Effect of fluoxetine on food intake and feeding behavior of goldfish Carassius auratus

Serotonin is one of the monoamines that play an important role in food intake in mammalian species. The increase in serotonergic activity may reduce appetite. Fluoxetine as an active ingredient of Prozac is increased in serotonin content by blocking reuptake of it. Due to the release of these substances into the ecosystem, the role of fluoxetine on food intake and feed behavior of goldfish, Carassius auratus was investigated. In experiment 1, fish with 21-49 g weight divided in four groups of control: with no injection; saline injected; and two groups with 1 µg g-1 and 10 µg g-1 body weight fluoxetine. Animals were injected every other day for a total of 5 injections. Food intake calculated after each injection and fish reweighted at the end of the experiment to achieved weight changes. In experiment 2, 20 goldfish were selected in two groups of control and injected with 10 µg g-1 body weight fluoxetine to asses feed behavior test. Fish were injected every other day for a total of 5 injections and feed behavior was investigated after each injection. Food intake was significantly decreased after fluoxetine injections. In the Flu-10 group, low intake of food resulted in minimum weight gain among all treatments. Also, fluoxetine affected the feed behavior of goldfish and significantly was decreased in search and consumption of food. Results showed that this recently toxic environmental material can largely affect the food and weight parameters of goldfish

Effect of Intradialytic Exercise on Echocardiographic Findings in Hemodialysis Patients

Introduction. Cardiovascular disease is the major cause of death in hemodialysis patients. Regular aerobic or intradialytic exercise may play a role in reducing cardiovascular mortality in these patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between intradialytic exercise and echocardiographic findings. Methods and Materials. Forty patients were enrolled in the study from Shahrekord Hemodialysis Center. They were randomly assigned into the exercise and control groups. In the exercise group, the patients had a 30-minute exercise program per dialysis session, 3 times a week, for 3 months. Electrocardiography and echocardiography were done at the beginning of the study and 3 months later. Results. The mean age and body mass index of the patients were 43.2 +/- 10.5 years and 21.7 +/- 5.4 kg/m(2), respectively. Left ventricular ejection fraction increased and systolic pulmonary artery pressure and right ventricular size decreased significantly after the study in the exercise group patients. Conclusions. Our results showed the improvement of cardiac systolic and diastolic function in patients who had physical exercise during dialysis sessions. Regular intradialysis exercise can be suggested for hemodialysis patients without cardiac disease

Plasma homocysteine concentrations in young patients with acute myocardial infarction

INTRODUCTION: Most studies indicate that increased plasma homocysteine level is a risk factor for coronary artery disease. However, data concerning the role of homocysteine in young patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is scanty. The aim of this study was to study the possible association between homocysteine plasma levels and early-onset AMI. METHODS: This case-control study included 83 AMI patients and 83 healthy controls. Biochemical parameters were determined and homocysteine was measured by enzyme immunoassay. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to test the association of homocysteine with the occurrence of AMI. RESULTS: Homocysteine concentration in patients with AMI was higher than in controls (19.54±13.3 and 15.54±8.9 µmol/l, respectively, P=0.002). Hyperhomocysteinemia was associated with early myocardial infarction (odds ratio=5.05). Hypercholesterolemia (OR=4/21), opium addiction (OR=4/78) and age (OR=1/24) also had associations with AMI. CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed that homocysteine levels are elevated in young patients with AMI, and hyperhomocysteinemia is associated with early myocardial infarction; hence it should be evaluated in all young patients with AMI. © 2007, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved

A Study of Life Skill Components in Clients Referred to Health and Counseling Centers

Background: Life skills include a set of abilities to increase the power of adaptability and positive behavior. The objective of this study was to determine the distribution of ten life skill components and their related factors among individuals referring to veterans' health and counseling centers in the city of Tehran. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among participants over the age of 20. The sample size was estimated based on the Morgan table and Cochran sampling formula. The present study utilized the shortened life skills scale including 10 subscales.  Data were analyzed using statistical t-test, Pearson correlation, and one-way analysis of variance. Results: The total mean of life skills was significantly higher among women (P value=0.01). Age had a significant direct correlation with total life skills (r=0.19). There were significant differences between the three educational levels in 8 out of 10 components. The decision-making power had a significant correlation with "problem solving" and "creative thinking". "Critical thinking" had a high correlation with "effective communication", "coping with stress" and "attracting social support". "Coping with emotion" had a direct and high correlation with "coping with stress" and "self-awareness" but its correlation was reversed with "creative thinking". Conclusions: The mean score of life skills among clients of veteran`s health and counseling centers was slightly higher than the average population; while the rate of enjoyment of life skills was different in this subpopulation. The results implicate an urgent need to improve life skills, especially for highly educated people. Keywords:  Life skills, Veterans, Cross-sectional study, Iran

Factors influencing nurses' acceptance of hospital information systems in Iran: application of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology

Abstract User acceptance is a precondition for successful implementation of hospital information systems (HISs). Increasing investment in information technology by healthcare organisations internationally has made user acceptance an important issue in technology implementation and management. Despite the increased focus on hospital information systems, there continues to be user resistance. The present study aimed to investigate the factors affecting hospital information systems nurse-user acceptance of HISs, based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), in the Shiraz University of Medical Sciences teaching hospitals. A descriptive-analytical research design was employed to study nurses' adoption and use of HISs. Data collection was undertaken using a cross-sectional survey of nurses (n=303). The research model was examined using the LISREL path confirmatory modeling. The results demonstrated that the nurses' behavioural intention (BI) to use hospital information systems was predicted by Performance Expectancy (PE) (β= 2.34, p<0.01), Effort Expectancy (EE) (β= 2.21, p<0.01), Social Influence (SI) (β= 2.63, p<0.01) and Facilitating Conditions (FC) (β= 2.84, p<0.01). The effects of these antecedents of BI explained 72.8% of the variance in nurses' intention to use hospital information systems (R 2 = 0.728). Application of the research model suggested that nurses' acceptance of HISs was influenced by performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence and facilitating conditions, with performance expectancy having the strongest effect on user intention

