Spatial analysis of breast cancer incidence in Iran

Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer in females (27 of the total) and the main cause of death (16) due to cancer in women in developed and developing countries. Variations in its incidence rate among geographical areas are due to various contributing factors. Since there have been a lack of studies on this topic in our country, the present spatial analysis of breast cancer incidence in Iran in 2009 was conducted using data from the national cancer registry system. The reported incidences of the disease were standardized according to the World Health Organization population and the direct method. Then data was inserted into the GIS software and finally, using the Hot Spot Analysis (Geties-Ord Gi), high-risk areas were drawn. Provinces with incidences 1.96 SD higher or lower than the national average were considered as hot spots or cold spots, at the significance level of 0.05. In 2009, a total of 7,582 cases of BC occurred in Iran. The annual incidence was 33.2 per hundred thousand people. Our study showed that the highest incidence of BC in women occurred in the central provinces of the country, Tehran, Isfahan, Yazd, Markazi and Fars. The results of hot spots analysis showed that the distribution of high-risk BC was focused in central parts of Iran, especially Isfahan province (p < 0.01). The other provinces were not significantly different from the national average. The higher incidence in central provinces may be due to greater exposure to carcinogens in urban areas, a Western lifestyle and high prevalence of other risk factors. Further epidemiological studies about the etiology and early detection of BC are essential. © 2016, Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention

Note on the single-shock solutions of the Korteweg-de Vries-Burgers equation

The well-known shock solutions of the Korteweg-de Vries-Burgers equation are revisited, together with their limitations in the context of plasma (astro)physical applications. Although available in the literature for a long time, it seems to have been forgotten in recent papers that such shocks are monotonic and unique, for a given plasma configuration, and cannot show oscillatory or bell-shaped features. This uniqueness is contrasted to solitary wave solutions of the two parent equations (Korteweg-de Vries and Burgers), which form a family of curves parameterized by the excess velocity over the linear phase speed.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Scienc

Spatial analysis of skin cancer incidence in Iran

Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide, including in Iran. Variations in its incidence rate among geographical areas are due to various contributing factors. Since there has been a lack of studies on this topic in our country, the present spatial analysis of skin cancer incidence in Iran in 2009 was conducted using data from the cancer registry system for the country. The reported incidences of the disease were standardized on the basis of the World Health Organization population and the direct method. Then the data were inserted into the GIS software, and finally, using the analysis of hot spots (Getis-Ord Gi), high-risk areas were drawn. Provinces that were 1.9 SD higher or lower than the national average were considered hot spots or cold spots, with significance at the level of 0.05. In 2009, a total of 9,964 cases of skin cancer occurred, 3,696 in women and 6,268 in men (standardized incidence rates of 15.8 and 22.6, respectively). The results of the study showed that in men and women, the disease demonstrated high incidence in the central provinces and desert regions. In women, Yazd Province and in men, Qom Province had significant hot spots (p < 0.05). While Isfahan, Markazi, Tehran and Kurdistan provinces were expected to be hot spots, the differences from the national average were not significant at the 0.05 level. As well, the provinces of Sistan Va Baluchistan, Kerman, and Hormozgan were identified as cold or low-risk disease regions (p < 0.05). The central provinces of the country due to hot weather conditions, more solar radiation, and closer vicinity to the central desert of Iran demonstrated higher incidence rates for skin cancer, so further epidemiological studies into the etiology and early detection are essential in these areas. © 2016, Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention

The status of Iran measles surveillance system in 2014

The results showed success of the health system to detect suspected cases of the measles and appropriate sampling from suspected cases that were more than expected. In addition, per every one million population of Iran in 2014, 1.27 of cases of measles were reported; that a numbers of confirmed cases observed in Afghan refugees. Low levels of immunization coverage in eastern neighboring countries and high immigration to Iran, are the main challenge of measles elimination in Iran. The gradual accumulation of susceptible individuals, due to lack of proper vaccination or failure to respond to immunization, may underlie the development of outbreaks of measles in Iran. © 2015, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved

Spatial analysis of colorectal cancer in Iran

Colorectal cancer is one of the most common cancers. Due to demographic changes, it is predicted that the incidence of this cancer will increase. Variations of its incidence rate among geographical areas are due to various contributing factors. Since there have been a lack of studies on this topic in our country, the present assessment of spatial patterns of colorectal cancer incidence in Iran was performed. In this ecological study, the new cases of colon cancer were extracted from Cancer Registry Center report of the Health Deputy of Iran in 2009. The reported incidences of the disease were standardized on the basis of the World Health Organization population and the direct method. Then the data were inserted into the GIS software, and finally, using the analysis of hot spots (Getis-Ord Gi) high-risk areas were drawn. Provinces that are higher or lower than the national average (1.9 SD) were considered hot spots or cold spots, significant at the level of 0.05. A total of 6,210 cases of colorectal cancer were registered in Iran in 2009, of which 3,727 were in men and 2,783 in women (age-standardized rates of 11.3 and 10.9 per 100,000 population, respectively). The results showed that in central and northern Iran including Isfahan, Qom, Tehran, Qazvin and Mazandaran significant hot spots in men were present (p < 0.05). In women also we have high incidence in northern and central states: Mazandaran province (p < 0.01) and the province of Tehran (p < 0.05) had higher incidences than the national average and were apparent as significant hot spots. Analysis of the spatial distribution of colorectal cancer showed significant differences between different areas pointing to the necessity for further epidemiological studies into the etiology and early detection. © 2016, Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention

