A Systematic Review of Phytochemical and Phytotherapeutic Characteristics of Bitter Almond

Bitter almond is one of the medicinal plants that have been used to prevent and treat diseases since many centuries ago. Bitter almond essential oil can be effectively used to heal wounds, hemorrhoids and hair loss, relieve joint pain, facilitate delivery, and strengthen and condition hairs. Moreover, oral use of bitter almond seed has been demonstrated to cause antioxidant, antibacterial, and anticancer effects because of containing certain compounds such as amygdalin. However, there have been some challenges in investigations conducted to discover bitter almond-based oral, herbal drugs to treat different diseases such as cancer because of cyanide-induced poisoning, partly precluding use of this plant. This study was conducted to comprehensively review the traditional uses, phytochemical compounds, and therapeutic actions of bitter almond and its compound as well as the side effects due to use of them

Comparison of pulmonary arterial pressure in patients under chronic hemodialysis with and without arteriovenous fistula

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a progressive disorder and a newly-discovered disease in people with end stage renal disease (ESRD). In patients who are hemodialyzed through arteriovenous fistula (AVF), the incidence of pulmonary hypertension (PHT) is highly probable. Regarding the main role of the AVF in the pathogenesis of PAH and the fact that AVF is the main method of vascular access in patients undergoing dialysis, we decided to investigate pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) in patients under chronic hemodialysis.METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study. All patients with chronic hemodialysis were divided into two groups according to the status of the fistula. The number of cases examined included 100 patients and data were analyzed by SPSS software.RESULTS: The most common cause of ESRD was hypertension (HTN) followed by diabetes mellitus (DM), polycystic kidney disease (PKD), urologic disorders, DM and HTN, combined blood pressure (BP) and PKD, renal stones, and other items ultimately. The average creatinine level was 8.59 mg/dl. Therefore, the mean creatinine level of patients, although relative to mode and median, was in any case significantly higher than the mean, which was predictable according to the ESRD community studied. The mean phosphate level was 5.66 mg/dl, and the mean hemoglobin (Hb) was 11.56 g/dl. The mean parathyroid hormone (PTH) and PAP were 558.68 and 27.33 mmHg, respectively, and the mean of ejection fraction (EF) was 50.75%. There was a significant difference between the mean PAP in the two groups (P = 0.048), as it was higher in the AVF group.CONCLUSION: Results of this study showed that AVF and ESRD both were risk factors for high PAP and PHT

Assessment on Quantum skills of employed nurses in Ayatollah Kashani and Hajar Hospitals of Shahrekord city in 2015

Background and aims: Skills of nurses due to their professional sensitivity and their relation in public health should continually be monitored. Therefore, the present study was carried out to determine the Quantum skills of nurses employed in Ayatollah Kashani and Hajar hospitals of Shahrekord city. Methods: This cross- sectional descriptive - analytic study was performed in 2016 in Ayatollah Kashani and Hajar hospitals of Shahrekord city. One hundred nurses selected by stratified random sampling and data were collected using a valid questionnaire. The data were analyzed by SPSS 21 software through Chi-Square and independent t-test at the significant level of P<0.05. Results: The Grade Point Average (GPA) of each septel quantum skills including seeing, thinking, feeling, knowing, acting, trusting and being skills in nurses were significantly higher than criterion mean score (P>0.05). Totally, the GPA of nurses’ quantum skills was 136.69±10.07 that had a significant differenc compared to Criterion Mean Score (CMS=105) (P<0.001). Conclusion: According to the rathered results, it can be stated that nurses employed in Ayatollah Kashani and Hajar hospitals of Shahrekor city had a desirable status in the septel quantum skills

Evaluation of the status of antibiotic prescription in patients admitted to a teaching hospital in west of Iran

