Analysis Of The Quality Of Delivery And Students’ Engagement In Universiti Sains Malaysia-Developed Video Lectures

In an effort to transform teaching and learning in the university, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) has embarked on providing recorded video lectures on its own official Learning Management System. The measure of the Quality of Delivery of video lectures is captured by the Direct Instruction model of teaching, where the instructor acts as a content expert who directly engages the learners and at the same time manages their learning. The lecturers are evaluated by their students at the end of the semester, but there is no evaluation as to whether their lectures have followed the Direct Instruction format

The immunity status of the rural pregnant women in Chaharmahal and Bakhtyari province against Toxoplasma infection, 2001-2002

زمینه و هدف: امـروزه اهمیت اجتماعی، اقتصـادی پیامـدهای خطیـر ناشـی از وقـوع توکسـوپلاسموزیس مـادرزادی در انسان موجب گردیده تا بخش وسیعی از پژوهش ها به پیشگیری از عفونت های اولیـــه توکسوپلاسمایی در زنان بــــاردار و کاستن از خطر عـــوارض بیمـاری در جنین اختصاص یابــــد. این مطالعه با هـــدف آگاهی از وضعیت ایمنـــی زنان باردار 45-15 سالـــه ی روستایی در مقابـــل توکسوپلاسما گوندی ای (Toxoplasma gondii) انجام گرفت. روش مطالعه: در این مطالعه 394 نمونه سرمی با استفاده از آزمون ایمیونوفلورسانس غیرمستقیم Test IFAT (Indirect Immunofluorescence Antibody) مورد آزمایش قرار گرفت. نتایج: در کمتر از یک سوم از جمعیت مورد مطالعه (4/27) سطوحی از آنتی بادی های ضد توکسوپلاسمایی تام (Total Anti Toxoplasma Antibodies) یافت گردید که عیار آن بین 1600/1-50/1 متغیر بود. در این مطالعه تنها آنتی بادی یافت شده در سرم افراد مورد مطالعه از رده IgG بود. اگر چه در این مطالعه بین شیوع عفونت توکسوپلاسمایی و مصرف سبزیجات خام همبستگی آماری آشکاری اثبات گردید (05/0 P). نتیجه گیری: بنابراین تصور می گردد در این استان بخش عمده ای از زنان باردار و یا زنانی که در سنین باروری قرار دارند به علت عدم مواجهه قبلی با ارگانیسم در مقابل ابتلاء به بیماری در آبستنی های بعد حساس باشند

Microsporidium infecting Anopheles supepictus (Diptera: Culicidae) larvae

Background: Microsporidia are known to infect a wide variety of animals including mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae). In a recent study on the mosquito fauna of Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari Province, at the central western part of Iran, a few larvae of Anopheles superpictus were infected with a microsporidium-resembled microorganism. Current investigation deals with the identification of the responsible microorganism at the genus level. Methods: Fresh infected larvae were collected from the field. After determining the species identity they were dissected to extract their infective contents. Wet preparations were checked for general appearance and the size of the pathogenic microorganism. Fixed preparations were stained with Geimsa and Ryan-Blue modified Trichrome techniques to visualize further morphological characters. The obtained light microscopy data were used in the identification process. Results: The infected larvae were bulged by a whitish material filling the involved segments corresponding to a microsporidium infection. Bottle-shaped semioval spores ranged 4.33±0.19×2.67±0.12 and 4.18±0.43×2.45±0.33 micron in wet and fixed preparations, respectively. They were mostly arranged in globular structures comprised of 8 spores. These data was in favor of a species from the genus Parathelohania in the family Ambliosporidae. Conclusion: This is the first report of a microsporidium infection in An. superpictus. The causative agent is diagnosed as a member of the genus Parathelohania. Further identification down to the species level needs to determine its ultrastructural characteristics and the comparative analysis of ss rRNA sequence data. It is also necessary to understand the detail of the components of the transmission cycle

