Potential role of a nutraceutical spice (<em>Allium hirtifolium</em>) in reduction of atherosclerotic plaques

Introduction: Spices are now considered as agents that not only can prevent but may even treat chronic diseases. This study was aimed to investigate the effects of Allium hirtifolium as a hypolipidemic and anti-atherosclerotic substance in hypercholesterolemic rabbits. Methods: Twenty four adult New Zealand male rabbits were divided randomly into 3 groups of 8 animals each and treated for 60 days as follows. Normal group received basal feed, while the two intervention groups were fed with hypercholesterolemic diet (1 cholesterol) and hypercholesterolemic diet plus A. hirtifolium extract, respectively. At the start and the end of the experiment, fasting blood was taken from all animals. Serum concentrations of total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), triglycerides (TG), apolipoproteins A and B, serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT), serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), glucose and insulin were measured at the end of supplementation period in all studied groups. Atherosclerotic plaque thickness of aorta to media was also determined in all groups. Results: Rabbits fed only with high cholesterol diet showed increased atherosclerotic plaque thickness to media compared to the control group, while the group fed with hypercholesterolemia diet plus A. hirtifolium extract significantly decreased atherosclerotic plaque thickness to media, TC, TG, LDL-C, and significantly increased HDL-C compared to hypercholesterolemic diet group. Supplementation with A. hirtifolium extract did not cause any significant alteration in apolipoproteins, SGOT, SGPT, hs-CRP, glucose and insulin compared to the hypercholesterolemic diet group (p&gt;0.05). Conclusion: Ethanolic extract of A. hirtifolium ameliorates fatty lesions in aorta and may reduce risk factors of cardiovascular diseases.</p

Potential role of a nutraceutical spice (Allium hirtifolium) in reduction of atherosclerotic plaques

Introduction: Spices are now considered as agents that not only can prevent but may even treat chronic diseases. This study was aimed to investigate the effects of Allium hirtifolium as a hypolipidemic and anti-atherosclerotic substance in hypercholesterolemic rabbits. Methods: Twenty four adult New Zealand male rabbits were divided randomly into 3 groups of 8 animals each and treated for 60 days as follows. Normal group received basal feed, while the two intervention groups were fed with hypercholesterolemic diet (1% cholesterol) and hypercholesterolemic diet plus A. hirtifolium extract, respectively. At the start and the end of the experiment, fasting blood was taken from all animals. Serum concentrations of total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), triglycerides (TG), apolipoproteins A and B, serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT), serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), glucose and insulin were measured at the end of supplementation period in all studied groups. Atherosclerotic plaque thickness of aorta to media was also determined in all groups. Results: Rabbits fed only with high cholesterol diet showed increased atherosclerotic plaque thickness to media compared to the control group, while the group fed with hypercholesterolemia diet plus A. hirtifolium extract significantly decreased atherosclerotic plaque thickness to media, TC, TG, LDL-C, and significantly increased HDL-C compared to hypercholesterolemic diet group. Supplementation with A. hirtifolium extract did not cause any significant alteration in apolipoproteins, SGOT, SGPT, hs-CRP, glucose and insulin compared to the hypercholesterolemic diet group (p>0.05). Conclusion: Ethanolic extract of A. hirtifolium ameliorates fatty lesions in aorta and may reduce risk factors of cardiovascular disease

Corrigendum to: “The Prevalence of Internet Addiction and Its Relations to the Self Esteem and Life Satisfaction in Students of a Medical University”

Using internet has a growing popularity, especially among students. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of internet addiction and its relationship with the level of self esteem and life satisfaction in students of lorestan university of medical sciences in Iran. A cross-sectional study, with applying stratified sampling and then multi-stage cluster sampling method was performed. The sample size was 160. Four questionnaires (Demographic characteristics, Internet Addiction Test (IAT) by Dr. Kimberly Young, Rosenberg's Self esteem Scale and Diener’s Life Satisfaction Scale) were used to collect data, the software spss 16 was used for data analysis. Prevalence of internet addiction was 10%, and this problem was more prevalent in male students (P˂0.05). Moreover, there was a significant and adverse relation between internet addiction score and self esteem score (P=0.015), and life satisfaction score (P=0.012). There was a significant and direct relationship between life satisfaction and self esteem (P=0.001). Young people should be encouraged to use the internet as a more useful and efficient tool and become aware of the internet and its harmful effects.

Participation of librarians in online social networks to provide services during the covid-19 pandemic (case study: librarians of tehran public libraries)

Purpose: The present study was conducted with the aim of determining the level of participation of public library librarians in Tehran in online social networks to provide services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: This research is applied in terms of purpose and was conducted using a survey method. The research population at the time of the research (July and August 2023) included all the librarians of public libraries in Tehran (152 people) from whom a sample of 109 people was selected according to Morgan’s table, and 105 questionnaires were analyzed in the final analysis. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire. Data analysis was done at two levels of descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS (version 26). In order to check the average difference between the main research variables, one-way analysis of variance parametric test was used. Findings: The results showed that the librarians had the greatest knowledge about "Bale" messenger and the lowest knowledge about "SoroushPlus". The level of knowledge of librarians regarding social networking tools and the level of influence of the organization on their knowledge of tools has been lower than the average level. The level of necessity and acceptance of social networking tools is "high" and the level of use of these tools by librarians is "moderate". There was a significant difference between the average opinions of librarians about knowledge and acceptance as well as acceptance and use of these networks, while no significant difference was observed between the average opinions of participants about the two variables of knowledge and use of online social networks. Originality/value: Although according to the results of this research, the level of influence of the organization in the librarians’ knowledge of social networking tools is reported to be lower than average, and the level of influence of the organization in the knowledge of content production tools in these sites is reported to be small, the role of the organization in the librarians’ knowledge cannot be ignored. Therefore, the results of this research, by determining the attitude of the research population towards social networking sites, the extent of acceptance and use of these sites by them and identifying the weaknesses and strengths of public libraries in using social networking sites, can be applied by managers and planners of public libraries in order to provide a suitable platform for using the social networking sites, remove barriers to using them, and improve information service