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the status of the appropriate use of antibiotics by type, dosage, and length of treatment and the route of administration in Tohid teaching hospital, Sanandaj, Iran.METHODS: In a retrospective descriptive study, 400 patients were systematically selected from patients receiving antibiotics hospitalized in Tohid hospital from March 2016 to March 2017. Demographic characteristics, hospitalization ward, diagnosis, antibiotic prescribed, dosage, length of treatment, the route of administration, and prescribing physician were recorded. The treatments were compared with standard treatment based on Harrison reference. The data were analyzed using STATA software.RESULTS: Out of total patients, 54% were men and 46% were women with a mean age of 57.87 ± 9.87 years. The mean duration of hospitalization was 6.37 ± 2.69 days. More and less numbers of patients were admitted in the internal medicine ward (23.75%) and intensive care unit (ICU) (1.00%), respectively, The highest antibiotics were administered by internal medicine specialists (40.25%), the most commonly prescribed antibiotic was ceftriaxone (34.59%), and the most common cause of antibiotic therapy was pneumonia (20.50%). Out of 595 antibiotics prescribed, 28.50% of the administrations were inappropriate. In addition, the objective for the prescription of the first and second antibiotic was inappropriate in 27.50% and 33.70% of cases, respectively. Dosage, route of administration, and the length of treatment of the prescribed antibiotic was inappropriate in 9.00%, 0.50%, and 41.00% of cases, respectively. The highest and lowest rate of inappropriate antibiotic prescription was observed in surgical (51.31%) and infectious diseases (12.90%) wards.CONCLUSION: Due to the increase inappropriate administration of antibiotics, it is necessary to train the specialists about the planning, appropriate medical consultations for antibiotic therapy, and limitation of the new antibiotics prescription.

EFFICACY AND MECHANISMS OF MEDICINAL PLANTS AS IMMUNOTHERAPY IN TREATMENT OF ALLERGIC RHINITIS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Allergic rhinitis is a common disease of immune system that negatively affects general health, quality of life, and social relationships. In the recent years, many studies have been conducted to discover novel treatments for this disease particularly using natural products. Here, we review findings of recent studies that harness medicinal plants and phyto-therapies in oriental medicine that have effectively reduced allergic rhinitis complications. We also assess the use of medicinal plants and their derivatives in oriental medicine to treat allergic rhinitis. In addition, these agents have been reported to be used in combination with each other or separately as complementary therapies and even, in some cases, alternative therapies instead of chemical drugs. These plants display their anti-allergy effects through affecting immunoglobulin and inhibiting different cytokines and interleukins. Medicinal plants and traditional approaches can still offer new therapeutic alternatives to researchers and pharmacists so that these alternatives may further contribute to allergic rhinitis drug discovery

Macro Determinants of Infant Mortality in ECO Countries:Evidence from Panel Data Analysis

Abstract Introductio

Displacement Discontinuity Analysis of the Effects of Various Hydraulic Fracturing Parameters on the Crack Opening Displacement (COD)

The combination of horizontal drilling along with hydraulic fracturing has significantly improved the production of hydrocarbon reservoirs and made it possible to extract the relatively impermeable and uneconomical reservoirs. The production rate of oil and gas wells increases proportional to hydraulic fracture aperture or crack opening displacement (COD). This is an important parameter in fracture mechanics literature and hydraulic fracturing of hydrocarbon reservoirs. Despite the significance of COD there are a few analytical solutions for the estimation of COD under certain conditions. In this paper the effect of various parameters on COD is investigated semi-analytically. A higher order displacement discontinuity method is used to consider the effects of different parameters (Young’s modulus, Poisson’s ratio, internal pressure, maximum and minimum horizontal stresses, crack half-length and its inclination with maximum horizontal stress) on the COD in a hydraulic fracturing process under arbitrarily conditions. The coefficient of determination and standard error of the estimate were 94.35% and 4.37×10-4 respectively, showing a good agreement between the fitted equation and the numerical results. The effect of propagation and well radius on the maximum COD was also investigated. The results showed that COD increases almost linearly with the crack propagation and increase of well radius of hydraulic fractures (HFs). These effects are more significant when HFs are propagating in the direction of maximum horizontal stress. The proposed equation and the results from propagation of hydraulic fractures can be used in early stages of a hydraulic fracturing design</span

What explains socioeconomic inequalities in dental flossing? Cross-sectional results from the RaNCD cohort study

