ireland). All patients in this study underwent arthrodesis between 1995 and 2006 at Conquest Hospital, Hastings.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Various modalities exist to document the extent of colonoscopy, including a terminal ileum (TI) biopsy, which is considered the criterion standard by some authorities. A TI biopsy adds to procedure costs, is potentially hazardous, and the detection of pathology in routinely acquired biopsy specimens of a macroscopically normal TI is limited. A safer, less costly alternative for documenting total colonoscopy is desirable.
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