OBJECTIVES: Geriatric nutritional risk index (GNRI) might predict the all-cause mortality in patients with heart failure (HF). We performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the correlation between GNRI and all-cause mortality in patients with HF. METHODS: We searched the PubMed, Medline, Cochrane Library, and Embase databases for clinical trials investigating the association between GNRI and all-cause mortality in patients with HF, having the primary endpoint as all-cause mortality. RESULTS: In total, nine studies involving 7,659 subjects were included in the systematic review and meta-analysis. The results indicated that major risk and moderate risk GNRI (GNRI<92) was associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality in elderly patients with HF (hazard ratios [HR] 1.59, 95% confidence intervals [CI] 1.37-1.85). Low risk GNRI (GNRI<98) group predicted all-cause mortality in elderly HF patients (HR 1.56, 95%CI 1.12-2.18) when compared with the high GNRI value group. A subgroup analysis indicated that the relationship between GNRI and HF might differ based on the subtype of heart failure. CONCLUSIONS: GNRI is a simple and well-established nutritional assessment tool to predict all-cause mortality in patients with HF.

The electric upsetting process is an excellent electrically assisted preforming technique with electrical-thermal-mechanical multi-field coupling characteristic. The secondary upsetting defect in electric upsetting with inappropriate parameters combinations could result in folds in subsequent forging process. In order to analyze the formation process of the secondary upsetting defect, the finite element model of electric upsetting was constructed based on the multi-field coupling solver platform, MSC.Marc. It is concluded through the numerical simulation with inappropriate parameters combination that the main factor causing the secondary upsetting defect is the large temperature decrease of the deformed portion after the formation of drum-shape in the preliminary stage of electric upsetting. Subsequently, the secondary upsetting defect has been successfully avoided via a three-stage current mode. Finally, a novel optimization method based on close-cycle control of current in numerical simulation was established by developing a current subroutine in MSC.Marc, which was proved to be effective for the elimination of the secondary upsetting defect.

Hot compressions of as-cast AZ80 magnesium alloy in a wide temperature range of 523-673 K and strain rate range of 0.01-10 s–1 with a height reduction of 60% were conducted by a Gleeble-1500 thermo-mechanical test simulator. The hot flow behaviors show highly non-linear intrinsic relationships with temperature, strain and strain rate. In order to model the complicated flow behaviors, error back-propagation algorithm, a representative method to minimize the target error, was selected to train the artificial neural network. A comparative study was made on the predictabilities of the improved Arrhenius-type and BP-ANN model by using two standard statistical parameters including correlation coefficient (R) and average absolute relative error (AARE). Comparison results show that the well-trained BP-ANN has higher prediction accuracy. Three highlight applications were presented. Firstly, the strain-stress data volume was expanded by BP-ANN predictions above experimental conditions. Secondly, the expanded data were applied in the simulations of isothermal compressions, and high simulation accuracy for the load-stroke curve was achieved. Thirdly, a three-dimensional (3D) interaction space of stress, strain, temperature and strain rate was constructed based on the intensive data, which supplies the stress data to arbitrary temperature, strain rate, and strain.