Sex modification of the association of the radial augmentation index and incident hypertension in a Chinese community-based population

BACKGROUND Arterial stiffness,as assessed by aortic ultrasound and pulse wave velocity,is associated with incident hypertension.However,there is still no consensus on whether the augmentation index(AI)affects new onset of hypertension.This study investigated the relationship of radial AI(r AI)and incident hypertension in a Chinese community-based population without hypertension at baseline.METHOD A total of 1,615 Chinese non-hypertensive participants from an atherosclerosis cohort in Beijing,China were included in our analysis.Baseline r AI normalized to heart rate of 75 beats/min(r AIp75)was obtained using HEM-9000 AI.New-onset hypertension was defined as blood pressure≥140/90 mm Hg or self-reported hypertension or taking anti-hypertensive medications at the follow up survey.Multivariate regression models were used to evaluate the impact of r AIp75 on the risk of new-onset hypertension.RESULTS After a mean 2.35-year follow-up,213(13.19%)participants developed incident hypertension.No significant relation between r AIp75 and incident hypertension was observed in the whole population after adjustment for possible confounders(adjusted odds ratio(OR)and 95%confidence interval(CI):1.09[0.95-1.27];P=0.2260).However,r AIp75 was significantly associated with incident hypertension in women,but not in men(adjusted OR and 95%CI:1.29[1.06-1.56],P=0.0113 for women;0.91[0.72-1.15],P=0.4244 for men;P for interaction=0.0133).CONCLUSIONS Sex modified the effect of the r AI on incident hypertension in a Chinese,community-based,non-hypertensive population.Screening of the r AI could be considered in women with a high risk of hypertension for the purpose of primary intervention.

Damping modification factors for acceleration response spectra

DMF （Damping modification factors） are used to modify elastic response spectral values corresponding to damping ratio 5% to other damping levels. The influence of seismological parameters （magnitude, epicentral distances and site conditions） on DMF for acceleration spectra was analysed. The results show that for a given period as the magnitude or distance increase, the effect of damping on the seismic response will also increase, which indicates the response reduction from the structural damping will become more efficient. In the near-field of small earthquakes, the influence of site conditions on DMF is obvious, but it does not show a consistent rule. Furthermore, the DMF corresponding to different site conditions gradually close to unity with increasing magnitude and distance. The influence of the above mentioned parameters is related to the relative attenuation of the frequency components of the ground motion. The attenuation index alone is sufficient to take into account the influence. Based on these features, this paper roDoses a formula of DMF for acceleration response spectra.

Optical diffraction gratings embedded in BK-7 glass by low-density plasma formation using femtosecond laser

The optical embedded diffraction gratings with the internal refractive index modification in BK-7 glass plates were demonstrated using low-density plasma formation excited by a high-intensity femtosecond （130 fs） Ti： sapphire laser （λp=790 rim）. The refractive index modifications with diameters ranging from 400 nm to 4 gm were photoinduced after plasma formation occurred upon irradiation with peak intensities of more than 1 ×10^13 W/cm2. The graded refractive index profile was fabricated to be a symmetric around the center of the point at which low-density plasma occurred. The maximum refractive index change （An） was estimated to be 1.5x10 2. Several optical embedded gratings in BK-7 glass plate were demonstrated with refractive index modification induced by the scanning of low-density plasma formation.