Investigating the Effectiveness of the Rehabilitation Program Based on Executive Functions on Processing Speed and Attention of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of the rehabilitation program on processing speed and attention of children with autism spectrum disorder. This research was semi-experimental with a pre-test, post-test, control group and follow-up design. The statistical population included all autistic students in the academic year 2022-2023 in Tehran. A sample of 20 students were selected by purposive sampling and randomly divided into control and experimental groups. The experimental group received 20 sessions of 30 mins cognitive rehabilitation intervention, twice per week while the control group did not receive any intervention. Integrated Visual and Auditory Continues Performance was used to collect data in three stages (before, after and two months later after the implementation of the cognitive rehabilitation program). The data analyses were done by repeated measurement test. The result showed that the cognitive rehabilitation program had effect on the processing speed and attention of students with autism spectrum disorder. Based on this finding, it is suggested that this program can be used to strengthen and improve executive functions of children with autism spectrum

Prevalence, awareness, treatment, and control of type 2 diabetes mellitus among the adult residents of tehran: Tehran Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus has increased in the past decades. We investigated the prevalence of diabetes and its awareness, treatment, and control among adult residents of Tehran. METHODS We used the recruitment phase data of the Tehran Cohort study, enrolling a random sample of adult residents of Tehran aged ≥35 years. Diabetes was defined as self-report, current use of glucose-lowering medications, and/or fasting plasma glucose (FPG) ≥126mg/dl. Impaired fasting glucose (IFG) was defined as an FPG of 100-125mg/dl. Awareness was defined as diabetes self-report, treatment as receiving glucose-lowering medications, and glycemic control as FPG <126mg/dl. The age- and sex-weighted estimates were calculated using the 2016 national census. Logistic regression models were used to determine the factors associated with diabetes awareness, treatment, and control. RESULTS A total of 8151 participants were included. Age- and sex-weighted prevalence of diabetes mellitus and IFG were 16.7% (95% CI: 15.1-18.4) and 25.1% (95% CI: 23.1-27.1), respectively. Diabetes was more prevalent in the eastern and central districts of Tehran. Advanced age (OR per 1-year increase: 1.026, 95% CI: 1.021-1.030), male sex (OR: 1.716, 95% CI: 1.543-1.909), higher BMI levels (OR for BMI ≥35 vs. <20 kg/m2: 4.852, 95% CI: 3.365-6.998), pre-existing hypertension (OR: 1.552, 95% CI: 1.378-1.747), dyslipidemia (OR: 1.692, 95% CI: 1.521-1.883), and chronic kidney disease (OR: 1.650, 95% CI: 1.019-2.673) were associated with an increased odds of diabetes mellitus. On the contrary, diabetes mellitus was less likely in current tobacco (OR: 0.872, 95% CI: 0.765-0.994) and alcohol users (OR: 0.836, 95% CI: 0.703-0.994) compared to non-users. Among diabetic individuals, 82.8% were aware of their condition, 71.9% received treatment, and 31.7% of treated patients had adequate glycemic control. Advanced age and pre-existing comorbidities, including hypertension and dyslipidemia, were associated with higher diabetes awareness and treatment. Furthermore, advanced age, higher levels of education, and female sex were determinants of better glycemic control among treated diabetic participants. CONCLUSION There is a high prevalence of diabetes and IFG among adult residents of Tehran. Additionally, more than two-thirds of treated diabetics living in Tehran remain uncontrolled

Unusual Treatment of Pacemaker Pocket Infection: A Case Report

Pocket infection of a cardiac device is usually treated by removing the device and re-implanting it in a new site after complete treatment of the infection. This report illustrates a complicated case of pocket infection in the wake of the implantation of a permanent pacemaker (cardiac resynchronization therapy). The patient was treated conservatively through daily irrigation and dressing, broad-spectrum antibiotics, and debridement without the device being removed; the generator was kept out of the pocket for 5 weeks and then re-implanted in the same location successfully.The method of treatment presented herein can be of value, not least in the elderly population who might experience life-threatening events following the replacement of their cardiac devices

Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio as an inflammatory marker in patients with lone coronary artery ectasia in comparison with stenotic coronary artery disease