Epidemiological Features of Injured Patients Examined by Tehran Emergency Medical Service Technicians

Introduction: Knowledge of epidemiological aspects can be a useful guide in determining the resources for better prevention and management of injuries. There are some performed studies on this topic in Iran, based on the limited hospital database. However, to the best of our knowledge, there is not any survey based on the pre-hospital database.&nbsp;Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess baseline characteristics of the traumatic patients according to the records of Tehran Emergency Medical Service (EMS) Center to present descriptive statistics of their epidemiological features.&nbsp;Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted retrospectively, using Tehran EMS center data registry. All traumatic patients examined by EMS in Tehran, Iran following call to emergency medical dispatcher were included. By reviewing the EMS technicians’ mission forms, required data were extracted. The mission form contains information such as age, sex, injured location, damage mechanism, accident location (home, workplace, street), time of call, the outcome of the patient's ambulance mission and the results of the assessment of the technician, etc.&nbsp;Results: Totally, 56612 injured cases with the mean age of 33.1±15.6 years were examined by EMS during one-year study period of whom 80.4% were male. Crude Incidence Rate was 10.5 and 2.5 per 1000 in male and female, respectively. Traffic accident and then fall were the two most prevalent mechanism of injuries. All types of &nbsp;injuries were significantly more prevalent in males (P&lt;0.001). Most injuries were in winter season with 15570 cases (27.5%). Car accident was prevalent in winter and other injuries were significantly prevalent in spring (P&lt;0.001). The most frequent places of injuries occurred on main roads and streets (55.7%). All of the road-related injuries was prevalent in winter, whereas injuries in other places were prevalent in spring (P&lt;0.001). Most of the cases (78.3%) were transferred to the health centers, but 20.7% did not consent to treatment and transmission. Only 222 cases (0.4%) died, that 95% was due to traffic accident. there was a significant relationship between the number of injured organs and the death; So that the highest death rate occurred for those with more than 5 injured organs (P &lt;0.001).&nbsp;Conclusion: Based on the findings, traffic accident was the most frequent cause of trauma that led to visiting a traumatic patient by an EMS technician in Tehran, Iran. Injuries in all age groups were more prevalent in males, and the involvement of 5 or more injured organ had a significant relationship with mortality

A cost utility and cost effectiveness analysis of different oral antiviral medications in patients with HBeAg-Negative chronic hepatitis B in Iran: an economic microsimulation decision model

Background: Although hepatitis B infection is the major cause of chronic liver disease in Iran, no studies have employed economic evaluations of the medications used to treat Iranian patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). Therefore, the cost-effectiveness of the different treatment options for this disease in Iran is unknown. Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare the cost utility and cost-effectiveness of medication strategies tailored to local conditions in patients with HB e antigen (HBeAg)-negative CHB infection in Iran. Methods: An economic evaluation of the cost utility of the following five oral medication strategies was conducted: adefovir (ADV), lamivudine (LAM), ADV + LAM, entecavir (ETV), and tenofovir (TDF). A Markov microsimulation model was used to estimate the clinical and economic outcomes over the course of the patient’s lifetime and based on a societal perspective. Medical and nonmedical direct costs and indirect costs were included in the study and life-years gained (LYG) and quality-adjusted life-years (QALY) were determined as measures of effectiveness. The results are presented in terms of the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) per QALY or LYG. The model consisted of nine stages of the disease. The transition probabilities for the movement between the different stages were based on clinical evidence and international expert opinion. A probabilistic sensitivity analysis (PSA) was used to measure the effects of uncertainty in the model parameters. Results: The results revealed that the TDF treatment strategy was more effective and less costly than the other options. In addition, TDF had the highest QALY and LYG in the HBeAg-negative CHB patients, with 13.58 and 21.26 (discounted) in all comparisons. The PSA proved the robustness of the model results. The cost-effectiveness acceptability curves showed that TDF was the most cost-effective treatment in 59% - 78% of the simulations of HBeAg-negative patients, with WTP thresholds less than $14010 (maximum WTP per QALY). Conclusions: The use of TDF in patients with HBeAg-negative CHB seemed to be a highly cost-effective strategy. Compared with the other available medication options, TDF was the most cost-saving strategy. Thus, TDF may be the best option as a first-line medication. Patients can also be switched from other medications to TDF

第711回 千葉医学会例会・第20回 佐藤外科例会 32.

<p>It obtained by maximum likelihood method using HKY+<i>Г</i>+I as nucleotides' substitution model. Triangleshows the position of cluster C which is detailed in (A). See <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0162492#pone.0162492.g001" target="_blank">Fig 1</a> legend for more details.</p