The relationship between personality characteristics and the quality of life in patients with epilepsy

Introduction: Identification of effective factors in the quality of life (QOL) of patients with epilepsy is important in improving their quality of life. Regarding this, the present study aimed to investigate the relationship between personality characteristics and QOL in patients with epilepsy. Material and methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 100 epileptic patients referred to Neurology Clinic of Ali-ibn Abi Talib Hospital in Zahedan, Iran in 2015. The NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) and Short Form Health Survey (SF-12) questionnaires were used to determine the personality characteristics and QOL scores, respectively. Results: The mean of QOL score was 28.94±4.58. Age, gender, marital status, education level, and duration of epilepsy had no significant correlation with the QOL. The QOL showed a negative correlation with openness to experience and neuroticism. However, this variable had a direct correlation with conscientiousness, agreeableness, and extraversion. There was a significant relationship between the predictor variables (extraversion and neuroticism) and the criterion variable (QOL). Therefore, extraversion and neuroticism can be considered as the predictors of the QOL. Conclusions: The extraversion and neuroticism seem to be two predictors of the QOL in the epileptic patients. Accordingly, whereas the patients with high levels of neuroticism had low QOL, this value was higher in those with high levels of extraversion.Introduction: Identification of effective factors in the quality of life (QOL) of patients with epilepsy is important inimproving their quality of life. Regarding this, the present study aimed to investigate the relationship between personalitycharacteristics and QOL in patients with epilepsy.Material and methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 100 epileptic patients referred to NeurologyClinic of Ali-ibn Abi Talib Hospital in Zahedan, Iran in 2015. The NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) and Short FormHealth Survey (SF-12) questionnaires were used to determine the personality characteristics and QOL scores, respectively.Results: The mean of QOL score was 28.94±4.58. Age, gender, marital status, education level, and duration of epilepsyhad no significant correlation with the QOL. The QOL showed a negative correlation with openness to experience andneuroticism. However, this variable had a direct correlation with conscientiousness, agreeableness, and extraversion.There was a significant relationship between the predictor variables (extraversion and neuroticism) and the criterionvariable (QOL). Therefore, extraversion and neuroticism can be considered as the predictors of the QOL.Conclusions: The extraversion and neuroticism seem to be two predictors of the QOL in the epileptic patients. Accordingly,whereas the patients with high levels of neuroticism had low QOL, this value was higher in those with highlevels of extraversion

Analysis of the Effect of Training on the Health Literacy, Awareness and Behavior of Diabetic Type II Patients, Referring to the Clinics of Zahedan within 2014

The diabetic patients with low health literacy have more problems for understanding their disease and less participate in the self-care and blood sugar controlling activities. This study aims to determine the effect of training intervention on health literacy of diabetic type II patients referring to clinics (Imam Ali, Aliasghar and Khatam) of Zahedan. This study was a randomized controlled research that applied on 160 patients suffering from diabetes type II which classified in two intervention and control groups based on block random allocation. The data was collected by a valid questionnaire that before training was filled by two groups. The intervention group received a training session 45-60min as 8-person groups. 2 months (60 days) after training intervention, the both intervention and control groups filled the relative questionnaire again. SPSS v. 16 and statistical tests including independent t-test and chi square were used for analysis of data. No significance difference in awareness, behavior and health literacy was observed between two groups, before intervention; but, after intervention, mean values of awareness, behavior and health literacy in trained group was significantly higher than control group. In addition, after training the statistical test of independent t-test, significant difference was shown in change of skill score of accessibility to the information (p=0.008) and understandability of reading (p<0.0001) in the intervention group in comparison to control group. The results of this study indicated that even holding one training session for the diabetic patients may be followed by increment of health literacy 10%. Providing the training plan in simple language with high readability and accessibility to health information improves the health literacy, awareness and behavior of diabetic patients. And improve diabetic patients' health literacy leads to better results in the control and treatment of diabetes

Determining Influential Factors on the Length of Stay in the Southeast Hospitals of the Country before and after the Outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Introduction and purpose: The spread of the COVID-19 disease and the increase in healthcare costs have made health care providers look for a solution to evaluate the performance of the healthcare delivery system. One of the effective indicators for determining the optimal use of hospital resources is the length of stay (LOS). This study was conducted to determine the effective factors on the LOS of patients in Zahedan hospitals, in Iran, before and after the outbreak of COVID-19. Methods: The present descriptive study was conducted by examining the records of patients admitted to four general hospitals in Zahedan from 2018 to 2021. To analyze the data, independent t-tests, one-way analysis of variance, and Pearson's correlation coefficient were used. Results: Out of 1600 examined patients, 59.2% were female and 40.8% were male. The mean and standard deviation of the patients’ LOS in general hospitals of Zahedan city was 3.4±3.5 days. It was found that LOS decreased after the outbreak of COVID-19 (3.5±3.7 days before the COVID-19 outbreak, 3.2±3.2 days after the COVID-19 outbreak). In general, LOS in terms of demographic characteristics, management factors, type of disease, history of underlying disease, and type of hospital had a significant difference (P<0.001). Conclusion: Based on the findings of the present research, the average LOS of patients in general hospitals of Zahedan was favorable (less than 3.5 days). However, due to the lack of hospital resources, it is recommended to improve hospital processes and pay more attention to the variables affecting them

Determination of Airborne Concentration and Type of Asbestos Fibers in High-Traffic Areas of Zahedan City

Background:Asbestos fibers are one of the hazardous air pollutants in high-traffic areas of cities. This study was conducted during summer 2016 with the aim of determining the concentration and type of asbestos fibers in the air of high-traffic areas of Zahedan, Iran.  Methods: In this descriptive, cross-sectional study, 4 high-traffic and 2 traffic-free areas of Zahedan were chosen. Ambient air samples were collected according to the NIOSH 7400 method, with a flow rate of 2 l/m and 4 hours per day. The asbestos fiber in the samples were analyzed with the use of Phase-Contrast optical Microscopy (PCM) and Scanning Electronic Microscopy (SEM). Results:The mean and standard deviation of asbestos contamination density in high-traffic areas were 0.0012 (0.0004) f/cc and 0.0012, respectively, which were higher than the threshold limit value (TLV). In traffic-free areas with mean and standard deviation of 0.0003 ± 0.0003 f/cc the asbestos concentration was lower than the allowed limits. To check the normality of data Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was used (p&lt; 0.05). The results of Kruskal-Wallis test showed that there is a meaningful difference between the means of the two measured groups (p&lt; 0.001). The types of asbestos fibers based on EDS spectrums and electron microscope images were actinolite, tremolite, and chrysotile. Conclusion: The findings of the present study indicated that the concentration of asbestos fibers in the sampleswas higher than the WHO standards for ambient air (0.00005 PCM f/ml). The use of asbestos fibers in car brake and clutch, as well as in asbestos cement sheet and insulation in buildings are among the most important sources of air pollution in the city.&#x0D;  </jats:p