The Assessment of Health-Promoting Lifestyle Status and Its Determinants among Students of Iran University of Medical Sciences

Careful assessment of lifestyle status among students is a necessity for identifying lifestyle problems and, it is an essential prerequisite for more efficient planning and implementing health promotion interventions among them. This study performed to estimate the current status of a health-promoting lifestyle among students of Iran University of Medical Sciences. This cross-sectional study was performed on 250 students of Iran University of Medical Sciences. By performing a proportional stratified random sampling method according to the number of students in each academic discipline, samples were chosen. The data gathering tool was a two-part questionnaire. The first part was related to demographic and socioeconomic information. The second part consisted of the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLP-II) questionnaire. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 23 through descriptive and inferential statistics. The results were statistically observed as significant at p < 0.05. The mean score of health-promoting lifestyle was 124.36 ± 18.41. The highest mean score was for the nutrition dimension (23.67±4.91) and the lowest was for the physical activity dimension (15.08±5.16). This research showed that a statistical proper correlation was found between marital status and spiritual growth. Also, there was a relationship between academic discipline and health responsibility. Additionally, another statistical significant relationship between financial status and health-promoting lifestyle, health responsibility, spiritual growth, and stress management was observed. Since the status of a health-promoting lifestyle is not satisfactory, a wide range of planning and implementing health interventions are needed to improve the health-promoting lifestyle among the students

Design and Psychometric Evaluation of User Satisfaction Questionnaire in Integrated Health System for Reliability and Validity

Background and Objectives: Evaluating the effectiveness of health information systems and users' satisfaction with system performance is important. The success of an information system is directly dependent on the system responding to user needs. Due to the importance of this issue, a tool has been designed to evaluate users' satisfaction with Integrated Health System. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2018 to design a questionnaire to assess the users' satisfaction with Integrated Health System. In the first step, the areas of user satisfaction were identified by reviewing literature and reliable scientific sources. Then a bank of questions was created and after classifying the indicators and identifying related questions the primary tool was developed in several areas. Face validity and content validity of the questionnaire were determined using CVI and CVR indices. Reliability over time was assessed by 20 users of in an Integrated Health System with two-week intervals. Results: The final questionnaire included demographic information and 55 questions about the components of a System Satisfaction Questionnaire. Questions related to each component included system interface, system functions, system performance, system information and statistics, system supportive services, System services, and total satisfaction from the system. The average CVI and CVR for total questions were 0.84 and 0.73, respectively. For reliability over time, the coefficient (ICC) for the whole structure was 0.98. The reliability of the questionnaire evaluated by Cronbach's alpha and internal consistency method, that this value was obtained 0.914 for total questionnaire. Also, separately for each structure was obtained in the "good" range. Conclusion: In this study, we tried to provide a brief and expressive user satisfaction assessment tool that required the least amount of time to respond. The high response rate of all questions indicates that designed tool achieved the objectives of the study. The most emphasized component by users is the system support component. Ease of use of the system, usefulness and support of the system from performing daily activities are other things that are more important for users

Scintigraphic texture analysis for assessment of renal allograft function

Purpose: Early detection and monitoring of kidney function during the post-transplantation period is one of the most important issues for improving the accuracy of an initial diagnosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate texture analysis (TA) in scintigraphic imaging to detect changes in kidney status after transplantation. Material and methods: Scintigraphic images were used for TA from a total of 94 kidney allografts (39 rejected and 55 non-rejected). Images corresponding to the frames at the 2nd, 5th, and 20th minute of the study were used to determine the optimum time point for analysis of differences in texture features between the rejected and non-rejected allografts. Results: Linear discriminant analysis indicated the best performance at the fifth minute frame for classification of the rejected and non-rejected allografts with receiver operating characteristic curve (Az) of 0.982, corresponding to 91.89% sensitivity, 96.49% specificity, and 94.68% accuracy. Also, TA can differentiate acute tubular necrosis from acute rejection with Az of 0.953 corresponding to 88% sensitivity, 92.31% specificity, and 90.62% accuracy at the 5th minute frame. The best correlation between texture feature and kidney function was achieved at the 20th minute frame (r = -0.396) for glomerular filtration rate. Conclusions: TA has good potential for the characterisation of kidney failure after transplantation and can improve clinical diagnosis

Survey of Effective Factors in the Event of Neuropathy in Type 2 Diabetic Patients

Introduction: Diabetic neuropathy is a common and sever complication of diabetes that its progression can lead to disability and even amputation in diabetic patients. The aim of this study was to determine the effective factors in the event of neuropathy and to assess the cumulative incidence of neuropathy in patients with type 2 diabetes. Methods: In this cohort study, all patients with type 2 diabetes who were registered at Fereydunshahr Diabetes Clinic, Isfahan, Iran, were selected by census method. They were followed up for diagnosis of neuropathy since 2006 until March 2016. To investigate the quantitative and qualitative effective factors in the event of neuropathy, one-sample t-test and chi-square test, respectively, were used. And for modeling of effective factors in the event of neuropathy, logistic regression was used. All statistics were analyzed by R software (version 3.2.3) and P values less than 0.05 were considered significant. Results: At the end of 10-year follow-up, cumulative incidence and prevalence of neuropathy were estimated 31% and 41.6%, respectively. After removal of confounders in the final model, variables such as age, ethnicity, family history of diabetes, duration of diabetes, FBS and HDL levels were identified as effective factors in the event of neuropathy (P<0.05). Conclusion: Low levels of HDL and poor control of FBS level are modifiable risk factors for diabetic neuropathy. But non-modifiable risk factors include Persian ethnicity, family history of diabetes, age and increase of diabetes duration. For this reason, in order to increase the HDL level and to decrease FBS level, education is recommended particularly in elderly patients with a family history of diabetes

