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To evaluate the association between disease severity and hepatic steatosis in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Consecutively selected UC patients admitted to the gastroenterology clinic were enrolled in the study. UC severity was assessed by Truelove and Witts classification. Patients with severe UC were excluded from the study. NASH was determined based on persistently elevated serum aminotransferase levels and detection of fatty liver ultrasound. Patients with other etiologies for elevated aminotransferase levels were excluded. Liver fat content (LFC) was assessed by measuring liver fat score (LFS). One hundred patients (42% male) were included in the study. According to liver ultrasound examination, 62 (%) patients were identified with grade 1 fatty liver disease, and 38 (%) patients were classified as advanced (grade 2 and 3) fatty liver disease. Sixty-one patients had left-sided UC and (46%) had mild UC disease severity index. LFS was significantly higher in UC patients with the moderate disease than patients with mild disease (3.53±2.68 vs. 5.89±2.85, respectively; P

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is one of the most common gastrointestinal disorders particularly affecting the quality of life (QOL). Evaluating QOL in IBS patients is a valuable method of defining a psychobiological pattern of disease. Various disease specific and general instruments are now available to measure health-related QOL (HRQOL) in IBS patients. Though, no comparison has been made between these tools especially in non-western countries. We aimed to compare QOL measures between two specific and general QOL questionnaires in a sample of Iranian IBS patients. A total of 250 IBS patients were diagnosed based on Rome III criteria (mean age 29.6 ± 9.6 years). HRQOL was assessed using disease specific quality of life for IBS (IBS-QOL) and generic World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaires. Patients also completed Speilberger`s “State/Trait Anxiety Inventory” and “Beck Depression Inventory-II” for the evaluation of anxiety and depression symptoms. The severity of symptoms was independently associated with HRQOL in patients using WHOQOL-BREF and IBS-QOL (r = -0.48 and -0.39 respectively, P < 0.001). In linear regression analysis, a strong correlation was observed between the HRQOL scores of IBS-QOL and the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaires (standard β = 0.86 (95%CI: 1.15 - 1.44), P value < 0.001). Controlling for anxiety and depression symptoms did not influence the strength of observed correlation. The WHOQOL-BREF is a psychometrically sound, rapid and convenient instrument whose HRQOL measure is as valid and accurate as the disease-specific IBS-QOL questionnaire. It seems reasonable to use the WHOQOL-BREF alongside the IBS-QOL.

This study provides the seismic scenario-based risk map of the small mountain city of Kerend-e-gharb. It evaluates the existing methods and formulations for the effects of a devastating earthquake using empirical fragility curves. A seismic vulnerability map is developed at the urban block-scale using a Geographic Information System for a variety of steel, reinforced concrete, confined masonry, unreinforced masonry, and adobe residential buildings. The estimated seismic damages are validated by comparing them with the building damages surveyed after the Sarpol-e-zahab earthquake. Moreover, the damages to the population, including the probability of homelessness, death, severe injuries that need immediate hospital treatment, moderate injuries that require hospital treatment, and light injuries, without hospitalization, are assessed. The estimation of debris, and the economic losses deriving from this natural hazard, are also investigated. Finally, the map of the mean damage index is presented. The mean damage index is reduced by the renovation and retrofitting interventions in high damaged buildings, while this index is increased in moderately damaged buildings that are not structurally upgraded. The results of this study are consistent with the earthquake damage distribution. In addition, and even with the reduction in vulnerability of buildings after seismic interventions, some blocks of the northeastern part of the city are still at high seismic risk. The results of this study can be used in seismic crisis management planning to achieve a sustainable city.

The frequency content and time duration of earthquakes are as effective as the peak ground acceleration on structural damage. Therefore, using rapid seismic vulnerability assessment methods that consider the earthquake acceleration time history is noticeable. Kermanshah is a historical city that is generally affected by far-field earthquakes. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the effect of the low-frequency shocks in evaluating the vulnerability of buildings in this city. Herein, a historic school in Kermanshah is assumed as a case study and two well-known damage index formulas are used for determining the damage index spectra of this structure, considered as a single degree of freedom system. Then, the effective parameters of the damage index, including ductility, relative degradation of stiffness, and dissipated energy are determined from a nonlinear analysis of the structure under the effect of the most probable earthquake acceleration records. Finally, the damage index spectra can be used for rapid seismic vulnerability assessment of masonry buildings on similar sites with various fundamental periods for large-scale assessments. The result shows that the building tends to collapse at a peak ground acceleration of 0.15 g. Furthermore, results confirm the seismic resistance reduction effect of flexible floors.

Eight historical mosques of Kermanshah constructed in 18th or 19th century CE are investigated with ambient vibration tests on their sites and buildings. Conventional peak picking technique is used for determination of structures’ fundamental frequencies and spectral ratio of horizontal to vertical components along with ellipticity inversion of Rayleigh waves are considered to identify the natural frequency of ground and shear wave velocity profile to define the site conditions according to the national codes of Iran and Italy. The recorded motions on the buildings are used to calculate the fundamental frequencies of the structure. Afterward, buildings are modeled by macro-element method and material properties are tuned in the way that the fundamental frequencies from the modal analyses match with the measured values from AVTs. Finally, more modal analyses are performed by the calibrated models to present an empirical relation between the natural period of the mosques, the geometrical characteristics of the buildings, and the mechanical properties of the construction materials. The results show that the natural periods of the masonry buildings of the mosques are different from the values of empirical relations in the national codes. Meanwhile, the proposed empirical relation presents the natural periods of the buildings of this study reasonably well and can be used for other masonry buildings of similar architecture and materials.

