Cure Rate Following Rejection in Bilateral Corneal Grafts for Keratoconus

Purpose: To estimate cure rate following graft rejection in bilateral corneal transplants in Iranian patients with keratoconus and to determine risk factors associated with rejection. Methods: In this retrospective study, data were compiled from records of patients who had undergone bilateral penetrating keratoplasty (PK) for keratoconus between 1988 and 2007. In order to estimate cure rate in patients with and without corneal vascularization, we adopted the cure rate frailty model with a Bayesian approach. Results: Two hundred and thirty-eight eyes of 119 patients underwent bilateral corneal transplantion for keratoconus, of which 22.7% experienced graft rejections. Cure rates for patients with and without corneal vascularization were 41% and 79%, respectively. Cure rate decreased 12% per decade of increase in recipient age. The 1, 5, and 10-year survival of corneal transplants without any graft rejection episodes were 82%, 74%, and 70% respectively. Conclusion: The most important risk factor predisposing to rejection in patients undergoing bilateral PK for keratoconus was corneal vascularization. Cure rate for patients without vascularization was high in this data set, indicating that penetrating keratoplasty in keratoconus patients without vascularization is an efficient and reliable procedure

Изучение декора зданий эпохи Сефевида (с выборочным обзором Чешме Эмарат и Багхшах в Бехшахре)

Throughout history, man has wanted to create his own living space for various reasons. This aspect can be seen even in early humans who lived in caves such as Lascaux in France and Valtamira in Spain. It should be noted that the attempt to do so is visible among ancient human civilizations around the world and is not specific to specific regions or ethnic groups, because the decorations of geometric and abstract patterns are seen among the people of Europe. Safavid era in Iran is one of the busiest architectural periods. The buildings are located in the most attractive and glamorous buildings throughout the architecture of Iran. In the Safavid era, the ancient style of Iranian architecture was renewed and the design of buildings and space materials was opened for itself. Remains of the Safavid period, both in Behshahr and in other cities of Iran, contain a wide range of architectural decorations. The subject of the present discussion is the study of the architectural decorations of this period, which is due to the study of some examples (Cheshmeh Emarat and Baghshah in Behshahr). Safavids will help in Mazandaran region

A Comparison of Selective Classification Methods in DNA Microar¬ray Data of Cancer: Some Recommendations for Application in Health Promotion

Background: The aim of this study was to apply a new method for se¬lecting a few genes, out of thousands, as plausible markers of a disease.Methods: Hierarchical clustering technique was used along with Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Naïve Bayes (NB) classifiers to select marker-genes of three types of breast cancer. In this method, at each step, one sub¬ject is left out and the algorithm iteratively selects some clusters of genes from the remainder of subjects and selects a representative gene from each cluster. Then, classifiers are constructed based on these genes and the accu¬racy of each classifier to predict the class of left-out subject is recorded. The classifier with higher precision is considered superior.Results: Combining classification techniques with clustering method re¬sulted in fewer genes with high degree of statistical precision. Although all classifiers selected a few genes from pre-determined highly ranked genes, the precision did not decrease. SVM precision was 100% with 22 genes instead of 50 genes while the NB resulted in higher precision of 97.95% in this case. When 20 highly ranked genes selected to be fed to the algorithm, same precision was obtained using 6 and 5 genes with SVM and NB clas¬sifiers respectively.Conclusion: Using hybrid method could be effective in choosing fewer number of plausible marker genes so that the classification precision of these markers is increased. In addition, this method enables detecting new plausible markers that their association to disease under study is not bio¬logically proved

Recognition of the factors affecting survival in colon and rectal cancer patients referred to RCGLD center of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences: accelerated failure time parametric survival analysis with frailty