Survey of Effective Factors in the Event of Neuropathy in Type 2 Diabetic Patients

Introduction: Diabetic neuropathy is a common and sever complication of diabetes that its progression can lead to disability and even amputation in diabetic patients. The aim of this study was to determine the effective factors in the event of neuropathy and to assess the cumulative incidence of neuropathy in patients with type 2 diabetes. Methods: In this cohort study, all patients with type 2 diabetes who were registered at Fereydunshahr Diabetes Clinic, Isfahan, Iran, were selected by census method. They were followed up for diagnosis of neuropathy since 2006 until March 2016. To investigate the quantitative and qualitative effective factors in the event of neuropathy, one-sample t-test and chi-square test, respectively, were used. And for modeling of effective factors in the event of neuropathy, logistic regression was used. All statistics were analyzed by R software (version 3.2.3) and P values less than 0.05 were considered significant. Results: At the end of 10-year follow-up, cumulative incidence and prevalence of neuropathy were estimated 31% and 41.6%, respectively. After removal of confounders in the final model, variables such as age, ethnicity, family history of diabetes, duration of diabetes, FBS and HDL levels were identified as effective factors in the event of neuropathy (P<0.05). Conclusion: Low levels of HDL and poor control of FBS level are modifiable risk factors for diabetic neuropathy. But non-modifiable risk factors include Persian ethnicity, family history of diabetes, age and increase of diabetes duration. For this reason, in order to increase the HDL level and to decrease FBS level, education is recommended particularly in elderly patients with a family history of diabetes

Prioritizacija i procjena ključa sigurnosti pokazatelja uspjeha u automobilskoj industriji

The performance of any management system needs to be monitored with adequate and proper indicators. This study aimed to identify, set priorities and assess key indicators for implementing an effective performance evaluation system. This descriptive-analytical study was carried out in three phase. In first phase, a semi-structured interview as well as a review of the company\u27s documentation and studies carried out, then a set of key indicators were collected and selected. The validity of the indicators were determined by experts (N = 11) and indicators were prioritized using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) according to SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time- bound) criteria. Following the study framework, a primary set of 60 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) were collected. The results of the validity assessment showed 23 indicators had acceptable validity. The results of examining the relationships between the indicators showed that the percentage of corrected non- compliance and the number of risk assessments had a significant relationships with the total number of work-related lost time injuries as a lagging indicator. According to the results, the four the most important key performance indicators to assess the safety performance in the automotive industry were as follows: the number of risk assessments conducted, the percentage of corrected non- compliance, the percentage of safety educational programs implemented for workers, and Frequency Severity Index (FSI) index.Učinkovitost bilo kojeg sustava upravljanja treba pratiti odgovarajućim i ispravnim pokazateljima. Cilj ove studije bio je identificirati, odrediti prioritete i procijeniti ključne pokazatelje za primjenu učinkovitog sustava vrednovanja učinka. Ovo opisno-analitičko istraživanje provedeno je u tri faze. U prvoj fazi, polustrukturirani intervju, kao i pregled provedene dokumentacije i studija tvrtke, zatim je prikupljen i odabran skup ključnih pokazatelja. Valjanost pokazatelja odredili su stručnjaci (N = 11), a pokazatelji su odredili prioritete pomoću Analitičkog postupka hijerarhije (AHP) prema SMART (Specifični, mjerljivi, dostižni, relevantni i vremenski ograničeni) kriteriji. Slijedom okvira studije, prikupljen je primarni skup od 60 KPI. Rezultati procjene valjanosti pokazali su da 23 pokazatelja imaju prihvatljivu valjanost. Rezultati ispitivanja odnosa između pokazatelja pokazali su da je postotak ispravljene neusaglašenosti i broj procjena rizika u značajnoj vezi s ukupnim brojem ozljeda izgubljenog na radu kao pokazatelj zaostajanja. Prema rezultatima, četiri najvažnija ključna pokazatelja uspješnosti za procjenu sigurnosnih performansi u automobilskoj industriji bila su sljedeća: broj provedenih procjena rizika, postotak ispravljenih nesukladnosti, postotak provedenih obrazovnih programa o sigurnosti za radnike i indeks FSI

A Study of Social, Economic, and Cultural Factors Affecting Marital Satisfaction of the Couples of Reproductive Age Using Generalized Estimating Equations

Background and Objective: Marital satisfaction of couples causes family strength and cohesion. This study aimed to determine the factors affecting marital satisfaction of couples at the reproductive age. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 382 couples of reproductive age selected through cluster sampling in Tehran completed ENRICH Marital Satisfaction Scale and Neo Personality Inventory as well as a researcher-made questionnaire on social, economic, and cultural factors. Considering the significant correlation (r = 0.701) that existed between marital satisfaction of the women and their husbands, the factors affecting marital satisfaction were examined using generalized estimating equations and the R software (version 3.6.2). Results: The mean ages of the women and their husbands were 34 and 38 years, respectively. The results showed that in the final model of generalized estimating equations, there was a significant relationship between marital satisfaction of the couples and the four components of personality (neuroticism, conscientiousness, extraversion, and agreeableness), housing status, marriage duration, and the way of choosing a spouse. According to the findings, the mean marital satisfaction score of the couples who owned a house was 5.702 points higher than the tenants, and the marital satisfaction score of the couples who had chosen their spouses traditionally was 4.581 points greater than the others. Furthermore, each year of increase in the marriage duration increased the marital satisfaction score by 0.321. Conclusion: Considering the results of this study, which showed that personality traits as well as social, economic, and cultural factors were associated to the couples’ marital satisfaction levels, pre- and post-marital counseling could be effective in improving marital satisfaction.</jats:p