Epidemiology, incidence and mortality of bladder cancer and their relationship with the development index in the world

Background: Bladder cancer is an international public health problem. It is the ninth most common cancer and the fourteenth leading cause of death due to cancer worldwide. Given aging populations, the incidence of this cancer is rising. Information on the incidence and mortality of the disease, and their relationship with level of economic development is essential for better planning. The aim of the study was to investigate bladder cancer incidence and mortality rates, and their relationship with the the Human Development Index (HDI) in the world. Materials and Methods: Data were obtained from incidence and mortality rates presented by GLOBOCAN in 2012. Data on HDI and its components were extracted from the global bank site. The number and standardized incidence and mortality rates were reported by regions and the distribution of the disease were drawn in the world. For data analysis, the relationship between incidence and death rates, and HDI and its components was measured using correlation coefficients and SPSS software. The level of significance was set at 0.05. Results: In 2012, 429,793 bladder cancer cases and 165,084 bladder death cases occurred in the world. Five countries that had the highest age-standardized incidence were Belgium 17.5 per 100,000, Lebanon 16.6/100,000, Malta 15.8/100,000, Turkey 15.2/100,000, and Denmark 14.4/100,000. Five countries that had the highest age-standardized death rates were Turkey 6.6 per 100,000, Egypt 6.5/100,000, Iraq 6.3/100,000, Lebanon 6.3/100,000, and Mali 5.2/100,000. There was a positive linear relationship between the standardized incidence rate and HDI (r=0.653, P<0.001), so that there was a positive correlation between the standardized incidence rate with life expectancy at birth, average years of schooling, and the level of income per person of population. A positive linear relationship was also noted between the standardized mortality rate and HDI (r=0.308, P<0.001). There was a positive correlation between the standardized mortality rate with life expectancy at birth, average years of schooling, and the level of income per person of population. Conclusions: The incidence of bladder cancer in developed countries and parts of Africa was higher, while the highest mortality rate was observed in the countries of North Africa and the Middle East. The program for better treatment in developing countries to reduce mortality from the cancer and more detaiuled studies on the etiology of are essential

Whipple procedure: A review of a 7-year clinical experience in a referral center for hepatobiliary and pancreas diseases

Background: Pancreatic cancer is generally found in the older population Pancreaticoduodenectomy seems to be the only way in resolving these resectable tumors. Allen. O Whipple was the first to describe pancreaticoduodenectomy in 1935 as a modified procedure. This article is a case series with respect to the 7-year experience of the Whipple procedure in Firoozgar Teaching Hospital. Methods: Patient surgery details were gathered from the surgical records of the operating room and their clinical records from the hospital archives. Data was analyzed with SPSS software (version 16.0.1). Those patients, whose tumor had invaded the superior mesenteric artery, had extensive portal vein involvement or distant metastasis was considered as unresectable. Results: The first Whipple procedure was recorded in our hospital in 2008. From 2008 till 20 March 2014, 70 cases were collected and analyzed. The mean age of cases was 58.4 years, the mean hospital stay length was 12.9 days (�±6.23 days), mean operation time was 376 min (�±37.3 min),. The most common presenting symptom was jaundice (78.6 ). Delayed gastric emptying was the most common post-operative complication. The most prevalent cause of reoperation was intra-abdominal abscess. Major morbidities of these patients consisted of cardiac arrhythmias (21.4) and pneumonia (10). Minor complications were wound infection (17.1) and delayed gastric emptying (32.9). The statistics revealed pancreatic anastomosis failure as 2.9 and a decrease in mortality rate from 50 during the first years of this study to 16 to 20 during the last years. Conclusions: In this case series, the time of operation decreased during the recent years .Analysis shows a correlation between operation time and pack cell transfused during the operation, but no correlation was found between operation time and post-operation hospitalization course. It is true that hospital setting, socioeconomic level of the patients including their compliance, and the expertise of the surgeons and surgical staff can have an influence on the result of this operation, but it seems that the magnitude of the surgical stress of this procedure and the (compromised) functional reserve of this patient population can be a notable factor influencing the outcome. �© 2015 Saraee et al

Prevalence of refractive errors in Iranian university students in Kazerun

Purpose: To determine the prevalence of refractive errors and visual impairment and the correlation between personal characteristics, including age, sex, weight, and height, with different types of refractive errors in a population of university students in the south of Iran. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a number of university majors were selected as clusters using multi-stage sampling in all universities located in Kazerun (27 clusters of 133 clusters). Then, proportional to size, a number of students in each major were randomly selected to participate in the study. Uncorrected and corrected visual acuity, non-cycloplegic objective refraction and subjective refraction were measured in all participants. Results: The prevalence and 95 confidence interval (CI) of presenting visual impairment and blindness was 2.19 (1.48-3.23) and 0.27 (0.12-0.62), respectively. Refractive errors comprised 75 of the causes of visual impairment. The prevalence (95 CI) of myopia spherical equivalent (SE) = 0.5 D), and astigmatism (cylinder power = 30 years was 0.21 (95% CI: 0.04-0.98). Conclusions: The prevalence of refractive errors, especially myopia, is higher in university students than the general population. Since refractive errors constitute a major part of visual impairment, university students should receive special services for providing corrective lenses and glasses to reduce the burden of these disorders