The mediating role of cognitive emotion regulation strategies on the relationship between personality characteristics and psychological distress in siblings of children with cancer

Cancer is a chronic disease that may affect psychological functioning of all family members including siblings. Many factors such as personality characteristics and emotion regulation strategies may have a role in coping with stressful situations. The aim of the present study was to examine the mediator role of cognitive emotion regulation strategies on the relationship between personality characteristics psychological distress in a group of siblings of pediatric cancer children. A sample of 70 adolescent siblings (38 brothers, 36 sisters) referred to one of the 3 assigned hospitals have been selected through convenience sampling method. All participants were asked to complete Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ), Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI), and psychological distress subscale of Mental Health Inventory (MHI). Method of the present descriptive study was correlational. Analysis of the data involved both descriptive and inferential statistics including means, standard deviations, correlation, and regression analysis. The results showed that personality characteristics of harm avoidance, persistence, self-directedness and cooperativeness as well as psychological distress were correlated with cognitive emotion regulation strategies. Regression analysis revealed that the relation between self-directedness and cooperativeness with psychological distress was mediated by cognitive emotion regulation strategies. It can be concluded that the relationship between personality characteristics and psychological distress is not a simple linear one. This is partly mediated by cognitive emotion regulation strategis. Investigating the reciprocal effect of emotion regulation strategis and personality characteristics provides researcher with a more precise explanation of the role each of which may has on behavior and mental health

The impact of an interactive computer game on the quality of life of children undergoing chemotherapy

Background: Quality of life (QOL) of children with cancer reduces right from the diagnosis of disease and the start of treatment. Computer games in medicine are utilized to interact with patients and to improve their health-related behaviors. This study aimed to investigate the effect of an interactive computer game on the QOL of children undergoing chemotherapy. Materials and Methods: In this clinical trial, 64 children with cancer aged between 8 and12 years were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to experimental or control group. The experimental group played a computer game for 3 hours a week for 4 consecutive weeks and the control group only received routine care. The data collection tool was the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) 3.0 Cancer Module Child self-report designed for children aged between 8 to 12 years. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics in SPSS software. Results: Before intervention, there was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of mean total QOL score (p = 0.87). However, immediately after the intervention (p = 0.02) and 1 month after the intervention (p < 0.001), the overall mean QOL score was significantly higher in the intervention group than the control group. Conclusions: Based on the findings, computer games seem to be effective as a tool in influencing health-related behavior and improving the QOL of children undergoing chemotherapy. Therefore, according to the findings of this study, computer games can be used to improve the QOL of children undergoing chemotherapy

Evaluation of rs62527607 [GT] single nucleotide polymorphism located in BAALC gene in children with acute leukemia using mismatch PCR-RFLP

Acute leukemia is the most common cancer in children and involves several factors that contribute to the development of multidrug resistance and treatment failure. According to our recent studies, the BAALC gene is identified to have high mRNA expression levels in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and those with multidrug resistance. Several polymorphisms are associated with the expression of this gene. To date, there has been no study on the rs62527607 [GT] single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of BAALC gene and its link with childhood acute lymphoblastic and myeloid leukemia (AML). The purpose of this study is to evaluate the prevalence of this polymorphism in pediatric acute leukemia, as well as its relationship with prognosis. DNA samples were extracted from bone marrow slides of 129 children with ALL and 16 children with AML. The rs62527607 [GT] SNP was evaluated using mismatch polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP)-based analysis. The association between the SNP alleles and patient disease-free survival was then assessed. The prevalence of the T-allele of rs62527607 [GT] SNP in childhood T-ALL and pre-B-ALL was 28.3% and 11.2%, respectively. In the pre-B-ALL patients, 3 year disease free survival was associated with the GG genotype. Results showed a robust association between the rs62527607 SNP and the risk of relapse in ALL, but not AML, patients. T-ALL patients with the GT genotype had an 8.75 fold higher risk of relapse. The current study demonstrates a significant association between the genotype GT and the polymorphic allele G424T, and introduces this SNP as a negative prognostic factor in children with ALL

The metabolic syndrome in survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Isfahan, Iran

&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;strong&gt;BACKGROUND&lt;/strong&gt;: To determine the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in survivors of childhood leukemia in Isfahan, Iran.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;strong&gt;METHODS&lt;/strong&gt;: During a 4-year period (2003 to 2007), 55 children (33 male and 22 female) diagnosed with ALL at Unit of Hematology/ Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Isfahan University of Medical Science, were enrolled in this crosssectional study. Metabolic syndrome was defined using the modified version of Adult Treatment Panel (ATP III) criteria. Insulin resistance was defined based on the homeostasis model assessment index (HOMA-IR).&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;strong&gt;RESULTS&lt;/strong&gt;: The mean age of participates was 10.4 years (range 6-19 years) and the mean interval since completion of chemotherapy was 35 months. Twenty percent (11/55) of survivors (10 male, 1 female) met criteria for diagnosis of metabolic syndrome. Obesity was observed in one forth of patients and nearly 3/4 of obese patients had metabolic syndrome. High serum insulin levels were found in 16% of participants and in 63% of obese survivors. The mean insulin levels in survivors with metabolic syndrome was three-times more than those without (28.3 mu/l vs. 9.57 mu/l, p = 0.004). Insulin resistance was detected in 72.7% of survivors with metabolic syndrome and it was&amp;nbsp; ositively correlated with serum triglycerides (0.543, p &lt; 0.001), systolic and diastolic BP (0.348, p = 0.01 and 0.368, p = 006 respectively), insulin levels (0.914, p &lt; 0.001) and blood sugar (0.398, p = 003).&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;strong&gt;CONCLUSIONS&lt;/strong&gt;: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome in survivors of childhood leukemia in Iran is higher than developed countries. Nearly all of the obese patients had metabolic syndrome. Weight control and regular physical exercise are recommended to the survivors.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;strong&gt;KEYWORDS&lt;/strong&gt;: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, metabolic syndrome, obesity, children.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt

