Lifestyle Methods for Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease From the Perspective of Traditional Persian Medicine

Alzheimer’s disease is considered as a major problem for society health since it affects interpersonal and social relationships. With regard to the global attention toward complementary medicine, search for preventive, diagnostic, and treatment strategies in complementary medicine schools such as the old dynamic doctrine of traditional Persian medicine seems to be necessary. In this type of medicine, description and analysis of the disease and preventive and treatment methods have great importance. The present study provides a useful classification of recommendations for prevention and control of Alzheimer’s disease. Prevention is prior to the treatment and is easier and less costly. Recommendations mentioned in traditional Persian medicine texts for prevention of Alzheimer’s disease provide fields of clinical and complementary studies for researches

Physiopathology of Dementia From the Perspective of Traditional Persian Medicine

The most common cognitive disorder that is disabling is dementia. During the medieval period, traditional Persian medicine was an outstanding source of medicine that was used as standard references in medical schools of in the West and Middle East. In ancient manuscripts of traditional Persian medicine, a condition has been introduced similar to dementi (raoonat and homgh). In this article, by collecting materials of traditional medicine texts on dementia, we aim to provide theories for further studies on this topics, as there is an obvious difference between traditional Persian medicine and modern medicine with regard to dementia; however, since modern medicine has not found a suitable response to treatment for all diseases, reviewing traditional Persian medicine for finding better treatment strategies is wise. Use of all medical potentials approved by the World Health Organization beside classic medicine like traditional medicine and considering the availability and acceptability among people is recommended

AVICENINO NAUČAVANJE O ARTERIJSKOJ HIPETENZIJI

Arterial hypertension is a major risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases. Data from observational studies indicate that it may affect 90% of the general population during their lifetime. Despite much research that has been done, the exact cause of this disorder is still unknown. Avicenna (Ibn Sina) in his masterpiece The Canon of Medicine described most of the clinical features, causes, and complications which are consistent with hypertension symptoms based on modern medicine. He described in detail the symptoms of hypertension such as headache, heaviness in the head, sluggish movements, general redness and warm to touch feel of the body, prominent, distended and tense veins, fullness of the pulse, distension of the skin, coloured and dense urine, loss of appetite, weak eye sight, impairment of thinking, yawning, and drowsiness. Moreover, Avicenna described haemorrhage and sudden death as the complications of hypertension. Due to the importance of this issue, we wanted to call the reader’s attention to Avicenna’s views about what corresponds to hypertension in modern medicine.Arterijska hipertenzija među glavnim je rizičnim čimbenicima nastanka bolesti srca i krvožilja. Podaci iz opažajnih ispitivanja ukazuju na to da se arterijska hipertenzija tijekom života javlja u 90% opće populacije. Unatoč intenzivnom istraživanju, još nije utvrđen uzrok ovoga poremećaja. Avicena (Ibn Sina) je u svom kapitalnom djelu Kanon medicine opisao većinu kliničkih manifestacija, uzroka i komplikacija koje odgovaraju modernom opisu simptoma hipertenzije. Do pojedinosti je opisao simptome poput glavobolje, osjećaja težine u glavi, usporenosti, općeg crvenila, toploga tijela na dodir, izraženo proširenih i tvrdih vena, punoće bila, rastezanja kože, obojane i guste mokraće, gubitka teka, oslabjela vida, otežanog razmišljanja, zijevanja i pospanosti. Kao komplikacije hipertenzije Avicena navodi krvarenje i naglu smrt. Zbog važnosti teme, htjeli smo ovim člankom prenijeti Avicenino viđenje onoga što se danas u medicini naziva hipertenzijom

Treatment of Atopic Dermatitis From the Perspective of Traditional Persian Medicine: Presentation of a Novel Therapeutic Approach

