Several composite measures of neighborhood social vulnerability exist and are used in the health disparity literature. This study assesses the performance of the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) compared with three similar measures used in the surgical literature Area Deprivation Index (ADI), Community Needs Index (CNI), and Distressed Communities…[Read more]

This paper reports on the hybrid process we have used for producing hierarchical scaffolds made of poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) and nanohydroxyapatite (nHA), analyzes their internal structures via scanning electron microscopy, and presents the results of our in vitro proliferation of MC3T3-E1 cells and alkaline phosphatase activity (ALP)…[Read more]

In this study, the basal spacing of montmorillonite (MMT) was modified through ion exchange. Two kinds of MMT were used sodium-modified MMT (Na-MMT) and organo-modified MMT (O-MMT). These two particles were incorporated separately into the thin-film nanocomposite polyamide membrane through the interfacial polymerization of piperazine and trimesoyl…[Read more]