A Study of Life Skill Components in Clients Referred to Health and Counseling Centers

Background: Life skills include a set of abilities to increase the power of adaptability and positive behavior. The objective of this study was to determine the distribution of ten life skill components and their related factors among individuals referring to veterans' health and counseling centers in the city of Tehran. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among participants over the age of 20. The sample size was estimated based on the Morgan table and Cochran sampling formula. The present study utilized the shortened life skills scale including 10 subscales.  Data were analyzed using statistical t-test, Pearson correlation, and one-way analysis of variance. Results: The total mean of life skills was significantly higher among women (P value=0.01). Age had a significant direct correlation with total life skills (r=0.19). There were significant differences between the three educational levels in 8 out of 10 components. The decision-making power had a significant correlation with "problem solving" and "creative thinking". "Critical thinking" had a high correlation with "effective communication", "coping with stress" and "attracting social support". "Coping with emotion" had a direct and high correlation with "coping with stress" and "self-awareness" but its correlation was reversed with "creative thinking". Conclusions: The mean score of life skills among clients of veteran`s health and counseling centers was slightly higher than the average population; while the rate of enjoyment of life skills was different in this subpopulation. The results implicate an urgent need to improve life skills, especially for highly educated people. Keywords:  Life skills, Veterans, Cross-sectional study, Iran

Additive Manufacturing of Binary Ni–Ti Shape Memory Alloys Using Electron Beam Powder Bed Fusion: Functional Reversibility Through Minor Alloy Modification and Carbide Formation

Shape memory alloys (SMAs), such as Ni–Ti, are promising candidates for actuation and damping applications. Although processing of Ni–Ti bulk materials is challenging, well-established processing routes (i.e. casting, forging, wire drawing, laser cutting) enabled application in several niche applications, e.g. in the medical sector. Additive manufacturing, also referred to as 4D-printing in this case, is known to be highly interesting for the fabrication of SMAs in order to produce near-net-shaped actuators and dampers. The present study investigated the impact of electron beam powder bed fusion (PBF-EB/M) on the functional properties of C-rich Ni50.9Ti49.1 alloy. The results revealed a significant loss of Ni during PBF-EB/M processing. Process microstructure property relationships are discussed in view of the applied master alloy and powder processing route, i.e. vacuum induction-melting inert gas atomization (VIGA). Relatively high amounts of TiC, being already present in the master alloy and powder feedstock, are finely dispersed in the matrix upon PBF-EB/M. This leads to a local change in the chemical composition (depletion of Ti) and a pronounced shift of the transformation temperatures. Despite the high TiC content, superelastic testing revealed a good shape recovery and, thus, a negligible degradation in both, the as-built and the heat-treated state

Numerical study of nano-biofilm stagnation flow from a nonlinear stretching/shrinking surface with variable nanofluid and bioconvection transport properties

A mathematical model is developed for stagnation point flow toward a stretching or shrinking sheet of liquid nano-biofilm containing spherical nano-particles and bioconvecting gyrotactic micro-organisms. Variable transport properties of the liquid (viscosity, thermal conductivity, nano-particle species diffusivity) and micro-organisms (species diffusivity) are considered. Buongiorno’s two-component nanoscale model is deployed and spherical nanoparticles in a dilute nanofluid considered. Using a similarity transformation, the nonlinear systems of partial differential equations is converted into nonlinear ordinary differential equations. These resulting equations are solved numerically using a central space finite difference method in the CodeBlocks Fortran platform. Graphical plots for the distribution of reduced skin friction coefficient, reduced Nusselt number, reduced Sherwood number and the reduced local density of the motile microorganisms as well as the velocity, temperature, nanoparticle volume fraction and the density of motile microorganisms are presented for the influence of wall velocity power-law index (m), viscosity parameter (c2), thermal conductivity parameter (c4), nano-particle mass diffusivity (c6), micro-organism species diffusivity (c8), thermophoresis parameter (Nt), Brownian motion parameter (Nb), Lewis number (Le), bioconvection Schmidt number (Sc), bioconvection constant (σ) and bioconvection Péclet number (Pe). Validation of the solutions via comparison related to previous simpler models is included. Further verification of the general model is conducted with the Adomian decomposition method (ADM). Extensive interpretation of the physics is included. Skin friction is elevated with viscosity parameter (c2) whereas it is suppressed with greater Lewis number and thermophoresis parameter. Temperatures are elevated with increasing thermal conductivity parameter (c4) whereas Nusselt numbers are reduced. Nano-particle volume fraction (concentration) is enhanced with increasing nano-particle mass diffusivity parameter (c6) whereas it is markedly reduced with greater Lewis number (Le) and Brownian motion parameter (Nb). With increasing stretching/shrinking velocity power-law exponent (m), skin friction is decreased whereas Nusselt number and Sherwood number are both elevated. Motile microorganism density is boosted strongly with increasing micro-organism diffusivity parameter (c8) and Brownian motion parameter (Nb) but reduced considerably with greater bioconvection Schmidt number (Sc) and bioconvection Péclet number (Pe). The simulations find applications in deposition processes in nano-bio-coating manufacturing processes