Impacts of Antenatal Educational Interventions base on BASNEF Model on Mothers' Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Breast-feeding self-efficacy is defined as a mother's confidence in her ability to breastfeed her child. It is one of the variables affecting breastfeeding duration and consequently developmental indicators in child, which have been rarely studied. This study aimed to Impacts of antenatal educational interventions base on BASNEF Model on mothers' breastfeeding self-efficacy: a Quasi-experimental study. This was a quasi-experimental study done on 100 nulliparous mothers referred to the selected clinics in Shiraz. Sampling was done by random method. The intervention was held based on BASNEF components in four educational sessions besides a session on cognitive norms, while the control group received the routine education. The mean score of breast-feeding self-efficacy was measured both before and after the intervention by Fax and Dennis questionnaire besides its correlation with child physical developmental indicators. SPSS18 was applied to analyze the data through paired t-test, independent t-test, and Chi-square test. The mean age of participants was 23.86 ± 4.30 and 24.4 ± 4.18 in BASNEF and control groups, respectively. After the intervention, there was a significant difference in the mean score of self-efficacy in the intervention group compared to the control group (p <0/001). In addition, there was a significant positive correlation between breast-feeding self-efficacy and infants' weight at the age of 3 months besides height at the age of 1 and 3 months (p<0.05). BASNEF based breastfeeding training was related to the rise in breastfeeding self-efficacy in nulliparous pregnant women and subsequently improvement of children's physical growth indicators

CXC Ligand 5 cytokine serum level in women with polycystic ovary syndrome and normal body mass index: A case-control study

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disease and associated with insulin resistance. CXC Ligand 5 (CXCL5) is a new cytokine which is secreted from white adipose tissue during obesity and by blocking insulin signaling pathway inhibits the activity of insulin and promotes insulin resistance. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess serum level of CXCL5 in PCOS women with normal body mass index. Materials and Methods: In this case-control study, 30 PCOS women with normal body mass index as the case group and 30 non-PCOS women as the controls were enrolled. Serum levels of CXCL5, insulin and other hormones factors related with PCOS were measured by ELISA method, also the biochemical parameters were measured by autoanalyzer. Results: Significant increases in serum insulin concentration, homeostasis model assessments of insulin resistance, luteinizing hormone, luteinizing hormone/folliclestimulating hormone, fasting blood sugar, testosterone, and prolactin were observed in the case group compared to the controls. were in the serum level of CXCL5, cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, high-density lipoproteincholesterol, dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate, creatinine, and homeostasis model assessment of beta cell function between these two groups. Conclusion: In this study, no significant change was observed in serum concentrations of CXCL5 in PCOS women with normal BMI

Content of toxic and essential metals in recrystallized and washed table salt in Shiraz, Iran

BACKGROUND: Table salt is the most commonly used food additive. Since most of the salt consumed in Iran comes from mines, contamination with heavy metals is a health concern. The commonest salt purification method in Iran is washing with water. But recently, some industries have turned to recrystallization method. The present study aimed to determine the level of essential and non-essential heavy metals in the table salt refined with recrystallization and washing methods. METHODS: Thirty eight pre-packed salt samples were directly collected from retail market in Shiraz (22 samples refined with recrystallization method and 16 with washing method). The level of lead, cadmium, copper, zinc, nickel and cobalt was determined using Voltammetric method. Daily intakes of lead and cadmium as well as their weekly intakes were calculated. RESULTS: The levels of lead, cadmium, copper, zinc, nickel and cobalt in recrystallized samples were 0. 30 ± 0.26, 0.02 ± 0.02, 0.11 ± 0.06, 0.34 ± 0.22, 0.15 ± 0.19 and 0.008 ± 0.007 μg/g, respectively, and also 0.37 ± 0.27, 0.017 ± 0.021, 0.19 ± 0.18, 0.37 ± 0.20, 0.13 ± 0.23 and 0.037 ± 0.06 μg/g in washed salt samples. The calculated weekly intake of lead and cadmium was 0.216 and 0.014 μg/kg, respectively for the recrystallized and 0.2653 and 0.0119 μg/kg for the washed salts. CONCLUSION: All values for toxic metals were lower than the permitted maximum for human consumption as prescribed by Codex and Institute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran. Only 0.8652-1.0612% of lead and 0.17-0.2% of cadmium PTWIs are received via salt consumption weekly

Biocompatibility of Mineral Trioxide Aggregate with TiO2 Nanoparticles on Human Gingival Fibroblasts