Effects of oleoylethanolamide supplementation on inflammatory biomarkers, oxidative stress and antioxidant parameters of obese patients with NAFLD on a calorie-restricted diet: A randomized controlled trial

Background: Oxidative stress is considered a major factor in the pathophysiology of non-alcoholic liver disease (NAFLD). A growing body of evidence indicates that oleoylethanolamide (OEA), a bioactive lipid mediator, has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. This trial investigated the effects of OEA administration on inflammatory markers, oxidative stress and antioxidant parameters of patients with NAFLD.Methods: The present randomized controlled trial was conducted on 60 obese patients with NAFLD. The patients were treated with OEA (250 mg/day) or placebo along with a low-calorie diet for 12 weeks. Inflammatory markers and oxidative stress and antioxidant parameters were evaluated pre-and post-intervention.Results: At the end of the study, neither the between-group changes, nor the within-group differences were significant for serum levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), IL-6, IL-10, and tumor necrosis-factor α (TNF-α). Serum levels of total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) significantly increased and serum concentrations of malondialdehyde (MDA) and oxidized-low density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) significantly decreased in the OEA group compared to placebo at study endpoint (p = 0.039, 0.018, 0.003 and 0.001, respectively). Although, no significant between-group alterations were found in glutathione peroxidase and catalase. There were significant correlations between percent of changes in serum oxidative stress and antioxidant parameters with percent of changes in some anthropometric indices in the intervention group.Conclusion: OEA supplementation could improve some oxidative stress/antioxidant biomarkers without any significant effect on inflammation in NAFLD patients. Further clinical trials with longer follow-up periods are demanded to verify profitable effects of OEA in these patients.Clinical Trial Registration:www.irct.ir, Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials IRCT20090609002017N32

Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Epileptic Children in Tehran: A Cross-Sectional Study (2009-2011)

How to Cite This Article: Tonekaboni Sh, Jafari Naeini S, Khajeh A, Yaghini O, Ghazavi A, Abdollah Gorji F. Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Epileptic Children in Tehran: A Cross-Sectional Study (2009-2011). Iran J Child Neurol. 2014 Winter; 8(1):26-31.ObjectiveAlthough the use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) has been evaluated globally, there are few studies in our country on this subject. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence, pattern of use, parental sources of information, and benefits of CAM in epileptic children in Tehran.Materials & MethodsOne hundred thirty-three parents or relatives of epileptic children who were referred to outpatient clinics or admitted in neurologic ward of four major hospitals in Tehran, were interviewed by our researcher based on a structured questionnaire; from 2009 to 2010. The information obtained comprised the demographic data of patients and their parents, frequency and morphology of convulsions, the type and sources of CAM and finally, the benefits and adverseeffects of this practice.ResultsForty-four percent of the respondents had used CAM methods either alone or in combination with other methods. The most frequently used CAM was written prayers followed by oral herbs and special diets. CAM was mainly introduced to them by relatives. Only 16.7% of these parents had discussed this matter with their children’s physicians. No efficacy to control seizure was observed for most of these methods.ConclusionThis study showed that use of CAM in our study group is relatively common and may have a potentially hazardous role in the treatment process. So, it is necessary for physicians to have enough information about CAM practice in their patients. References:National Institutes of health. More than one third of US adults use complementary and alternative medicine, according to new government survey. [Serial online] 2004 (cited 2004 May 27). Available from: http://nccam. nih.gov/news/2004/052704.htm.Traditional Medicine: The Fifty-Sixth World Health Assembly WHO, 2003. World Health Organization, 2011. Available from: http://apps.who.int/gb/archive/ pdf_files/WHA56/ea56r31.pdfMichi CA. The use of herbal remedies in Jamaica. Ann Trop Paediatr 1992;12(1):31-6.Ricotti V, Delanty N. Use of complementary and alternative medicine in epilepsy. Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep 2006;6(4):347-53.Aburahma SK, Khader YS, Alzoubi k, Sawalha N. Complemetary and alternative medicine use in a pediatric neurology clinic. Complement Ther Chin Pract 2010;16(3):117-20.Eisenberg DM, Davis RB, Ettner SL, Appel S, Wilkey S, Van Rompay M, et al. Trends in alternative medicine use in United States, 1990-1997: results of a follow-up national survey. JAMA 1998;280(18):1569-75.Khonsari A, Gorji K, Abdollahpur F, Dehestani S, Mousavi A, Delfan B et al. Study of international approaches on treatment of common diseases using different methods of complementary medicine. J Ilam Uni Med Sci 2009;4:37-45. (Full text in Persian)Kwan P, Brodie MJ. Early identification of refractory epilepsy. N Engl J Med 20003;342(5):314-9.Oshikoya KA, Senbanjo IO, Njokanma OF, Soipe A. Use of complementary and alternative medicine for children with chronic health conditions in Lagos, Nigeria. BMC Complement Altern Med 2008;8:66.Liow K, Ablah E, Nguyen JC, Sadler T, Wolfe D, Tran KD et al. Pattern and frequency of use of complementary and alternative medicine among patients with epilepsy in the mid western United States. Epilepsy Behav 2007;10(4):576-82.Tehrani Banihashemi SA, Asgharifard H, Haghdoost AA, Barghamdi M, Mohammadhosseini N. The use of complementary/ Alternative medicine among the general population in Tehran /Iran. Payesh 2008;7(4):355-62.(Full text in Persian)Ekici B, That B, Abah S, Aydinli N, Ozmen M. Application of complementary and alternative medicine in epileptic children at a tertiary pediatric neurology center in Turkey. Eur J Integr Med 2011;4:e71-5.Soo I, Mah JK, Barlow K, Hamiwka L, Wirrell E. Use of complementary and alternative medical therapies in pediatric neurology clinic. Can J Neurol Sci 2005;32(4):524-28.Cuzzolin L, Zaffani S, Murgia V, Gangemi M, Meneghelli G, Chiamenti G, et al. Patterns and perceptions of complementary/alternative medicine among paediatricians and patients’ mothers: a review of the literature. Eur J Pediatr 2003;162(12):820-7