There is a strong current trend for using complementary and alternative medications to treat atopic dermatitis. Atopic dermatitis is a common, chronic, pruritic, and inflammatory skin disease. It can have a profound, negative effect on patients’ quality of life. Mild cases of atopic dermatitis can be controlled by the application of moisturizers and topical corticosteroids. However, in severe cases, application of immunosuppressive medication is unavoidable but it can have adverse effects. In traditional Persian medicine, diseases similar to resistant atopic dermatitis are treated with whey in combination with decoction of field dodder. Both whey and field dodder have anti-inflammatory properties. Consumption of whey can also aid skin repair, mitigate pruritus, and help combat the high level of stress experienced by patients. Therefore, it is hypothesized that consumption of traditional medicinal treatment of whey with decoction of field dodder can be applied as a complementary treatment for atopic dermatitis

Alteration in Thymoquinone Content of Nigella sativa Seeds After Processing by a Traditional Method and Stability Assessment of Raw and Processed Seeds

Background and objectives: Nigella sativa L. is one of the most important species in Iranian traditional medicine (ITM). According to ITM, the plant seeds can cause bronchospasm in patients with hot temperament; therefore it is recommended to process the seeds with grape vinegar before usage. This process may influence some components of the seeds; thus, in the present investigation, the effect of processing on thymoquinone, which is one of the most important active ingredients of the seeds, has been studied. Moreover, the stability of Nigella capsules containing raw and processed seeds and Nigella-honey mixture, “Maajoon”, were assessed. Methods: Nigella sativa seeds were processed by two methods: vinegar was added to the whole intact seeds, then the seeds were dried and crushed; the second method consisted of first crushing the seeds and then performing the vinegar adding and drying steps. The essential oil of the powders was obtained by using hydrodistillation method and thymoquinone content of the oils was measured by gas chromatography. In order to estimate the stability of the Nigella capsules and “Maajoon”, thymoquinone content of the products was measured after one, two and three months at room temperature. Results: The results showed that thymoquinone was absent in the processed seeds which were powdered before processing; but thymoquinone percentage had decreased in processed seeds which were powdered after processing (maximum content: 64.1%). The reduction of thymoquinone after three months was 40.1 and 78.5% in raw and processed capsules, respectively. No thymoqinone was found in the “Maajoon”. Conclusion: Since many effects of Nigella is due to thymoquinone, it seems that grinding before processing and making “Maajoon” are not suitable methods for Nigella preparation. Powdering after processing had decreased thymoquinone content which might result in decrease in bronchospasm as the side effect of thymoquinone; therefore, this method of processing seems to be suitable.  Due to low stability of Nigella powder, powdering just before usage is recommended when necessary

The effect of Complementary and Alternative Medicines on the symptoms of Cystic Fibrosis patients: A Systematic Review

Background: Cystic fibrosis (CF) is the most common life-threatening hereditary disease among Caucasian populations. Due to the side effects caused by this disease and the high amount of drugs used by the affected patients, performing extensive research seems necessary to find the treatments with greater effectiveness and fewer side effects. The use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) is common in both developing and developed countries, but currently available studies performed on the effectiveness of CAM on improving symptoms and reducing complications of CF patients are very limited.Objective: This systematic review was performed to evaluate the effects of CAM therapies on patients with CF.Methods: Six credible medical databases (including Cochrane, Science Direct, Embase, ISI, PubMed, and Scopus) were investigated from the beginning of 2000 to the end of 2020, in order to find relevant English-language publications.Results: From among 1213 articles screened, 57 studies with 2525 patients were included in this study. These articles were then sub-grouped into four categories, including ‘acupuncture’, ‘body techniques’, ‘dietary supplements/nutrition/diet’, and ‘herbal medicine’.The articles evaluating one of the four parameters of quality of life, pain, pulmonary function, or body mass index were included to be evaluated.Conclusion: Although we have not evaluated all the studies in the field of the effect of complementary medicine on CF, the review consisting of a large number of these articles showed that despite the great potential of complementary and alternative medicines in this field, extensive research is still needed in this regard