Background: In this research a rapid vulnerability and risk assessment at a territorial level is performed. Methods: The methodology used, initially proposed for ancient masonry churches, is extended and applied to ten historic masonry mosques in Kermanshah city. The method could be considered as preliminary risk assessment approach of historic structures, refers to LV0 method, since the used methodology requires simple qualitative information. It involves the application of three distinct tools; the exposure, the seismic hazard, and the seismic vulnerability. Results: The comparisons among the obtained results, by considering also the damages suffered during the last earthquakes and war blasts, validate the methodology proposed, capable of providing a seismic risk scoring at a territorial level also for ancient masonry mosques. As known, through this kind of approach, important information is obtained in order to manage and to mitigate the seismic risk of a certain territorial asset. The results show that all ten mosques has medium earthquake vulnerability condition. Emad e Doleh mosque is the most vulnerable case with vulnerability of 34. Navab mosque is located on the most hazardous place. Furthermore, the seismic vulnerability map and seismic risk indices are presented for all the investigated mosques. Conclusion: The obtained results are useful for ranking the priorities and for preliminary defining an interventions plan to be examined in detail with additional quantitative investigations carried out with more refined approaches.

This study investigates the damage data after November 12, 2017, Iran earthquake (Mw 7.3), collected on 440 steel and reinforced concrete residential buildings. Structures have low-to-medium height and are located in Sarpol-e-zahab city, as well as in the west and northwest parts of Kermanshah province, Iran. The peak ground acceleration demands are determined according to data of the micro-shakemap of Sarpol-e-zahab city and the shakemap of Kermanshah province, while the mean values of intensities are determined from the existing empirical relationship between PGA and intensity. The investigated buildings are engineered steel and RC structures nominally erected according to the second and third editions of the Iranian code for earthquake-resistant buildings, but mostly under careless supervision and with low-quality materials. Damage probability matrix, vulnerability index and empirical fragility curves are presented for three subgroups of steel and RC structures on the basis of (i) structural materials and seismic resistant systems (i.e. braced, moment and combination of braced and moment steel frames, as well as moment and combination of moment and shear wall RC frames), without considering the height of structures; (ii) structural materials and height of structures, without considering the seismic resistant systems (i.e. low and medium-height steel and RC structures); (iii) structural materials, without considering the seismic resistant systems and height of structures (i.e. total data for steel and RC frames). The proposed fragility curves are compared with other fragility curves for steel and RC buildings from previous studies. Finally, since this earthquake was the first seismic event in Iran affecting a considerable number of steel and RC engineered buildings, the proposed empirical fragility curves are definitely unique and crucial for realistic damage and vulnerability assessment of similar buildings in future earthquake scenarios, as well as for developing rapid seismic loss assessment after damaging earthquakes.

The weakness of tensile strength and high weight in masonry structures under the dynamic loads of earthquakes have always led to structural damage, financial losses, injuries and deaths. In spite of the cheap and affordable masonry materials, it has been very limited their use in constructions over the past three decades. However, common masonry materials are still found in monumental and historical structures, deteriorated texture and rural buildings. Identifying the seismic behaviour and the probability of the structural damage is vital for pre-earthquake seismic risk reduction of urban areas and the rapid post-earthquake assessment. The earthquake event occurred in Ezgeleh on 2017 November 12th with Mw=7.3 triggered the greatest damage in the Sarpol-e-zahab city at a distance of about 37 kilometres from the epicentre. Post-earthquake reconnaissance, microtremor analysis and rapid visual inventory of structural damages in different zones were performed by the research teams. In the present study, the strong ground motion, the peak ground acceleration and its corresponding intensity distribution, which are based on the site response analysis in different parts of the city, are introduced. Afterward, damage probability matrices of different types of masonry buildings, namely unreinforced masonry and confined masonry buildings, are determined for both bins of peak ground accelerations and intensities. Finally, the fragility curves of two types of masonry structures are extracted based on RISK-UE level 1 (LM1) method by assuming beta distribution to estimate the probability distribution function of the damage. These curves are useful in assessing pre-earthquake possible damages in masonry structures with similar construction methods and similar materials to reduce seismic risks.

Kermanshah is a city in Iran's Zagros seismotectonic region regarded as one of the cradles of prehistoric and historic cultures. This novel study investigates the quantitative assessment of the seismic vulnerability of historical buildings in Kermanshah using numerical modeling . This study uses the hybrid method to estimate seismic vulnerability for seven mosques in Kermanshah's historical heritage. The structures are modeled by macro-elements. The material properties for the numerical models of the mosques are calibrated through ambient vibration tests . Furthermore, the efficiency and accuracy of Italian indirect method in evaluating the damage probability in Iranian historical buildings could be determined by the comparison with the hybrid method results. Moreover, it provides the knowledge for developing these methods by the architecture and structural specifications of Iranian historical structures. In the indirect method, the aggregate effect of mosques interacting with other structures is taken into account. Finally, considering local site effects, the fragility curves of both methods are developed and compared to each other at the probable design acceleration acquired from the Iranian seismic standard. The results show the seismic vulnerability of investigated mosques and the necessity to provide some parameters for the type of ceiling and configuration of the aggregates to evaluate the Iranian historical structures by indirect method more effectively.