Influence of core stability exercise on lumbar vertebral instability in patients presented with chronic low back pain: A randomized clinical trial

Background: Excessive lumbar vertebrae translation and rotation in sagittal plane has been attributed as an associated factor of lumbar segmental instability (LSI) and low back pain (LBP). Reduction of these abnormalities improves back pain. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of core stability exercise on the translation and rotation of lumbar vertebrae in sagittal plane in patients with nonspecific chronic LBP (NSCLBP). Methods: In this randomized clinical trial, 30 patients with NSCLBP due to LSI were included. The participants were randomly divided into two groups of treatment and control. The treatment group received general exercises plus core stability exercise for 8 weeks whereas; the control group received only general exercises. The magnitude of translation (mm) and rotation (deg) of lumbar vertebrae in the sagittal plane was determined by radiography in flexion and extension at baseline and after intervention. The primary outcome measures were to determine the mean changes from baseline in translation and rotation of the lumbar vertebrae in the sagittal plane after 8 weeks of intervention in each group. The secondary outcome was to compare the two groups in regard to translation and rotation of the lumbar vertebrae at the end of the study period. Data were analyzed using paired t-test and independent t-test. Results: Thirty patients aged 18-40 years old with clinical diagnosis of NSCLBP entered the study. Compared with baseline values, mean value of translation and rotation of the lumbar vertebra reduced significantly in both groups (P<0.05), except L3 translation in the control group. At the endpoint, mean translation value of L4 (P=0.04) and L5 (P=0.001) and rotation of the L5 (P=0.01) in the treatment group was significantly lower than the control group. Conclusion: These findings indicate that in patients presented with NSCLBP due to lumbar segmental instability, core stability exercises plus general exercises are more efficient than general exercises alone in the improvement of excessive lumbar vertebrae translation and rotation

Grouping bread wheat genotypes and lines based on some morphological traits using multivariate analysis

The knowledge about the extent of variability among bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) genotypes is a high value for the genetic improvement programs and the efficient genetic diversity utilization of plant materials. The objective of this research was to assess the morphological characteristics of 56 common wheat genotypes which were planted under field condition and their morphological traits were recorded. The principal components (PC) analysis, factor analysis and clustering procedure were applied to group genotypes according to similarity on the basis of the measured traits. Results showed that the first two PCs explain 41% of the total variation. The PC and factor analyses grouped genotypes into four groups while the cluster analysis grouped them into five distinct clusters. The cluster I had good resistance to yellow rust and salinity while the cluster II, had good resistance to drought, cold and salinity. The cluster III had high tolerance to cold stress and low temperatures but the cluster IV had good tolerance to drought, brown rust and yellow rust. Also, cluster V had various properties including tolerance abiotic stresses, resistance to biotic stresses, resistant to lodging and semi-dwarf property. The results of this research will support efforts of conservation and utilization of genotypes in bread wheat breeding programs

The Assessment of Sleep and Wake State of Premature Infants Hospitalized in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and It\'s Relation with Demographic Variables

Introduction: The correct development of sleep and wake immature states of premature infant has important role in maturation of brain but often, healthcare personnel neglect from this dimension of development and there are limited data about sleep and wake states of premature infant hospitalized in NICU. The aim of this study was to assessing the states of sleep and wake of premature infant and its relation with demographic variables. Materials & Methods:. In a descriptive-analytical study, 70 premature infant hospitalized in NICU constantly were selected based on the needed criteria. The sleep and wake state of infants were recorded with use of behavioral sleep and wake scale of Als. Scale validity was performed using its content analysis, translation, and reliability by Pearson coefficient. Results: The results showed that infants in sleep state had maximum rate of light sleep 3.65&plusmn;3.27 and minimum rate of deep sleep 0.24&plusmn;1.05 and in wake state had maximum rate of active awake 1.90&plusmn;2.09 and minimum rate of quietly awake 0.18&plusmn;0.68. Also Infants had states with stress 7.75&plusmn;1.96 more than states without stress 3.65&plusmn;3.27. Regression analysis showed no significant relation between gestational age and weight of infants with deep sleep and quietly awake. Conclusion: In this study premature infant were mostly in undesirable states of sleep and wake that this may lead to growing and developmental disorders of brain

Assessment of drought tolerance indices in bread wheat genotypes under different sowing dates

The capability of a genotype to achieve acceptable yield over a broad range of sub-optimum and suitable conditions is extremely imperative. Late planting and end-season drought stress are two main factors limiting wheat yield in northwest of Iran. In a 2-year field experiment at Miandoab, Iran, the ability of several selection indices to identify drought resistant genotypes under different sowing dates and moisture conditions were evaluated. Six genotypes of differing response to water scarcity were planted at 20-d intervals on three dates from 11 October to 20 November. Drought resistance indices were utilized on the basis of grain yield under end-season drought (Ys) and normal (YN) conditions. Evaluation of MP, HARM, GM, STI, TOL, SSI, RDI, YSI and Yr indicated that late sowing (20 Nov) significantly decreased drought tolerance in all investigated genotypes. However, yield comparisons under normal and terminal drought stress conditions revealed that promising lines (C-81-4, C-81- 10, C-81-14 and C-82-12) had better performance than local checks (Zarrin and Alvand). Furthermore under both moisture conditions C-81-10 genotype had the greatest grain yield. Based on drought indices like as MP, GMP, STI and HARM C-81-10 genotype introduced as the most tolerant genotype to end-season drought stress. Grain yield showed a positive and significant correlation with HARM, GMP, MP, STI and YI indices were more efficient for recognizing high performance genotypes under different sowing dates and diverse moisture stress

The Rate of Surgical Site Infection and Associated Factors in Patients Undergoing Orthopedic Surgeries in Babol, Northern

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The surgical site infection is one of the most common complications after orthopedic surgeries, which is associated with significant complications and mortality. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence rate of SSI and the associated factors in traumatic patients. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 516 patients with hip and knee trauma and femoral fracture who underwent orthopedic surgeries in Shahid Beheshti Hospital in Babol during a five-year period. The demographic and surgical information were collected and then analyzed. FINDINGS: SSI was observed in 88 patients (17.1%). The mean age in the infected and non-infected patients was 43.11±19.08 and 39.22±9.54 years old, respectively (p=0.014). The duration of hospitalization was 17.59±6.23 days in the infected group and 13.08±5.77 days in the non-infected group (p<0.001). Duration of surgery in the infected and non-infected subjects was 2.42±1.62 and 2.11±1.23 hours (p=0.043). The patients underwent general anesthesia were infected more than those underwent spinal anesthesia (23% vs. 12.9%, p=0.003). Emergency surgery was negatively associated with the infection (CI-95%= 0.05-0.85 OR=0/20). Also, patients with diabetes had more infection rate (22.4%) than non-diabetic patients (14.3%) (p=0.021). CONCLUSION: According to results, the prevalence rate of SSI was considerable in this study. Age, durations of hospitalization and surgery, type of anesthesia (general), history of diabetes and smoking were determined as risk factors for SSI