The efficacy of whey associated with dodder seed extract on moderateto- severe atopic dermatitis in adults: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Atopic dermatitis is a common chronic inflammatory skin condition that is on the rise and adversely affects quality of life of the affected individual. Dry skin and pruritus, major characteristics of this disease, are associated with the dysfunction of the skin barrier. Though mild cases of the disease can be controlled with antihistamines and topical corticosteroids, moderate-to-severe cases often require treatment with immunomodulatory drugs, which have many side effects. It is now more common to use complementary and alternative medicines in the treatment of atopic dermatitis. In traditional Iranian medicine, the use of whey with the aqueous extract of field dodder (Cuscuta campestris Yunck.) seeds in severe and refractory cases of atopic dermatitis is common and has no side effects. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of whey associated with dodder seed extract in the treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis in adults. Materials and methods: The study was a randomized, double-blind placebo control trial that was conducted on 52 patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis for 30 days. In this study patients received freeze dried whey powder with spray dried water extract of field dodder or the placebo for 15 days. At baseline (week zero), after the end of the 15 day treatment period (week three) and 15 days after stopping the drug or placebo (follow-up/week five), patients were evaluated in terms of skin moisture, elasticity, pigmentation, surface pH and sebum content on the forearm with Multi Skin Test Centers MC1000 (Courage & Khazaka, Germany) and the degree of pruritus and sleep disturbance in patients were also recorded. Results: 42 patients completed 30 days of treatment with the medicine and the follow-up period. At the end of the follow-up period a significant increase in skin moisture and elasticity in the group receiving whey with dodder was observed compared with the placebo group (po0.001). There was a significant difference between the two groups regarding the pruritus after 15 days of receiving treatment or the placebo (po0.05), and at the end of the 30-day study period the difference was clearly significant (po0.001). Sleep disturbance showed significant changes at the end of follow-up period (po0.05). There was no significant difference between the two groups concerning changes in skin pigmentation, however, a significant decrease was observed in the group receiving whey associated with dodder seed extract over time (po0.001). There were no significant alterations in skin surface pH and the amount of sebum between the two groups. Temporary side effects were reported including anorexia and mild gastrointestinal problems in drug use. It is noteworthy that in this study despite the fact that patients received whey with dodder for just 15 days, moisture and elasticity of the skin continued to increase in the second half of the study (follow-up period). This shows that the effect of whey with dodder is not transient and this drug really helped skin barrier reconstruction and accelerated the healing process of skin. This positively influenced the skin parameters and consequently the improvement of pruritus and sleep disturbance

Evaluation of Patient Satisfaction Referred to Health Center Traditional Medicine in Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in 2016