زمینه و هدف: عوامل تشخیصی سرطان کولورکتال بر بقای بیماران و تجویز درمان مناسب موثر است. با توجه به افزایش نرخ‌ این سرطان در ایران مخصوصاً در سنین جوانی و اینکه عوامل تشخیصی سرطان کولورکتال به عنوان یک سرطان واحد درک دقیقی از دو سرطان کولون و رکتوم و عوامل موثر بر آن فراهم نمی‌کند، بنابراین مطالعه حاضر به منظور تعیین عوامل خطر اختصاصی سرطان‌های کولون و رکتوم انجام گردید. روش بررسی: در این مطالعه توصیفی-تحلیلی تعداد 1219 بیمار مبتلا به سرطان‌های کولون و رکتوم طی دی ‌ماه 1383 تا مهرماه 1387 مورد بررسی قرار گرفتند. متغیر‌های دموگرافیک و بالینی در قالب تحلیل‌های یک متغیره و چند متغیره با رویکرد الگوی زمان شکست شتابنده تحلیل بقا و با انجام تصحیح توسط پارامتر شکنندگی توسط نرم‌افزار STATA 10 تجزیه و تحلیل شدند. یافته‌ها: بر اساس نتایج حاصل از این مطالعه برای سرطان کولون در زنان، بیماران بدون سابقه‌ی بیماری التهاب روده، بیماران با درجه‌ی تومور ضعیف متمایز شده و بیماران با مرحله‌ی پاتولوژیک I تومور احتمال بقای بالاتری به دست آمد و برای دو عامل سابقه‌ی مصرف الکل و اندازه‌ی تومور رابطه آماری معنی‌داری مشاهده نشد. همچنین برای سرطان رکتوم، بیماران با نوع اولین درمان عمل جراحی احتمال بقای بالاتری داشتند و برای دو عامل سابقه‌ی شخصی ابتلا به سرطان و مرحله‌ی پاتولوژیک تومور رابطه آماری معنی‌داری مشاهده نشد. همچنین برای هر دو نوع سرطان، رده‌‌های با شاخص توده بدنی 9/29–25 و بیشتر از 30 شاخص توده‌ی بدنی به ترتیب احتمال بقای بالاتر و رده‌ی کمتر از 5/18 احتمال بقای پایین‌تری را نشان دادند. در مجموع احتمال بقای بیماران مبتلا به سرطان رکتوم در مقایسه با بیماران مبتلا به سرطان کولون بالاتر بود. نتیجه‌گیری: ارزیابی جداگانه ی کولون و رکتوم، به درک بیشتری از عوامل موثر بر این سرطان‌ها می‌انجامد و می‌تواند در طراحی کارآزمایی‌های بالینی، تشخیص بهتر بیماری و یا تجویز درمان بهینه و اختصاصی کمک نماید

Effect of designed exercise program on stress, anxiety and depression i-n women with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy

Background and aim: Fear of death, lack of knowledge and fear of treatment and its complications, lack of assurance of recovery, possibility of occurrence of problems in their family are predisposing factors in occurrence and intensity of psychological reactions such as stress, anxiety and depression in the women with breast cancer. Therefore, this study was carried out to determine the effect of designed exercise program on stress, anxiety and depression in women with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy. Methods: This quasi–experimental study was conducted on a total of 56 women with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy, refereed to Imam Khomeini hospital of Tehran in 2006. Using DASS-21 and demographic questionnaires, data were collected. The patients in experimental group used the designed exercise program at home for 20 to 30 minutes every day, for 3 to 5 days per week for 9 weeks (3 cycles of chemotherapy). In control group, the routine helps were conducted. All patients were followed up. Data were analyzed using X2 and t test. Results: There was no significant difference between the two groups in the cases of demographic characteristics, cancer stage, and method of surgery. Also, there was no significant difference between the two groups in the cases of stress, anxiety, and depression, before intervention. However, following intervention, the mean of stress, in the case and control groups were 7.25±4.42 and 10.82±5.46 for anxiety were 4.07±2.72 and 7.07±4.8, was and for depression were 3.82±8.83 and 7.32±5.12, respectively (P<0.01). Conclusion: Based on the results, the designed exercise program was effective to reduce stress, anxiety and depression in women with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy in this research

The effect of music on the level of cortisol, blood glucose and physiological variables in patients undergoing spinal anesthesia

Surgical procedures performed using spinal anesthetic techniques present a special challenge to anesthesiologists, because patients are awake and are exposed to multiple anxiety provoking visual and auditory stimuli. Therefore, this study was carried out to define the effect of music on the level of cortisol, blood glucose and physiological variables in patients under spinal anesthesia. In this semi-experimental research, 90 men aging from 18-48 years with ASA (acetylsalicylic acid) class I, who underwent urological and abdominal surgery, were investigated. Patients were divided randomly into three groups of thirty subjects. Music group (headphone with music), Silence group (headphone without music) and the control group (without interference). The level of cortisol and blood sugar was measured half an hour before and after the operation. Moreover, the physiological indicators in each of these three groups were monitored and recorded from ten minutes before getting spinal anesthesia to ten minutes after the operation. The level of blood cortisol didn't have any increase in the music group after operation compared to the time before that. However, in the groups of silence and control this level had risen (p< 0.05). The level of blood glucose in music group had declined and in the other two groups it had increased. Our data showed that listening to music during surgery under regional anesthesia has effects on cortisol levels and some of the physiological variables. Therefore the researcher offers to be used music therapy as a complementary method in patients on the reduce anxiety

