Frequency of symptomatic urolithiasis among patients who admitted in Shiraz hospitals

Background: Urolithiasis is a common condition with a high recurrence rate associated with serious complications. Moreover, it imposes a great financial burden on the patients and healthcare system. We aimed to study the frequency of the patients admitted to Shiraz hospitals because of urinary stones.   Methods: In this study, the information of 1420 patients was collected during 2013 based on the consensus method. The collected information included age, sex, place, time and duration of admission, family history of diseases, the characteristics of urinary stones, and received treatments.   Results: The male-to-female ratio was 1.96:1 with mean±SD age of 47.5±17.3 years. Most of the patients were 40-60 years old. The incidence rate of urolithiasis ranged from 22.2% to 27.8% in different seasons (P>0.05). Mean duration of hospital admissions was 3.8±3.3 days and 37.7% of the patients had another associated medical disease. The most stones were located in the kidney (49.2%) and the ureter (39.4%). Composition of 70.8% of pure stones was calcium oxalate and 18.7% were stag-horn type. Hematuria was the most prominent paraclinical finding (78.3%), and the most used method of treatment was lithotripsy procedures (72%) and 11.1% of the patients underwent open surgery.    Conclusion: Based on the current research, a significant percentage of the patients had urinary stones that highlight the role of effective treatment and follow-up

Frequency of unnatural deaths in Fars province during a five-year period

Background: The study of the mortality patterns in each country helps to improve proper programming to reduce the number of deaths. Our effort was to study the frequency of unnatural deaths from 2006 to 2010.   Methods: In the present cross-sectional research carried out to study the cases of unnatural deaths in Fars province between 2006 and 2010, all documents related to unnatural deaths in Fars Forensic Medicine Registry (FFMR) were investigated. Information about the deceased, including age, gender, education, and type of accident, was extracted and analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 21.0.   Results: The findings indicated that during the five-year period studied a total number of 10079 unnatural deaths occured. During the study period, unnatural deaths had a decrease. The most recurring cause of death was traffic accidents (38%), with the death caused by substance abuse (19.2%) and burns (9.5%) the second and the third leading causes of death. Of all deaths, 81% of the deceased were male. The highest frequency of deaths occurred in the age group of 20 to 29 years. Also, the highest number of deaths belonged to individuals with primary and middle school education (52%).   Conclusion: The number of unnatural deaths decreased as the time went by. Unnatural deaths were more frequent in males and in young people and happened more in people with lower education. Implementation of correct policies and appropriate programs focusing on these high risk groups could lead to considerable prevention of unnatural deaths.

An Experience of Qualified Preventive Screening: Shiraz Smart Screening Software

Background: Computerized preventive screening software is a cost effective intervention tool to address non-communicable chronic diseases. Shiraz Smart Screening Software (SSSS) was developed as an innovative tool for qualified screening. It allows simultaneous smart screening of several high-burden chronic diseases and supports reminder notification functionality. The extent in which SSSS affects screening quality is also described. Methods: Following software development, preventive screening and annual health examinations of 261 school staff (Medical School of Shiraz, Iran) was carried out in a software-assisted manner. To evaluate the quality of the software-assisted screening, we used quasi-experimental study design and determined coverage, irregular attendance and inappropriateness proportions in relation with the manual and software-assisted screening as well as the corresponding number of requested tests. Results: In manual screening method, 27% of employees were covered (with 94% irregular attendance) while by software-assisted screening, the coverage proportion was 79% (attendance status will clear after the specified time). The frequency of inappropriate screening test requests, before the software implementation, was 41.37% for fasting plasma glucose, 41.37% for lipid profile, 0.84% for occult blood, 0.19% for flexible sigmoidoscopy/colonoscopy, 35.29% for Pap smear, 19.20% for mammography and 11.2% for prostate specific antigen. All of the above were corrected by the software application. In total, 366 manual screening and 334 software-assisted screening tests were requested. Conclusion: SSSS is an innovative tool to improve the quality of preventive screening plans in terms of increased screening coverage, reduction in inappropriateness and the total number of requested tests

Social determinants of health and attempt to change unhealthy lifestyle: A population-based study

Background: A healthy lifestyle is important because of its long-term benefits; however, there is a paucity of information concerning health choices among Iranians. We evaluated personal health behaviors, attempts to change unhealthy behaviors, and factors affecting attempts at change. Methods: The design of this cross-sectional study was to assemble a representative cadre of> 18-year-old adults in Shiraz, Iran, using a multistage cluster sampling technique. Validated questionnaires collected participant's demographic information, such as weight, height, cigarette smoking history, physical activity, and attempts at lifestyle changes during the previous year. To determine predictors of attempts to change unhealthy lifestyle and to identify confounders, we applied single and multivariable logistic regression methods, respectively. A confidence interval of 95% was calculated for each odds ratio. Results: The prevalence of attempts to change unhealthy lifestyle was 42%, 64.8%, and 27.8%, respectively, for losing weight, being more physically active, and smoking cessation. Unemployment, low levels of education, and decreased socioeconomic status have important roles in attempts to change lifestyle conditions. Low socioeconomic status was a risk factor for quitting smoking. Occupation (unemployed/homemaker) and low level of education were two significant factors for being more physically active. Conclusions: The prevalence of inadequate physical activity and being overweight or obese was considerable in Shiraz, Iran. Attempts to change unhealthy lifestyle were less than ideal. Social determinants of health factors including unemployment and low levels of education and socioeconomic status play important roles in attempts to change current lifestyles

Are the predictors of hookah smoking differ from those of cigarette smoking? report of a population-based study in Shiraz, Iran, 2010

Background: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of tobacco use and effect of lifestyle factors on cigarette and hookah use among adult residents of Shiraz, Iran. Methods: In 2010, 1,000 participants were recruited in a multistage, random sampling cross-sectional population-based survey. Results: Response rate was 98%. Prevalence of cigarette smoking was 9.7%. Among cigarette users, 12.6% reported smoking 2 years. Almost half of those surveyed (48.9%) smoked 20 cpd. Almost a quarter (20.4%) of the cigarette smokers tried to quit in the past year. Being male, married, aged 37-54, having higher perceived levels of stress, a non-manual occupation, and sedentary lifestyle were positively associated with cigarette smoking. Manual labor occupations, housewife/jobless status, and going frequently to restaurants were positive predictors of hookah smoking. Conclusions: Compared to cigarettes, hookah smoking was more prevalent among Iranian adults. Approximately, the prevalence of hookah smoking in women is the same as men, whereas cigarette use was 31 times more common in men. Cigarette and hookah smoking were associated with less healthy lifestyle habits in both men and women