Background: Coronary artery ectasia (CAE) is an uncommon but known finding in coronary angiography. We compared the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio in patients with sole CAE and coronary artery disease (CAD) patients as well as normal coronary individuals who presented to our center. Methods: In this case-control study, we compared patients with lone coronary ectasia with two other groups: patients with CAD and normal coronary individuals. Demographic and clinical data of the ectatic patients were retrieved from the databank of our center and all variables, particularly neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio compared between the study groups. Results: A total of 233 patients with coronary ectasia met our criteria and were compared to 433 stenotic CAD patients and 466 normal coronary individuals. The neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio was significantly lower in the normal coronary individuals (P < 0.001). However, there was no significant difference between the coronary ectasia group and the CAD group. This difference was significantly lower in the normal coronary group (P < 0.001), while no difference was observed between the ectasia and the CAD group (P = 0.127). Conclusion: Higher neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio was present in patients with CAE and CAD patients than the normal coronary individuals

Ombudsman Institution Typology: An Approach to the Recognition of Genuine Ombudsman

In this article, we attempt to study a variety of genuine ombudsman institutions at the national level and the institutions which are classified under the general title "quasi-ombudsman" or "ombudsman-like". The reason behind the diversity and complexity of these institutions around the world lies at this point that the idea of ​​ombudsman in dealing and interacting with different cultures has been faced with many ups and downs and because of its great flexibility, it has adapted itself with the requirements of every society and has taken different yet sometimes contradictory forms. To reach our goal, that is, to achieve a correct and expurgated concept of the notion of ombudsman and after studying different types of ombudsman institutions, the article concludes that the independent Ombudsman institutions which are supported by the Constitution or law and their officials appointed or removed by specific majorities are the Genuine Ombudsman Institutions. In other words, Classical and Hybrid Ombudsman Institutions could be regarded as Genuine Institutions

CAM visual stimulation with conventional method of occlusion treatment in amblyopia: a randomized clinical trial

Background: The application of CAM visual stimulation returns to the date of more than fifty years ago. However, the reports of previous studies in this field vary from no effect to significant effects of this method in amblyopia treatment. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of CAM visual stimulation along with conventional occlusion therapy in anisometropic amblyopic children. Methods: Forty amblyopic children aged 4 to 6 years old with no previous treatment were enrolled in this randomized clinical trial study. The subjects were randomly as-signed in two different groups. The group 1 included conventional occlusion therapy and group 2 includes occlusion therapy with complementary CAM visual stimulation. In terms of visual acuity and stereopsis improvement and reduction of amblyopia sever-ity, two groups were compared using the repeated measure ANOVA and LSD Post Hoc tests. Results: In group 1 including conventional occlusion therapy, visual acuity improved from 0.444±0.077 logMAR to 0.138±0.023 logMAR, i.e., improvement of 0.306 log-MAR (P< 0.001) whereas in group 2 including complementary CAM usage, visual acu-ity improved from 0.398±0.075 logMAR to 0.047±0.022 logMAR, i.e., improvement of 0.351 logMAR (P< 0.001). Regarding Stereopsis, the improvements were 157 (from 258±34 to 101±13 seconds of arc, P< 0.001) and 171 (from 237±33 to 66±12 seconds of arc, P< 0.001) for groups 1 and 2 respectively. All subjects of group 2 gained the normal vision at the end of the treatment period, whereas only 47% of subjects of group 1 could achieve this level of vision in that time. Improvement of visual acuity in group 2 was significantly better than group 1 (P< 0.05). Conclusion: Using of CAM visual stimulation along with conventional occlusion will further improve visual acuity and stereopsis in amblyopic children. These findings recommended the CAM visual stimulation as an accompanying and complementary method in amblyopia treatment

Regarding Case Report “Povidone Iodine Irrigation - A Possible Alternative to Lead Extraction”

We read the case report of Dr. Puri and colleagues for treating an infected permanent pacemaker conservatively in an elderly patient. Due to its similarity of this work with ours, we wish to highlight some points regarding conservative treatment of pacemaker infection