Integrative computational in-depth analysis of dysregulated miRNA-mRNA interactions in drug-resistant pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells: an attempt to obtain new potential gene-miRNA pathways involved in response to treatment

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the major neoplasia type among children. Despite the tremendous success of current treatment strategies, drug resistance still remains a major cause of chemotherapy failure and relapse in pediatric patients. Overwhelming evidence illustrates that microRNAs (miRNAs) act as post-transcriptional regulators of drug-resistance-related genes. The current study was aimed at how dysregulated miRNA-mRNA-signaling pathway interaction networks mediate resistance to four commonly used chemotherapy agents in pediatric ALL, including asparaginase, daunorubicin, prednisolone, and vincristine. Using public expression microarray datasets, a holistic in silico approach was utilized to investigate candidate drug resistance miRNA-mRNA-signaling pathway interaction networks in pediatric ALL. Our systems biology approach nominated significant drug resistance and cross-resistance miRNAs, mRNAs, and cell signaling pathways based on anti-correlative relationship between miRNA and mRNA expression pattern. To sum up, our systemic analysis disclosed either a new potential role of miRNAs, or a possible mechanism of cellular drug resistance, in chemotherapy resistance of pediatric ALL. The current study may shed light on predicting drug response and overcoming drug resistance in childhood ALL for subsequent generations of chemotherapies

Effects of the dietary approach to stop hypertension (DASH) diet on blood pressure, blood glucose, and lipid profile in adolescents with hemophilia: A randomized clinical trial

Children with hemophilia are an enhanced risk of modifiable cardiovascular and metabolic abnormalities. There is currently no nutritional guideline to prevent or manage cardiometabolic risk factors in these patients. Therefore, the present study sought to investigate the effect of the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet on cardiovascular and metabolic risk factors among children with hemophilia. In this parallel randomized clinical trial, 40 children (all male) with hemophilia were randomly allocated to the DASH group (n = 20) or control group (n = 20) for 10 weeks. The intervention group received the DASH diet (50%–55% of energy from carbohydrate, 27%–30% of energy from fat and 16%–18% energy from protein), and the control group received nutritional recommendations based on healthy eating practices. Systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), fasting blood sugar (FBS), triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) were measured at the beginning and end of the study. Serum vitamin C was measured as a biomarker of compliance with the DASH diet. Study was registered at IRCT.ir (IRCT20130903014551N6). A significant increase in serum vitamin C in the DASH diet group was observed compared to the control group (p = .001), indicating good compliance with the DASH diet. There was a significant reduction in SBP (−0.48 mmHg), DBP (−0.48 mmHg), FBS (−5.86 mg/dl), TC (−16.07 mg/dl), TG (−17.21 mg/dl), and LDL-C (−9.79 mg/dl), and a significant increase in HDL-C (3.39 mg/dl), in the DASH diet group compared with the control group. Adherence to the DASH diet in children with hemophilia yielded beneficial effects in blood pressure, lipid profiles, and FBS

A Study on Body Mass Index, Blood Pressure, and Red Blood Cell Indices in New Entering Students of the University of Isfahan

Objectives: Obesity and increased blood pressure are identified as risk factors for cardiac and pulmonary disorders. On the other hand, iron deficiency (another preventable disease) is common in adolescence and considered as associated with health impairment. The present study evaluates body mass index (BMI) and its association with blood pressure and hematological indices in freshman students entering the University of Isfahan in 2009. Methods: All the 1675 students who entered the University of Isfahan in September 2009 were examined. Height, weight, BMI, blood pressure, hemoglobin (Hb) and red blood cell (RBC) indices of these students were measured. The prevalence of high blood pressure, its association with BMI and the relation between BMI and anemia, iron deficiency and educational achievement were assessed. Results: All participants, including 514 males and 1161 females, went under clinical observations. The average age was 20.7 ± 3.8. year Among the students, 18.2% of males and 20% of females were underweight. High systolic blood pressure was more common in the students with BMI > 25 kg/m2 (p < 0.001). Anemia was seen in 8.7% of females. In males, however, a relation between anemia frequency and BMI < 18.5 kg/m 2 was more distinct (p = 0.002). There was no association between anemia and students′ average test scores. Conclusions: High incidence of abnormal BMI in the study population, and its association with systolic blood pressure indicate the importance of nutritional guidelines and counseling programs for freshman students. On the other hand, high incidence of anemia in this population ascertains the necessity of anemia screening programs before academic studies