Psycho-education programme for temporomandibular disorders: a pilot study

BACKGROUND: Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) are by far the most predominant condition affecting the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), however many patients have mild self-limiting symptoms and should not be referred for specialist care. The aim of this pilot study was to develop a simple, cost-effective management programme for TMDs using CD-ROM. 41 patients (age 18–70) participated in this study, patients were divided into three groups: the 1st group were involved in an attention placebo CD-ROM (contain anatomical information about the temporomandibular system), the 2nd group received information on CD-ROM designed to increase their control and self efficacy, while the 3rd group received the same programme of the 2nd group added to it an introduction to self-relaxing techniques followed by audio tape of progressive muscle relaxation exercises. Each of the groups was asked to complete a number of questionnaires on the day of initial consultation and six weeks afterwards. RESULTS: The two experimental groups (2nd & 3rd) were equally effective in reducing pain, disability and distress, and both were more effective than the attention placebo group (1st), however the experimental groups appeared to have improved at follow-up relative to the placebo-group in terms of disability, pain and depressed mood. CONCLUSION: This pilot study demonstrates the feasibility and acceptability of the design. A full, randomized, controlled trial is required to confirm the efficacy of the interventions developed here

Identification and Characterization of Anti-Platelet Antibodies in Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura Patients

Background: The autoimmune disease known as Idiopathic (immune thrombocytopenic purpura thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is clinically defined by a low numbers of platelets in the circulation blood. This study aimed to isolate autoantibodies made against the platelet glycoproteins using platelets from healthy volunteers, to determine their specificity and further elucidate their effects on platelet function.Methods: This study used a phage display system to recognize Fab anti-platelet antibodies. Anti-platelet After isolation, the anti-platelet Fab-expressing phage was characterized by ELISA and Western blotting. The Fab-bearing phage pool obtained from five rounds of panning was analysed in order to determine its anti-platelet reactivity. Of the phage colonies obtained, 100 colonies of different sizes were randomly selected for reaction with whole platelets, using M13 phage as a negative control.Results: Twelve colonies of them had strong reactions against the whole platelet preparation, but only four colonies showed substantial reactivity against the lysed platelet preparation (lysate). Three of the four colonies showed three bands representing proteins with different molecular weights. The fourth colony showed only a single band. The final experiment to characterise the protein isolated from the phage library was a DNA gel agarose test.Conclusion: Each colony showed a DNA band that corresponded with the molecular size marker for 5.4 kbase pairs, and this suggested the presence of heavy and light antibody chains in the phage

Educational level and age as contributing factors to road traffic accidents

【Abstract】Objective: This research analyzes data on road traffic accidents (RTA) in Fars province, whose roads are among the highly dangerous ones in Iran. It inves- tigates educational level and age involved in RTA in order to discover patterns that can prevent or decrease accidents. Methods: This research made use of data visualization techniques to find hidden patterns. The data included mor- tality rate related to RTA in Fars province and were obtained from Fars Forensic Medicine Registry covering a period of 1 year from March 21, 2010 to March 21, 2011. All data were analyzed using SPSS 11.5. The results were reported as de- scriptive indices such as frequency (percentage). The Chi- square test was applied to the data concerning educational level and age. P value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results: In the mentioned period, 1 831 people were killed, out of whom un/lowly educated people (69.6%) ac- counted for the highest mortality rate. The significant rela- tionship between educational level and mortality rate was found (X2=275.98, P<0.0001). Also three was a significant association between age and mortality rate (X2=371.20, P<0.0001). Young people (age between 20 and 29 years) contribute to higher RTA mortality rate compared with other age groups. Conclusion: The educational level and age are signifi- cantly correlated to mortality rate. The youth and un/lowly educated people suffer more fatal RTA. Key words: Accidents, traffic; Mortality; Education; Data mining; Ira