Atrial Standstill: A Rare Case

We introduce a 32-year-old man who was evaluated for a dizziness and headache of unknown origin for at least two months and was referred to our center after ECG findings. He was finally diagnosed as a case of idiopathic, familial, diffuse, persistent atrial standstill, which is a rare arrhythmogenic condition characterized by the absence of electrical and mechanical activity in the atria. He successfully received a single-chamber permanent pacemaker

Effect of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of Lippia citriodora on candida albicans

Introduction: Because of resistance and side effects to common antifungal drugs activity, the research on herbal substances with antifungal activity is frequent. Lemon verbena (Lippia citriodora) is a member of Verbenaceae family. The aim of this study was to determine the anti-candida activities of the ethanolic and aqueous extracts of the lemon verbena leaves and compare them with nystatin and fluconazole. Methods: In this 2015 study, 15 clinical isolates and standard strain of candida albicans PTCC 5027 were used, and the inhibitory effects of the ethanolic and aqueous extracts, Nystatin and Fluconazole, were evaluated using disk and well diffusion methods. Also, the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined. Five concentrations of aqueous and ethanolic extracts (156-2500 μg/ml), Nystatin (8-128 μg/ml) and Fluconazole (4- 64 μg/ml) were used in disk and well diffusion methods, and nine concentrations of aqueous and ethanolic extracts (19-5000 μg/ml), Nystatin (0.5-128 μg/ml), and Fluconazole (0.25-64 μg/ml) were applied for MIC. Data were analyzed using Tukey's post-hoc and one-way ANOVA tests. The significant level was considered p < 0.05 in the current study. Results: In the well and disk diffusion techniques, limited growth inhibition halos were produced around some clinical isolates at different concentrations of ethanolic extract; however, no growth inhibitory halo was observed with any concentrations of the aqueous extract. The MIC values of ethanolic extract, aqueous extract, Nystatin and Fluconazole for clinical isolated and standard strain were 833 ± 78.5and 625μg/ml; 4156 ± 67.4 and 2500 μg/ml; 10.13 ± 1.91 and 4 μg/ml; and 1.97 ± 0.25 and 1 μg/ml, respectively. Conclusion: The results showed that the ethanolic extract was stronger than the aqueous extract of this plant, which can be used as an alternative for drugs. It is recommended that the ethanolic extract of this plant be investigated in vivo for better evaluation of its efficacy and properties

Evaluation of the antibacterial effects of aqueous and ethanolic leaf extracts of Aloysia Citriodora (Lemon verbena) on Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus

Introduction: The Aloysia citriodora plant from the family of Verbenaceae has many uses in traditional medicine. The aim of the current study was to determine the effects of the aqueous and ethanolic extracts of A. citriodora on Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus, which cause tooth decay. Methods: This 2016 study was performed on standardized strains of S. mutans PTCC1683 and S. sobrinus PTCC1601 and clinical isolates. Twenty clinical samples were obtained from the dental caries of children admitted to the pediatric ward at the Faculty of Dentistry of Babol University of Medical Sciences (Babol, Iran). The aqueous and ethanolic extracts of A. citriodora leaves were prepared in several concentrations ranging from 625–20,000 µg/ml. These concentrations of the extracts were applied to the bacteria by disk diffusion, agar well diffusion, and macrotube dilution. The antibacterial effects of amoxicillin and chlorhexidine digluconate 0.2% (CHX) were also carried out. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 18 software using independent-samples t-test. Results: Streptococcus spp. was successfully isolated from nine out of 20 (45%) specimens. Of the 9 positive samples cultured, 8 (88.8%) were S. mutans and 1 was S. sobrinus (11.2%). No inhibitory zone was observed around the disks and wells containing all concentrations of A. citriodora extracts. The minimum concentrations for inhibition of growth (MIC) resulted in turbidity in all tubes and were negative except for the control tubes. Inhibition zones were observed for amoxicillin and CHX disks (p < 0.001). Conclusion: This study found that all studied bacteria were resistant to both types of the extracts; therefore, they are not a suggested replacement for chemical agents in mouthwash. It also shown that CHX is less effective than amoxicillin