Characteristics of a Capable Teacher to Teach Effectively from Students' Perspective at Shahroud University of Medical Sciences

Introduction: In addition to educational conditions and facilities, the presence of a good and capable teacher is an effective factor in improving teaching and learning processes. The present study aimed to determine the characteristics of a capable teacher from students' perspective at Shahroud University of Medical Sciences. Materials: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 289 students at Shahroud University of Medical Sciences during the academic year of 2017-2018 using a multi-stage random sampling method. Data were collected by a questionnaire containing demographic characteristics and factors affecting the evaluation of capable teachers, including six domains, namely personal characteristics (10 questions), teaching method (14 questions), evaluation and personal communication skills (10 questions), teacher's scholarship (4 questions), and educational rules (5 questions). The data were then analyzed using SPSS. Results: The maximum and minimum mean scores were related to teaching methods (61.9± 6.5) and teacher's scholarship (16± 3.1) respectively. There were significant relationships between evaluation skills and students' residences, the field of study, and six domains of teacher evaluation and academic level, and six domains of academic satisfaction, evaluation skills, and scholarship. Conclusion: From the learners' perspective, the most important characteristics of a capable teacher included the teaching method, personal communication, and personal characteristics respectively. Awareness of learners' perspectives on education can help teachers to provide informed teaching planning. According to the results of the present study, the criteria of a capable teacher can be evaluated for achieving effective teaching. Keywords: Capable teacher; Teaching; Student; Shahroud

Characteristics of a Capable Teacher to Teach Effectively from Students' Perspective at Shahroud University of Medical Sciences

Introduction: In addition to educational conditions and facilities, the presence of a good and capable teacher is an effective factor in improving teaching and learning processes. The present study aimed to determine the characteristics of a capable teacher from students' perspective at Shahroud University of Medical Sciences. Materials: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 289 students at Shahroud University of Medical Sciences during the academic year of 2017-2018 using a multi-stage random sampling method. Data were collected by a questionnaire containing demographic characteristics and factors affecting the evaluation of capable teachers, including six domains, namely personal characteristics (10 questions), teaching method (14 questions), evaluation and personal communication skills (10 questions), teacher's scholarship (4 questions), and educational rules (5 questions). The data were then analyzed using SPSS. Results: The maximum and minimum mean scores were related to teaching methods (61.9± 6.5) and teacher's scholarship (16± 3.1) respectively. There were significant relationships between evaluation skills and students' residences, the field of study, and six domains of teacher evaluation and academic level, and six domains of academic satisfaction, evaluation skills, and scholarship. Conclusion: From the learners' perspective, the most important characteristics of a capable teacher included the teaching method, personal communication, and personal characteristics respectively. Awareness of learners' perspectives on education can help teachers to provide informed teaching planning. According to the results of the present study, the criteria of a capable teacher can be evaluated for achieving effective teaching. Keywords: Capable teacher; Teaching; Student; Shahroud

Anticholinergic drug use in Older People: A Population- Based Study in Iran

Background: Elderly people are in need of several drugs due to physiological changes and multiple chronic diseases. Studies have shown that anticholinergic drugs can cause cognitive impairment, reduced physical activity, and increased mortality in elderly population. Paying attention to the anticholinergic medication use in older adults can prevent the occurrence of adverse events and increase the quality of health care. This study was conducted to quantify exposure to anticholinergic medicines in older people in Amirkola. Methods: This study is a part of the comprehensive cohort project that was being conducted from 2011 on the case patients of 60 years and above that referred to the Amirkola Health Center. A total of 1532 individuals were included, of whom 54.9 were men. The drug information was obtained by observing the patient’s prescription and self-report questionnaires and collected data were analyzed by SPSS software. Exposure to anticholinergic medications was measured using the drug burden index-anticholinergic (DBI-Ach) and the anticholinergic drug scale (ADS). Results: Among the 1532 elderly people with an average age of 69.21 years, 29 had DBI>0 and 36.3 had ADS>0. Also, there was a significant correlation between DBI and ADS (R=0.758). In addition, there is a significant relationship between sex variable with DBI and ADS (P=0.0001). So, women in comparison with men had higher values of DBI and ADS. Conclusion: The findings of this study indicate that anticholinergic exposure is relatively high especially in older women, which posed special precautions to avoid inappropriate prescribing in the elderly