The New compositions of white mineral trioxide aggregate (WMTA) or use of various additives like nanoparticles might affect MTA’s ideal characteristics This study was performed to evaluate the cytotoxicity of WMTA and WMTA with Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles (1% weight ratio) at different storage times after mixing on human gingival fibroblasts (HGFs). HGFs were obtained from the attached gingiva of human premolars. HGFs were cultured in Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle medium, supplemented with 10% fetal calf serum, penicillin and streptomycin. The cells were exposed to WMTA (groups 1 and 2) and WMTA+TiO2 (groups 3 and 4). The fifth and sixth groups served as controls. Each group contained 15 wells. After 24h (groups 1, 3 and 5) and 48 h (groups 2, 4 and 6) of exposure, HGF viability was determined by Mosmann’s tetrazolium toxicity (MTT) assay. Statistical analysis of the data was performed by using one-way analysis of variance and Tukey post hoc test, with significance of p < 0.05. With both materials, the viability of HGFs significantly decrased with increasing the incubation time from 24h to 48 h (P0.05). Under the limitations of the present study, incorporation of TiO2 nanoparticles into MTA at 1 wt% had no negative effect on its biocompatibility

The Effect of Pregnancy-related Religious Training on Religious Attitudes among Pregnant Women

Background & aim: Many researchers believe that religious doctrines have persistent effects on the mental and physical health and other aspects of human life. This study aimed to investigate the effect of pregnancy-related religious training on religious attitudes among pregnant women. Methods: This interventional study was conducted on 84 pregnant women with low and medium levels of religious attitudes in 2013. The study population was randomly divided into two groups of intervention (n=42) and control (n=42). The intervention group received religious education within the gestational weeks of 20-28 in six sessions. The control group received routine hospital trainings. The two groups filled out the religious attitude questionnaires before, immediately after, and two months following the intervention. The data were analyzed with SPSS, version 16, using t-test. Results: The results of the independence t-test revealed no significant difference between the two groups regarding the level of religious attitudes before the intervention (P=0.936). However, there was a significant difference between the two groups in this regard immediately after the intervention (P=0.001) and two months post-intervention (P=0.001). The level of religious attitudes increased from weak and moderate to a high rate following the intervention. Conclusion: Given the positive impact of religious education on religious beliefs and attitudes, it is recommended to use this potential in prenatal care planning

The Efficacy of Father Attachment Education on the Severity of Domestic Violence in Primegravida Women

Introduction: In addition to physical and psychological tension imposed on women through pregnancy, the stress of the spouses' violence can cause harmful effects on both the fetus and mother. In Iran, there are limited data on this subject. Thus, learning attachment skills may be effective in reducing adaptation and domestic violence. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of paternal attachment on the severity of domestic violence in primgravida women. Methods: This quasi-experiment research was conducted on 150 pregnant women who were eligible and selected through simple convenience sampling. In the intervention group, four 90-minute training sessions were designed on father attachment, while the control group received routine prenatal care. A violence questionnaire was completed both before and after the intervention (36-38 weeks of pregnancy) in both case and control groups. Data analysis was done in SPSS software, using paired t-test and independent t-test. Results: According to the results of an independent t-test, there was no significant difference in psychological violence, physical violence, and economic violence. However, there was a significant change in social violence, sexual violence, and overall violence score. Conclusion: Training the fathers on behavior of domestic violence and its skills leads to reduced social and sexual violence. Therefore, it seems necessary to include education for the fathers in prenatal care

Effect of Protein Supplementation on Serum Electrolytes in Hemodialysis Patients

Background: Controlling malnutrition in hemodialysis (HD) patients is of great concern. On the other hand, managing serum electrolytes including calcium, phosphorus, sodium, and potassium at the same time is critical to improve patients’ survival. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of whey protein supplementation on serum electrolytes in HD patients. Methods: Ninety two 17 to 65 years old HD patients were randomly assigned to four groups of (i) receiving whey beverage fortified with vitamin E, (ii) receiving whey beverage, (iii) receiving vitamin E, and (iv) as the control group receiving no intervention (for 8 weeks). At the beginning and at the end of the study phase, serum electrolytes including serum calcium, phosphorus, potassium, and sodium were measured using the automated techniques. Results: After comparing all groups, it was demonstrated that there were significant decreases in serum phosphorus in group 1 and group 2, that both were significantly different from the control group. On the other hand, in group 3, serum potassium reduced after intervention, which was significantly different form the control group. Serum sodium significantly decreased in group 2 in comparison to control group. Conclusion: Whey beverage fortified with vitamin E did not disturb HD patients’ serum electrolytes and helped HD patients to improve and control serum electrolytes. This warrants more investigations to find the exact mechanisms of the effects of whey or vitamin E on serum electrolytes

