Psychometric characteristics of the Muslim Religiosity Scale in Iranian patients with cancer

Objective: Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide. Religiosity is a factor that may help cancer patients to cope with their disease. The aim of the current study was to validate a Persian translation of the Muslim Religiosity Scale (MRS) in a population of Iranian patientswith cancer. Method: Two thousand patients were invited to participate in this multisite study, of whom 1,879 participated. Patients completed a demographic questionnaire, the MRS, and several scales, including the Patient Health Questionnaire–9, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Perceived Social Support Scale, and the SF–12 quality of life measure. Backward– forward translation was employed to develop a Persian-language version of theMRS. Cronbach’s alpha and two-week test–retest reliability were also assessed. Convergent and discriminative validity as well as the factor structure of the scale were also examined. Results: The internal reliability (a) of the religious practices and beliefs subscales was 0.88 and 0.92, respectively. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was 0.92 (range ¼ 0.75–1.0). The scale demonstrated solid convergent and discriminative validity. Factor analysis indicated two main factors, as predicted, with an appropriate goodness of fit (x2 ¼ 76.23,RMSEA ¼ 0.065). Such factors asmarital status, quality of life, social support, and self-efficacy were positively associated with MRS total score, while anxiety, depression, and suicide ideation had negative associations. Significance of results: TheMRS is a useful tool for assessing religiosity in Iranian patientswith cancer and is associated with a number of important health outcomes

The status of dental caries and related factors in a sample of Iranian adolescents

Objective: To describe the status of dental caries in a sample of Iranian adolescents aged 14 to 18 years in Qazvin, and to identify caries-related factors affecting this group. Study design: Qazvin was divided into three zones according to socio-economic status. The sampling procedure used was a stratified cluster sampling technique; incorporating 3 stratified zones, for each of which a cluster of school children were recruited from randomly selected high schools. The adolescents agreed to participate in the study and to complete a questionnaire. Dental caries status was assessed in terms of decayed teeth (DT), filled teeth (FT) and decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT). A multivariate regression analysis was used to determine statistically significant associations between DMFT and other variables. Results: The study sample comprised 380 adolescents, 188 (49.5%) being male. The mean age of the adolescents was 15.42 (SD= 1.1) years, and the mean DMFT was 2.61 (SD=1.89). Boys had significantly higher DMFT scores than girls (P<0.05). The multivariate regression analyses revealed a significant relation between high DMFT scores and such variables as increasing age, male gender, lower levels of parental education, higher family income, lower frequency of tooth brushing and dental flossing, having a history of no visits to the dentist, and bad perception of own oral health. Conclusions: The present study reveals that Iranian adolescents have a poor oral hygiene, as very few subjects brush and floss their teeth on a regular basis. Although the incidence of caries was found to be moderate, it was influenced by demographic factors such as age and gender in addition to socio-behavioral variables such as fami-ly income, the level of education attained by parents, the frequency of dental brushing and flossing, and both the frequency and type of visit to a dentist. © Medicina Oral S. L

Plasma disc decompression compared to physiotherapy for symptomatic contained lumbar disc herniation: A prospective randomized controlled trial

Introduction To evaluate clinical outcomes with PDD as compared with patients who underwent to standard physiotherapy intervention. Material and methods One-hundred-seventy-seven randomly assigned patients with primarily radicular pain associated with a single-level lumbar contained disc herniation were enrolled. Participants received either PDD (89 patients) or conservative physiotherapy care (88 patients). Results Patients in the PDD group had significantly greater reduction in leg pain scores and significantly improved VAS (p&lt;0.001), Oswestry Disability Index (p&lt;0.05), and 36-Item Short Form, than those in the physiotherapy group at 12 months. On subset analysis, patients achieved even better outcomes after PPD who: were younger, had a shorter period of radiculopathy, of male gender, and lower BMI. Patients with subacute pain reported better outcomes than those with chronic pain in the PDD group. Conclusions Patient selection for PDD over physiotherapy favored younger patients who presented with a shorter period of pain symptoms and who had a more favorable body habitus

Estimation of sleep problems among pregnant women during COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective To estimate the sleep problems among pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligibility criteria English, peer-reviewed, observational studies published between December 2019 and July 2021 which assessed and reported sleep problem prevalence using a valid and reliable measure were included. Information sources Scopus, Medline/PubMed Central, ProQuest, ISI Web of Knowledge and Embase. Risk of bias assessment tool The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale checklist. Synthesis of results Prevalence of sleep problems was synthesised using STATA software V.14 using a random effects model. To assess moderator analysis, meta-regression was carried out. Funnel plot and Egger’s test were used to assess publication bias. Meta-trim was used to correct probable publication bias. The jackknife method was used for sensitivity analysis. Included studies A total of seven cross-sectional studies with 2808 participants from four countries were included. Synthesis of results The pooled estimated prevalence of sleep problems was 56% (95% CI 23% to 88%, I2=99.81%, Tau2=0.19). Due to the probability of publication bias, the fill-and- trim method was used to correct the estimated pooled measure, which imputed four studies. The corrected results based on this method showed that pooled prevalence of sleep problems was 13% (95% CI 0% to 45%; p<0.001). Based on meta-regression, age was the only significant predictor of prevalence of sleep problems among pregnant women. Limitations of evidence All studies were cross-sectional absence of assessment of sleep problems prior to COVID-19, and the outcomes of the pregnancies among those with and without sleep problems in a consistent manner are among the limitation of the current review. Interpretation Pregnant women have experienced significant declines in sleep quality when faced with the COVID-19 pandemic. The short-term and long-term implications of such alterations in sleep on gestational and offspring outcomes are unclear and warrant further studies. PROSPERO registration number CRD42020181644