Effects of chromium supplementation on blood pressure, body mass index, liver function enzymes and malondialdehyde in patients with type 2 diabetes:A systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Background: Several studies reported beneficial effects of chromium supplementation for management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The present study aimed to provide a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) examining the effects of chromium supplementation on blood pressure, body mass index (BMI), liver function enzymes and malondialdehyde (MDA) in patients with T2DM. Methods: PubMed, Scopus, and Embase were searched up to 15 November 2020 with no language and time restriction. RCTs that reported the effects of chromium supplementation on blood pressure, BMI, liver function enzymes and MDA in patients with T2DM were included. A random-effects model was used to compute weighted mean differences (WMDs) with 95 % confidence intervals (CIs). Between-study heterogeneity was assessed by Cochran's Q test and quantified by I2 statistic. Results: Of 3586 publications, 15 RCTs were included for the meta-analysis. Pooled effect sizes indicated that chromium significantly reduced diastolic blood pressure (DBP) (WMD): -2.36 mmHg, 95 % CI: −4.14, −0.60; P = 0.008), and MDA (WMD: −0.55 umol/l, 95 % CI: −0.96, −0.14; P = 0.008). However, chromium supplementation did not significantly affect BMI, systolic blood pressure (SBP), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST). Meta-regression analysis did not show significant linear relationship between dose of chromium and change in BMI (p = 0.412), SBP (p = 0. 319), DBP (p = 0.102), ALT (p = 0.923), AST (p = 0.986) and MDA (p = 0.055). Conclusion: The present systematic review and meta-analysis shows that supplementation with chromium at dose of 200–1000 μg/day may reduce DBP and MDA in T2DM patients

Treatment of Automatic Negative Thoughts and Non-suicidal Self-injury (NSSI) Behavior in Borderline Personality Disorder Adolescents: Dialectical Behavior Therapy