زمینه و هدف: رضایتمندی از خدمات سلامت یک معیار مهم برای سنجش کیفیت مراقبت‌های بهداشتی شناخته شده است و تاکنون بررسی از نظر میزان رضایتمندی بیماران مراجعه‌کننده به سلامتکده‌های طب سنتی انجام نشده است، لذا در این مطالعه برای نخستین‌بار به سنجش کیفیت خدمات در سلامتکده طب سنتی دانشگاه شهید بهشتی پرداخته شد. مواد و روش‌ها: مطالعه حاضر یک مطالعه توصیفی ـ مقطعی (Cross–Sectional) است که جهت سنجش رضایت بیماران، از 150 بیمار مراجعه‌کننده به سلامتکده طب سنتی دانشگاه شهید بهشتی در سال 1395 انجام شد. نمونه‌ها از طریق نمونه‌گیری در دسترس، پس از اخذ رضایت‌نامه، با پرسشنامه رضایتمندی محقق‌ساخته بررسی شدند، سپس اطلاعات جمع‌آوری‌شده توسط نرم‌افزار SPSS 20 و شاخص‌های آماری توصیفی و استنباطی مورد تجزیه و تحلیل قرار گرفت. ملاحظات اخلاقی: این پژوهش حاصل طرح تحقیقاتی مصوب معاونت پژوهش دانشگاه علوم پزشکی شهید بهشتی با کد IR.SBMU.RETECH.REC.1395.487 می‌باشد و کلیه اطلاعات بیماران به صورت محرمانه حفظ شد. یافته‫ها: میزان رضایتمندی بیماران نسبت به عملکرد کلی سلامتکده خوب (میانگین 4/54) گزارش شد. میانگین امتیاز رضایتمندی در ابعاد مختلف، شامل وضعیت برخورد پزشکان با بیماران 4/73، وضعیت برخورد دستیاران با بیماران 4/69، وضعیت فضا و امکانات بهداشتی 4/66، وضعیت خدمات تشخیصی 4/74، وضعیت خدمات درمانی 4/50، نحوه وقت‌دهی و برخورد پرسنل 4/59، رضایت از داروخانه 4/62 که نشان‌دهنده طیف نسبتاً راضی به سمت کاملاً راضی بوده است. میانگین بیشترین میزان رضایت در بین بخش‌های مختلف تخصصی، از نظر وضعیت برخورد پزشکان با بیماران مربوط به بخش گوارش 4/82 می‌باشد. بیشترین میزان رضایت مراجعه‌کنندگان در بین بخش‌های مختلف تخصصی از نظر وضعیت خدمات تشخیصی (بخش مفاصل، زنان، گوارش و اعصاب و روان) مربوط به بخش اعصاب و روان بود (P=0/039). نتیجه‌گیری: رضایت بیماران از ارائه خدمات سلامتکده مورد مطالعه در سطح مطلوبی قرار داشت، اما در جهت ارائه خدمات با کیفیت بالاتر به بیماران انجام برنامه‌ریزی دقیق‌تر ضروری به نظر می‌رسد.Background and Aim: Satisfaction from health services is an important criterion for measuring the quality of health care and so far, there has been no study on the satisfaction of patients referring to traditional medicine health centers. Therefore, in this study, for the first time, the quality of services in the traditional medicine health center of Shahid Beheshti University was assessed. Materials and Methods: The present study is a cross-sectional study, in order to measure patients satisfaction, out of 150 patients referred to Shahid Beheshti University Traditional Medicine Health Center, it was performed in 2016. Samples were examined through available sampling, after obtaining consent, with the researcher-made satisfaction questionnaire. Data were analyzed by SPSS 20 software and descriptive and inferential statistical indices. Ethical Considerations: This research is the result of a research project approved by the Research Vice Chancellor of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences with the code IR.SBMU.RETECH.REC.1395.487 and all patient information was kept confidential. Findings: Patients' satisfaction with good general health center performance was reported (Mean 4/54). Mean of satisfaction in different dimensions, including The situation of doctors with patients was 4/73, the situation of patients with patients 4/69, the condition of space and health facilities 4/66, the status of diagnostic services, 4/74, the state of health care 4/40, the manner of staffing and staffing 4/59, satisfaction from the pharmacy 4/62 that this range represents a fairly pleasingly satisfactory range. The average of the highest satisfaction among different specialized departments, in terms of the situation of doctors, with patient’s gastrointestinal tract are 4/82. The highest satisfaction rate was observed in the diagnostic services status in the various specialized departments, which is related to the neurology and psychiatry is significant (P=0/039). Conclusion: Patients' satisfaction from the health services provided by the study center was at a desirable level .In order to provide higher quality services, patients need to be more accurately planned.   Please cite this article as: Tansaz M, Adhami S, Choopani R, Mokaberinejad R, Movahhed M, Ghasemi E, Ilkhani R. Evaluation of Patient Satisfaction Referred to Health Center Traditional Medicine in Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in 2016. Med Hist J 2020; 12(43): 61-72