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

Structural Modeling of Safety Performance in Construction Industry

Background: With rapid economic development and industrialization, the construction industry continues to rank among the most hazardous industries in the world. Therefore, construction safety is always a significant concern for both practitioners and researchers. The objective of this study was to create a structural modeling of components that influence the safety performance in construction projects. Methods: We followed a two-stage Structural Equation Model based on a questionnaire study (n=230). In the first stage, we applied the Structural Equation Model to the proposed model to test the validity of the observed variables of each latent variable. In the next stage, we modified the proposed model. The LISREL 8.8 software was used to conduct the analysis of the structural model. Results: A good-fit structural model (Goodness of Fit Index=0.92; Root Mean Square Residual=0.04; Root Mean Square Error of Approximation=0.04; Comparative Fit Index=0.98; Normalized Fit Index=0.96) indicated that social and organizational constructs influence safety performance via the general component of the safety climate. Conclusion: The new structural model can be used to provide better understanding of the links between safety performance indicators and contributing components, and make stronger recommendations for effective intervention in construction projects

Imputation in missing not at random SNPs data using EM algorithm

    The relation between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and some diseases has been concerned by many researchers. Also the missing SNPs are quite common in genetic association studies. Hence, this article investigates the relation between existing SNPs in DNMT1 of human chromosome 19 with colorectal cancer. This article aims is to presents an imputation method for missing SNPs not at random. In this case-control study, 100 patients suffering from colorectal cancer consulting with the Research Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Disease of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences were considered as the case group and 100 other patients consulting with the same research institute were considered as the control group and the genetic test was applied in order to identify the genotype of the 6 SNPs of the DNMT1 of chromosom 19 for all the patients under investigation. The obtained data were analyzed using logistic regression, then a fraction of the data was eliminated both at random and not at random and the imputation was done through the EM algorithm and the logistic regression coefficients variation before and after the imputation was compared. The results of this study implied that in both methods, at random and not at random missing SNPs, the estimation of the logistic regression coefficients after the imputation through EM algorithm has a greater correspondence to the results obtained from the complete data in comparison with the method of eliminating the missing values.

Effect of MTA and CEM on Mineralization-Associated Gene Expression in Stem Cells Derived from Apical Papilla

Introduction: This study assessed the effect of mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) and calcium-enriched mixture (CEM) cement on odontogenic differentiation and mineralization of stem cells. Methods and Materials: After confirmation of stemness and homogeneity of stem cells derived from apical papilla (SCAPs) using flow cytometry, the cells were exposed for 3 weeks to either osteogenic medium (OS) or CEM extract+OS (CEM+OS) or MTA extract in OS (MTA+OS) or DMEM based regular culture media (negative control). Relative expression of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), dentine sialophosphoprotein (DSPP), osteocalcin (OSC), and osterix (SP7) were measured at days 14 and 21 using RT-qPCR method. At the same time points Alizarin Red staining method was used to assess mineralization potential of SCAPS. Gene expression changes analysis were made automatically using REST® software and a P&lt;0.05 was considered significant. Results: After 2 weeks of exposure, expression of all genes were between 3 and 52 times the expression of GADPH (all were upregulated except SP7 in the control, P&lt;0.05). After 3 weeks, relative expressions of the genes: ALP, SP7, DSPP, and OSC were respectively 275.9, 528.3, 98.4, and 603.7 times the expression of GADPH in the control group (OS). These were respectively 17.405, 29.2, 11.8, and 6.5 in CEM+OS group, and 163.8, 119.7, 102.5, and 723.9 in MTA+OS group. All of these were confirmed as upregulated (P&lt;0.05) except for ALP and OSC of DM+CEM group. After 2 weeks, alizarin red staining showed similar mineralized nodules in OS, MTA+OS, and CEM+OS. In third week, larger nodules were seen in MTA+OS and OS, but not in CEM+OS. Conclusion: After 2 weeks, gene expressions were almost comparable in OS, CEM+OS, and MTA+OS. After 3 weeks, OS and MTA+OS upregulated genes much greater than in 2nd week. However, upregulation in CEM+OS might not increase in 3rd week compared to those in 2nd week.Keywords: Biomaterials; Calcium-Enriched Mixture (CEM Cement); Mineral Trioxide Aggregate; Relative Gene Expression; Retrograde Root Filling Materials; Stem Cells from Apical Papill