Introduction: The magnitude of or determinants underlying socioeconomic inequalities in the use of dental floss is poorly understood in Iran. This study aimed to measure and decompose socioeconomic inequalities in dental flossing in Ravansar, Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study used data of 10002 individuals aged 35-65 years obtained from the Ravansar Non-communicable Disease (RaNCD) cohort study located in Kermanshah province, west of Iran.&nbsp; Socioeconomic status was measured through an asset-based method and principal component analysis was carried out to determine the socioeconomic status (SES). The concentration index and curve were used to measure socioeconomic inequality in dental flossing. Decomposition analysis was also used to determine the main determinants that contribute to inequalities in dental flossing. Findings: Of 10,002 participants, 11.74% were found to use dental floss. The normalized CI for use of dental floss was 0.327 in the entire population, 0.323 in females and 0.329 in males, indicating that the use of dental floss is more concentrated among high-SES individuals. The decomposition analysis indicated that SES (50.58%) and level of education (44.90%) respectively contributed the most to this inequality. Place of residence (10.55%) and age group (2.7%) were the next main contributors, respectively. Conclusion: There are a low prevalence and a relatively high degree of pro-rich socioeconomic-related inequality in dental flossing among Iranian adults. Socioeconomic status, level of education and place of residence contributed the most to the observed inequalities in dental flossing. Policy interventions should consider these factors to reduce inequality in the use of dental floss and increase the prevalence of dental flossing. &nbsp

Association between single nucleotide polymorphism in miR-499, miR-196a2, miR-146a and miR-149 and prostate cancer risk in a sample of Iranian population

AbstractMicroRNAs (miRNAs) play an important role in regulating gene expression at the post-transcriptional level and are involved in numerous physiological processes. Accumulating evidence suggests that single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in human miRNA genes may affect miRNA biogenesis pathway and influence the susceptibility to several diseases such as cancer. The present study aimed to evaluate the impact of miR-499 rs3746444, miR-196a2 rs11614913, miR-149 rs2292832, and miR-146a rs2910164 polymorphisms on prostate cancer (PCa) risk in a sample of Iranian population. This case-control study was done on 169 patients with pathologically confirmed PCa and 182 benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The genotyping assays were done using T-ARMS-PCR or PCR-RFLP methods. The findings indicated that CC genotype of miR-499 rs3746444 polymorphism increased the risk of PCa (OR=1.76, 95% CI=1.12–2.79, P=0.019) compared to TT genotype. No statistically significant association was found between miR-196a2 rs11614913, miR-149 rs2292832, and miR-146a rs2910164 polymorphisms and PCa risk. In summary, the findings indicated that miR-499 rs3746444 polymorphism increased the risk of PCa in an Iranian population. Further studies with larger sample sizes and different ethnicities are necessary to verify the findings of the present study

Socioeconomic-related inequalities in oral hygiene behaviors: a cross-sectional analysis of the PERSIAN cohort study

Background Socioeconomic-related inequality in oral hygiene behaviors in Iran is poorly understood. This study aims to measure and decompose socioeconomic-related inequalities in oral hygiene behaviors among middle-aged and elderly adults in Iran. Methods A cross-sectional analysis was performed using data from the Prospective Epidemiological Research Studies in IrAN (PERSIAN), a large national cohort study. A total of 130,016 individuals aged 35 years and above from 17 cohort centers in Iran were included in the study. The normalized concentration index (C-n) was used to measure the magnitude of inequality in oral hygiene behaviors, i.e. brushing at least twice and flossing once daily, among middle-aged and elderly Iranian adults included in the cohort centers. Decomposition analysis was performed to quantify the contribution of each determinant to the observed inequality in oral hygiene behaviors. Results Totally, 65.5% of middle-aged and elderly adults brushed their teeth twice a day or more, 7.6% flossed at least once a day and 3.48% had both habits. The estimated C-n of the two habits combined, i.e. tooth brushing and dental flossing, for all provinces taken part in the PERSIAN cohort study was 0.399 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.383 to 0.417), indicating that the prevalence of the two habits combined is more concentrated among individuals with higher socioeconomic status. Inequality in oral hygiene behaviors was pro-rich in all cohort centers. The decomposition results suggested socioeconomic status as the main factor contributing to the overall inequality, followed by the level of education, and the province of residence. Conclusion A low prevalence of oral hygiene behaviors among middle-aged and elderly Iranian adults was observed. There was also a pro-rich inequality in oral hygiene behaviors among middle-aged and elderly adults in all cohort centers. These results suggest an urgent need for targeted policy interventions to increase the prevalence of preventive oral hygiene behaviors among the poor and less-educated middle-aged and elderly adults in Iran