Factor structure and psychometric properties of a Persian translation of the Epworth Sleepiness Scale for Children and Adolescents

Background: Given the high prevalence of excessive daytime disorder (EDS) among children and adolescents, daytime sleepiness should be effectively measured for them to design appropriate intervention program. However, the commonly used instrument Epworth Sleepiness Scale for Children and Adolescents (ESS-CHAD) has little information in its psychometric properties. This study aimed to apply 2 different test theories to examine the psychometric properties of the Persian ESS-CHAD among a large sample of Iranian adolescents and children.Methods: In this methodological study, participants from 8 high schools (n=1371; 700 males), in Qazvin, Iran, completed the ESS-CHAD, a background information sheet, and Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). The ESS-CHAD was translated by using a forward-backward translation method.Two weeks later, the participants completed the ESS-CHAD again. Internal consistency using Cronbach’s alpha, test-retest reliability using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), regression analysis testing the correlation between ESS-CHAD and ISI, Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA)with measurement invariance, Rasch analysis with differential item functioning (DIF), and latent class analysis (LCA) were used to examine the psychometric properties of the ESS-CHAD. Results: The internal consistency (α=0.79), test-retest reliability (ICC=0.84), regression findings(β=0.39, P<0.001), CFA (comparative fit index [CFI])=0.974, root-mean square error of approximation [RMSEA]=0.040), supported measurement invariance (∆CFI=-0.009 to 0.007,∆RMSEA=-0.009 to 0.001), Rasch analysis (infit mean square=0.88 to 1.31, outfit mean square=0.68 to 1.19), and no substantial DIF (DIF contrast=-0.43 to 0.38) all indicated that ESSCHAD is a reliable and valid instrument. The LCA further classified the sample into 2 distinctclasses. Conclusion: Persian ESS-CHAD could be used to assess daytime sleepiness for adolescents whoare speaking Persian

Psychometric validation of the Persian nine-item Internet Gaming Disorder Scale – Short Form: Does gender and hours spent online gaming affect the interpretations of item descriptions?

The nine-item Internet Gaming Disorder Scale – Short Form (IGDS-SF9) is brief and effective to evaluate Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) severity. Although its scores show promising psychometric properties, less is known about whether different groups of gamers interpret the items similarly. This study aimed to verify the construct validity of the Persian IGDS-SF9 and examine the scores in relation to gender and hours spent online gaming among 2,363 Iranian adolescents. Methods Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and Rasch analysis were used to examine the construct validity of the IGDS-SF9. The effects of gender and time spent online gaming per week were investigated by multigroup CFA and Rasch differential item functioning (DIF). Results The unidimensionality of the IGDS-SF9 was supported in both CFA and Rasch. However, Item 4 (fail to control or cease gaming activities) displayed DIF (DIF contrast = 0.55) slightly over the recommended cutoff in Rasch but was invariant in multigroup CFA across gender. Items 4 (DIF contrast = −0.67) and 9 (jeopardize or lose an important thing because of gaming activity; DIF contrast = 0.61) displayed DIF in Rasch and were non-invariant in multigroup CFA across time spent online gaming. Conclusions Given the Persian IGDS-SF9 was unidimensional, it is concluded that the instrument can be used to assess IGD severity. However, users of the instrument are cautioned concerning the comparisons of the sum scores of the IGDS-SF9 across gender and across adolescents spending different amounts of time online gaming

A randomized controlled multimodal behavioral intervention trial for improving antiepileptic drug adherence

Purpose: Medication nonadherence is one of the most important reasons for treatment failure in patients with epilepsy. The present study investigated the effectiveness of a multicomponent intervention to improve adherence to antiepileptic drug (AED) medication in patients with epilepsy. Methods: In a prospective, randomizedmulticenter trial, three sessions of face-to-facemotivational interviewing (MI) in combination with complementary behavior change techniques were compared with standard care.Motivational interviewing prompted change talk and self-motivated statements from the patients, planning their own medication intake regimen and also identifying and overcoming barriers thatmay prevent adherence. Participants were provided with calendars to self-monitor their medication taking behavior. A family member and the health-care teamwere invited to attend the last session ofMI in order to improve the collaboration and communication between patients, their caregiver or family member, and their health-care provider. At baseline and 6-month follow-up, psychosocial variables and medical adherence were assessed. Results: In total, 275 participantswere included in the study. Comparedwith the active control group, patients in the intervention group reported significantly highermedication adherence, aswell as stronger intention and perceptions of control for taking medication regularly. The intervention group also reported higher levels of action planning, coping planning, self-monitoring, and lower medication concerns. Conclusions: This study shows that MI can be effective in clinical practice to improvemedication adherence in patientswith epilepsy. It also provides evidence that combining volitional interventions, including action planning, coping planning, and self-monitoring withmotivational interviewing can promote the effectiveness of the medical treatments for epilepsy by improving adherenc