Impacts of Mobility Models on RPL-Based Mobile IoT Infrastructures: An Evaluative Comparison and Survey

With the widespread use of IoT applications and the increasing trend in the number of connected smart devices, the concept of routing has become very challenging. In this regard, the IPv6 Routing Protocol for Low-power and Lossy Networks (PRL) was standardized to be adopted in IoT networks. Nevertheless, while mobile IoT domains have gained significant popularity in recent years, since RPL was fundamentally designed for stationary IoT applications, it could not well adjust with the dynamic fluctuations in mobile applications. While there have been a number of studies on tuning RPL for mobile IoT applications, but still there is a high demand for more efforts to reach a standard version of this protocol for such applications. Accordingly, in this survey, we try to conduct a precise and comprehensive experimental study on the impact of various mobility models on the performance of a mobility-aware RPL to help this process. In this regard, a complete and scrutinized survey of the mobility models has been presented to be able to fairly justify and compare the outcome results. A significant set of evaluations has been conducted via precise IoT simulation tools to monitor and compare the performance of the network and its IoT devices in mobile RPL-based IoT applications under the presence of different mobility models from different perspectives including power consumption, reliability, latency, and control packet overhead. This will pave the way for researchers in both academia and industry to be able to compare the impact of various mobility models on the functionality of RPL, and consequently to design and implement application-specific and even a standard version of this protocol, which is capable of being employed in mobile IoT applications

Cardioprotective Effects of Coenzyme Q10 Supplementation on Patients with ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction Undergoing Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Background: We assessed the potential efficacy of Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI). Methods: Seventy STEMI patients who presented ≤12 hours after the onset of symptoms and were scheduled for PPCI were randomly assigned to the standard treatments plus CoQ10 or placebo. In the intervention group, CoQ10, as an oral capsule at a dose of 400 mg, was loaded immediately before PPCI and continued at 200 mg twice daily for 28 days. The control group received a matching placebo, similarly. The study endpoints were the proportion of patients with complete myocardial reperfusion, defined as thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) flow and myocardial blush grade (MBG) 3 at the end of PPCI, the proportion of patients with complete ST-segment elevation resolution (≥70%) assessed 60 minutes after PPCI, the plasma levels of creatine kinase myocardial band isoenzyme (CK-MB) and troponin I (TnI) at 12, 24, 48, and 72 hours after PPCI, and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) at day 28. Results: The study groups were comparable regarding baseline clinical and procedural characteristics. The proportion of patients with TIMI flow grade 3, MBG 3, and complete ST resolution after completion of PPCI was similar between the groups. Whereas at all-time points after PPCI (12, 24, 48, and 72 hours), the plasma levels of CK-MB and TnI were significantly lower in the CoQ10 group than in the control group. Further, at day 28, CoQ10-treated patients exhibited better LVEF than placebo-treated patients, and the proportion of patients with LVEF less than 50% was lower in the intervention group than in the control group. Conclusion: Our study provided evidence that CoQ10 supplementation might reduce myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury after PPCI and help to preserve left ventricular function. However, further studies are required to validate these results

Effect of mandibular plane changes on angular measurements in Cone Beam Computed Tomography

Background: One of the most common errors in medical and dental imaging procedure is deviation from the standard position. Studies have shown that wrong positioning of the mandible during imaging by medical CT scan, can negatively affect the accuracy of linear measurements. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the effect of changes in angle of head on angular measurements obtained from Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) images of dried human skull. Methods: This analytical study was conducted in the School of Dentistry in Qazvin, 2011. Gutta percha markers were attached to three human skulls. The actual angles were recorded using the PLANMECA PROMAX VIEWER software. CBCT images were obtained in three positions: standard, 11 and 22 degrees axial deviation. Data were analyzed using T-test, ANOVA and Tukey. Findings: There were no significant differences between measurements obtained from CBCT in all three planes and direct measurements. There were no significant differences among the results of measurements in predetermined angles after changing the angle of dried skull in axial plane. There were no significant differences between direct measurements and CBCT measurements in separate analysis of determined angles in maxillae and mandible. Conclusion: With regards to the results, it seems that possible axial changes in head position have no effect on angular measurements in CBCT imaging and CBCT is reliable in angular measurements. Keywords: Cone-Beam Computed Tomography, Reproducibility of Results, Mandibl