نقش رؤيا در تشخيص بيماري از ديدگاه بوعلي سينا و ساير حكماي طب سنتي ايران

از ديدگاه بوعلي سينا و ساير حكماي طب سنتي ايران رؤيا به عنوان يكي از علائم تشخيصي مطرح مي‌باشد، به‌طوري كه برخي از خواب‌ها از نظر پزشكي داراي اهميت بوده و در تشخيص مزاج يا بيماري كمك ‌كننده‌اند. محتويات و جزئيات رؤياي فرد مي‌تواند گوياي وضعيت خاص جسمي و رواني وي باشد. در سوءمزاج‌ها و غلبه اخلاط، هر فرد متناسب با خلطي كه در بدنش افزايش يافته خواب‌هايي با رنگ و محتواي متناسب با آن خلط مي‌بيند. به عنوان نمونه در غلبه صفرا، فرد خواب‌هايي با مضمون آتش و رنگ زرد؛ در غلبه خون، خواب‌هايي در ارتباط با خون و خونريزي و به رنگ سرخ؛ در غلبه بلغم خواب‌هايي با محتواي آب و به رنگ سفيد و در غلبه سودا خواب‌هايي با مضمون ترس و وحشت همراه تاريكي و به رنگ سياه مشاهده مي‌كند. آگاهي از محتواي خواب اشخاص با در نظر گرفتن ساير علائم آنها مي‌تواند در تشخيص افتراقي بيماري‌ها كمك‌كننده باشد. همچنين تغيير محتواي خواب در طي درمان نيز مي‌تواند گوياي تغيير وضعيت جسمي و رواني فرد بوده و پزشك را در جهت درمان درست راهنمايي نمايد و در مجموع ابن سينا و ساير پيش‌كسوتان پزشكي نياكان به منظور تشخيص باليني وضعيت سلامت و بيماري، علاوه بر علائم و نشانه‌ها از وضعيت رؤياها نيز استفاده مي‌كرده‌اند. روش كار در اين مطالعه كتابخانه­اي بوده و از كتاب قانون بوعلي سينا و شروح آن و ساير منابع طب سنتي ايران مربوط به قرون مختلف استفاده شده است.As Avicenna and other Iranian traditional medicine scientists believed in the diagnostic role of dream, dreams have been exerted to diagnose a temperament or disease for many years. Any dream content and detail indicates a particular physical and mental state of the dreamer. According to temperament, each person view different contents and colors in his dream. For example, in case of bile dominance, blood dominance, phlegm dominance, and black bile dominance, the major element of dream is fire, bleeding (excessive flow of blood), water (rains, ice, and river), and terrifying things (thundering hailstorms, dark shadows) respectively. In addition, the predominant color of the dream varies upon temperament as though the dream theme of bile dominance colors in yellow, blood dominance colors in red, phlegm dominance colors in white, and black bile dominance colors in black. Exploitation of dream contents allied with other symptoms is helpful in diagnosis of a disease. Furthermore, we can chase mental and physical state of patient by monitoring dream content changes during treatment. The method we used in this paper is based on Avicenna’s Canon of Medicine, its commentaries, and other resources related to Iranian traditional medicine has been used in different centuries

Major and minor criteria for gastric dystemperaments in Persian Medicine: Sari gastric dystemperament criteria-I (SGDC-I)

<div class="msocomtxt" id="com1" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('com1')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('anchor1','com1')">Background: Gastric disorders are one of the most common human ailments, which impose a huge economic burden on countries. In Persian Medicine (PM), it is possible to predict the susceptibility to gastric diseases with diagnosis of gastric Mizajes (temperaments) and dystemperaments. The semiology of gastric dystemperaments has been investigated in PM textbooks, although the value of each sign and symptom is not mentioned. Consequently, this research is designed to determine the major and minor criteria for classifying gastric dystemperaments on the basis of valid manuscripts and with the help of PM specialists in the present era. Methods: This was a consensus-based study consisting of four phases. In the first phase, reference PM textbooks were studied. Symptoms and signs of gastric dystemperaments were collected and listed in four groups. In the second phase, semi-structured interviews with a sample of PM experts were carried out. Phase three included a focused group discussion with experts. Eventually, findings were integrated from the three study phases in a two-day meeting in Sari City. Results: Selected criteria included eight major and eight minor criteria for hot-cold dystemperament, as well as six major and eight minor criteria for wet-dry gastric dystemperament. Conclusion: Modern lifestyles and the interfering factors are responsible for some changes in diagnostic signs and symptoms according to PM. This was the first step to coordinate PM diagnostic criteria for gastric dystemperaments. Further studies are recommended to reach a unique protocol in the field of PM diagnostics. The next step includes design and validation of national diagnostic tools. &#160