Serum IL-18 and hsCRP Correlate with Insulin Resistance without Effect of Calcitriol Treatment on Type 2 Diabetes

ABSTRACT Background: Chronic low-grade systemic inflammation presented in Type 2 diabetes mellitus plays a major role in disease progression as well as development of micro-and macro-vascular complications of diabetes. Therefore, reducing inflammation can be beneficial in prevention of diabetes complications. Objectives: To investigate the association between insulin resistance and inflammatory markers, and assessing the effects of oral Calcitriol on inflammatory cytokines in type 2 diabetic patients. Methods: In this double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial, 70 participants with type-2 diabetes were randomly divided to two groups. One group received two capsules of Calcitriol (0.25 μg 1,25-dihydroxy cholecalciferol per each capsule) per day. The second group received placebo tablets. At the beginning of the study, we assessed insulin resistance and its relation to inflammatory profile. Serum high sensitive Creactive protein (hs CRP), interleukin-6 and interleukin-18 were also measured at the beginning and the end of the 12-week supplementation trial. Results: Mean calcium, phosphorus and vitamin D concentrations in the study participants were 8.98 ± 0.79 mg/dl, 3.86 ± 0.50 mg/dl and 40.91 ± 30.9 ng/ml, respectively. IL-18 and hsCRP had significant positive associations with insulin resistance markers and negative associations with insulin sensitivity markers. At the end of the 12-week supplementation trial, no significant difference was seen in serum levels of hsCRP, IL-6 and IL-18 between the two groups, while these values were adjusted for baseline values. Conclusion: Inflammation was associated with insulin resistance in diabetic patients. No anti-inflammatory effect of Calcitriol in terms of decreasing hsCRP, IL-6 and IL-18 detected

The effect of antidepressant treatment on the HPA axis, changes in depression score and serum levels of TNF-α in depressed infertile women

Objectives: This study aimed to explore the effect of antidepressant treatment on the HPA axis, changes in depression score, and serum levels of TNF-α in depressed infertile women. Methods: In this randomized controlled trial research, 60 infertile women who had undergone in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment with depression scores between 16-47 were divided into two groups. The intervention group with fluoxetine capsule was under treatment for two months before the embryo transfer, while the control group was given placebo. Depression score, serum levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) as well as cortisol hormone levels were measured and recorded both before and after the intervention. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 21 software. Results: We analyzed the data related to 55 subjects who had undergone embryo transfer. 7 subjects in the intervention group and 3 in the control group got pregnant. We observed a significant decrease in the depression score (p &lt; 0/001) and serum levels of cortisol (p = 0/001) in the intervention group. There was a significant increase in the serum levels of TNF-α in the intervention group (p &lt; 0/001). There was a significant difference between the two groups in the number of pregnancies (p = 0.04). However, there was no statistical difference between them with regard to the number of harvested oocytes (p = 0.174). Discussion: Decrease in depression score and cortisol level, and an increase in the levels of TNF-α in the intervention group caused any changes in the number of oocytes in comparison with the control group. However, the number of pregnancies was larger in the intervention group

The Evaluation of Adherence to Dietary and Liquid Intake Recommendations in Hemodialysis Patients

Background: Non-adherence of hemodialysis patients to their recommended diet, and limitations on fluid intake, leads to the production of toxic substances and metabolites in the bloodstream, which can increase the risk of mortality in these patients. This study evaluated the adherence to dietary and liquid intake recommendations in hemodialysis patients. Methods: One hundred and four hemodialysis patients were evaluated for dietary intake and adherence to dietary recommendations. Their diatary practice was evaluated using a 95-item food frequency questionnaire, and the Dialysis Diet and Fluid Nonadherence Questionnaire (DDFQ) questionnaire was used to assess non-adherence to dietary and fluind intake reommendations. The amount of weight gain between two sessions of dialysis and biochemical parameters of the patients was also measured. Statistical analysis was performend using SPSS version 22. Results: Approximately 21.8% and 34.7% of patients did notadhere to their diet and of fluid intake recommendations. The rate of nonadherence to fluid intake recommendations were higher than the dietary recommendations. Protein intake of the patients was at an expected level, but their potassium intake was higher than the requirement of these patients. Conclusion: The number of days of non- adherence to the diet was less than that of the fluid intake recommendations. Also, the degree of nonadherence were more severe for diatary recommendations, compared to fluin intake limitations