The correlation between human papillomavirus and oral lichen planus: A systematic review of the literature

Abstract Introduction Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a chronic inflammatory disorder with cell‐induced immunopathological responses and is considered a potential malignancy disorder in the oral cavity. Due to the high prevalence of OLP as well as the potential for malignancy, human papillomaviruses (HPVs) may play an important role in it. Although previous studies have explored the possible relationship between HPV and OLP, the findings have been conflicting and nonconclusive. This study aims to review the studies that investigated HPV‐16 and HPV‐18 in OLP. Methods and Materials The research protocol followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews (PRISMA2020) checklist. The online databases Pubmed, Scopus, Embase, Google Scholar, and Cochrane were searched using the following individual keywords: “OLP” OR “Oral Lichen Planus” OR “HPV” OR “Human Papillomavirus.” The search strategy resulted in the selection of 80 articles. The articles were evaluated, and after duplication removal, 53 abstracts were reviewed, resulting in the selection of 25 studies according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. The risk of bias assessment was done by using the Modified Newcastle–Ottawa quality assessment scale. The overall prevalence of HPV in OLP lesions varied from 2.7% to 70%, depending on the type of diagnostic method used. Conclusion Despite the studies conducted on the relationship between OLP and HPV infection, there is still no conclusive evidence that HPV can play a role in the etiopathogenesis of OLP, either in clinical manifestations or in the malignant transformation of lesions

Differentiation of Human Embryonic Stem Cells into Neuron, Cholinergic, and Glial Cells

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are pluripotent cells, capable of differentiation into different cellular lineages given the opportunity. Derived from the inner cell mass of blastocysts in early embryonic development, the cell self-renewal ability makes them a great tool for regenerative medicine, and there are different protocols available for maintaining hESCs in their undifferentiated state. In addition, protocols for differentiation into functional human neural stem cells (hNSCs), which have the potential for further differentiation into various neural cell types, are available. However, many protocols are time-consuming and complex and do not always fit for purpose. In this study, we carefully combined, optimized, and developed protocols for differentiation of hESCs into adherent monolayer hNSCs over a short period of time, with the possibility of both expansion and freezing. Moreover, the method details further differentiation into neurons, cholinergic neurons, and glial cells in a simple, single step by step protocol. We performed immunocytochemistry, qPCR, and electrophysiology to examine the expression profile and characteristics of the cells to verify cell lineage. Using presented protocols, the creation of neuronal cultures, cholinergic neurons, and a mixed culture of astrocytes and oligodendrocytes can be completed within a three-week time period

MicroRNA as a potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in brain gliomas: a systematic review and meta-analysis

IntroductionBrain neoplasms and central nervous system (CNS) disorders, particularly gliomas, have shown a notable increase in incidence over the last three decades, posing significant diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have emerged as promising biomarkers due to their regulatory role in gene expression, offering potential enhancements in glioma diagnosis and prognosis.MethodsThis systematic review and meta-analysis, adhering to PRISMA guidelines, included 25 studies for diagnostic accuracy and 99 for prognostic analysis, published until August 27th, 2023. Studies were identified through comprehensive searches of PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases. Inclusion criteria encompassed peer-reviewed original research providing sensitivity, specificity, and area under the curve (AUC) for miRNAs in glioma diagnosis, as well as survival outcomes with hazard ratios (HRs) or mean survival.Results and discussionMeta-analysis demonstrated miRNAs’ high diagnostic accuracy, with a pooled sensitivity of 0.821 (95% CI: 0.781–0.855) and specificity of 0.831 (95% CI: 0.792–0.865), yielding an AUC of 0.893. Subgroup analysis by specimen type revealed consistent accuracy across blood, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and tissue samples. Our results also showed miRNAs can be potential prognostic biomarkers. miRNAs showed significant associations with overall survival (OS) (pooled HR: 2.0221; 95% CI: 1.8497–2.2105), progression-free survival (PFS) (pooled HR: 2.4248; 95% CI: 1.8888–3.1128), and disease-free survival (DFS) (pooled HR: 1.8973; 95% CI: 1.1637–3.0933) in tissue specimens. These findings underscore miRNAs’ potential as valuable biomarkers for improving glioma diagnosis and prognosis, offering insights for enhancing clinical decision-making and patient outcomes