Background: About 17 to 80% of borderline personality disorder (BPD) patients suffer repeated NSSI (most frequently, cutting/burning self-injury), while 46 to 92% of BPD patients attempt suicide. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of the condensed dialectic behavior in reducing automatic negative thoughts and its positive effects on non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) behavior in borderline personality disorder (BPD). Methods: A semi-experimental study with pre-and post-tests is going on with both an experimental group and a control group. In 2019, twenty-two BPD adolescents who attended the treatment clinic) Masire Sabz), district 8, Tehran, were divided into two groups. Two questionnaires of automatic negative thoughts and non-suicidal suicide self-injury were administered before and after the intervention. This study employed SPSS 23 with Levene's test, as well as ANOVA to analyze the data. During the intervention group, twelve 90-minute sessions took place with participants in the intervention group, which followed a protocol adapted from a standard DBT protocol for BD participants in the control group waited for a treatment appointment. Results: The results showed that the scores of the intervention group significantly decreased in the Automatic negative thoughts and non-suicidal self-injury after 2 months of the intervention (Pvalue<0.001). Conclusions: It can be concluded that dialectical behavior therapy was effective on automatic negative thoughts and non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) behavior among borderline personality disorder adolescents. Keywords: Automatic negative thoughts, Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) behavior, Borderline personality disorder

Assessment of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin D and PTH levels in sera of lame horses

Abstract Background Minerals play vital roles in physiologic processes. Calcium, phosphorus and magnesium are common minerals. Secretion, absorption and homeostasis of these minerals are affected by associations between the active vitamin D and parathyroid hormone (PTH). Objective The aim of this study was to assess concentrations of vitamin D, PTH and minerals, such as calcium, phosphorus and magnesium in horse sera, as well as associations of these values with lameness in horses. In the references, the reasons for lameness can be deficiency and imbalance of minerals, and clinical observations also confirm this and there is still not enough information regarding the relationship between mineral imbalance and lameness of horses. The prominent forms of lameness include navicular syndrome, back pain, splints, ring bone, side bone, non‐infectious arthritis and bucked shins. Deficiency and inadequacy of calcium, phosphorous and magnesium have been regarded as predisposing and aggravating factors of the aforementioned diseases. Materials and methods This cross‐sectional study was carried out on 60 horses, including 30 lame and 30 healthy adult horses, summer to fall 2021. Levels of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin D and PTH were assessed in sera using automatic analyser, atomic absorption spectroscopy and commercially available kits. Results The average level of calcium was higher healthy horses than lame horses in the two seasons (p < 0.001). The average level of inorganic phosphorus in horses was higher in summer than autumn (p < 0.001). The mean magnesium concentration in healthy horses was greater than lame horses in the two seasons (p < 0.01). In this study, the mean PTH concentration in healthy horses was lower in fall than summer (p < 0.05). Conclusion The low average levels of calcium and magnesium in lame horses in the two seasons indicate critical roles of calcium and magnesium in the normal function of the horse musculoskeletal system as well as prevention of lameness

Erythema nodosum migrans successfully treated with indomethacin: A rare entity

Erythema nodosum migrans (subacute nodular migratory panniculitis) is a panniculitis characterized by migrating subcutaneous nodules or plaque on the lower extremity. We describe a 75-year-old woman with idiopathic erythema nodosum migrans which was manifest centrifugally spreading, slightly morpheaform erythematous plaque on the lower left leg successfully treated with indomethacin. She was initially diagnosed and treated as a case with cellulitis and with poor clinical response. A biopsy specimen from this lesion showed that the septal was thickening; fibrous tissue was also seen with lymphohistiocytic infiltrate and occasional multinucleated giant cells with some inflammatory cells infiltrated into the periphery of the fat lobules. Erythema nodosum migrans should be kept in mind in the differential diagnosis of any morpheaform centrifugally expended plaque, especially in the lower extremities in cases of unknown etiology