The impact of public partnership to identify patients with tuberculosis in Darashar, Iran

Background and objective: Participation of community-based services in the National Tuberculosis Control Programme is (NTCP) necessary to identify and treat all patients with tuberculosis (TB). We developed a novel model to encourage family members and relative to participate in the RNTCP in Darahshar city. Methods: This community-based intervention was included of two groups of community (relatives of patients and schools). They were trained to identify and refer of patients to allocated health centers. Case finding indices were compared initially and one year intervention. The exponential distribution and logarithmic of incidence were used to compare the incidence of tuberculosis after the intervention with other cities of the province. Results: The incidence of smear positive cases increased from 5.1/100,000 to 35.2/100,000 (p <001). There was a statistically significant difference between incidence of smear positive cases in Darehshar city and other cities in Ilam province (p <001). During the intervention, 408 suspected patients was identified, it showed about 297 percent increased in case finding (cases in the previous year of the intervention were 137 cases) (p <001). Conclusion: It seems that community-based intervention could be an effective method to enhance of identify and control of patients with tuberculosis

Epidemiology of Tuberculosis in south-west of Iran: A brief report

Background: Tuberculosis is still one of the main causes of mortality and disability in developing countries. Despite of socio-economic development of communities and controlling majority of communicable diseases, With respect to importance and high incidence of Tuberculosis in marginal provinces, the present study was aimed to assess the epidemiology of Tuberculosis. Methods: In this Descriptive-Analytical Retrospective Study, documents of 6363 patients diagnosed with TB in the beginning of March 2005 to the end of the September 2012 in Khuzestan province, Iran, by used census sampling size, were used. Demographic variables and other necessity data were recorded by TB-Register software and then these data were analyzed by SPSS 16.0 software and Chi-square and independent t-tests with a significance level of less than 5. For comparison Tuberculosis incidence in consecutive years used by Poisson tests (with a significance level of less than 5). Results: mean age of patients and median age of patients were 39.3±18 and 35±6.5 years, for women mean age was older 2.1 years than men and there was significant relationship to age (P=0.0001). Of all patients 75.7 were pulmonary tuberculosis, 2.7 were infected with HIV and 91.2 were new cases. Cumulative incidence in province was 148.84/100,000. Most prevalent in Non-pulmonary TB was Lymphatic glands. Poisson test showed that changing trends of TB incidence in study years was statistically significant (P<0.05). Conclusion: Increasing concurrent of HIV infection and TB and decreasing patients mean age (39.3±18) and median (35±6.5) in southwest of Iran has high prevalence. Screening, training and preventive activities for controlling of disease is highly recommended for the whole country and in margin provinces in particular

Age-dependent antibody response to Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein 2 (MSP-2)

P>Merozoite surface protein 2 (MSP-2), a very immunogenic malaria antigen, is a highly polymorphic 45-53 kDa merozoite surface protein, which is regarded as a promising vaccine candidate. The highly polymorphic nature of MSP-2 suggests that the molecule can be involved in protective immunity against malaria. The antibody responses to MSP-2 antigen are mostly directed against polymorphic and dimorphic regions of the protein. The current study aimed at testing the reactivity of human sera from a malaria-endemic area of Gambia against MSP-2 regions 2, 3 and 4 compared to crude schizont extract in a period of 20 years. The age-dependent immunity was analysed in a manner of cross-sectional study (the data of the first visit) and also a longitudinal study design (analysing the data at four different time points from 1960 to 1980) testing the sera of 178 individuals randomly selected from the Keneba Serum Collection by using MSP-2 recombinant protein. The total IgG responses were measured by ELISA. Kolmogorov-Smirnov was used to check the normal distribution of OD, Hb and parasitaemia, and then Spearman correlation was applied to analyse the data. Most sera recognized, predominantly, the variable regions of the MSP-2, particularly the domain 3. The IgG response against all the antigens increased with age. The IgG responses against domain 3 of MSP-2 were associated with an increase in haemoglobin levels but a decrease in parasitaemia, suggesting that this immune response may be one of the most useful means for further studies on protective immunity against malaria

The effect of garlic on lipid profile and glucose parameters in diabetic patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

PURPOSE: Several studies have been published about the effect of garlic on lipid profile and blood glucose in diabetic patients. Which, the results mostly contradict with each other. This study aimed to investigate the effect of garlic on lipid profile and serum glucose levels in diabetic patients using a systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: This study was a systematic review and meta-analysis of articles published between 1988 and 2016. For this purpose, two independent researchers searched SID medical information databases including MagIran, Irandoc, Medlib, Iran Medex, Science Direct, Scopus, Google and PubMed using keywords. Data were analyzed using STATA software. RESULTS: After the initial search, 23,000 articles were found, of which 33 had the required criteria for the meta-analysis. In the present study, the total sample under review was 1273 individuals, with a mean of 39 samples per study. Overall, the garlic was more influential than placebo in reducing the levels of lipid parameters including triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein (HDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL), and fasting blood sugar (FBS) and HbA1C. In the meta-analysis, the concentration of serum TC, LDL, TG, and HDL in the group receiving garlic compared with the placebo showed a significant decreased for 16.87mg/dl (95 CI, -21.01, -12.73) (P=0.001), 9.65mg/dl (95 CI, -15.07, -4.23) (P=0.001), 12.44mg/dl (95 CI, -18.19, -6.69) (P=0.001), and increased for 3.19mg/dl (95 CI, 1.85, 4.53) (P=0.001), respectively. Also, the concentration of serum FBS and HbA1C serum showed a significant decreased for 10.90mg/dl (95 CI, -16.40, -5.40) (P=0.001) and 0.60mg/dl (95 CI, -0.98, -0.22) (P=0.001), respectively. CONCLUSION: Garlic can reduce lipid profile as well as glucose parameters and be therapeutically effective in patients suffering from cardiovascular diseases and diabetes

The relationship between teachers' evaluation scores and the students' academic performance: a case study in Iran

Background and Aims: Identifying factors that affect the students' evaluation of teachers' performance, allows for proper planning and provides for earning real results of the faculty performance. This study was undertaken aimed at determining the relationship between teachers' evaluation scores and the students' academic performance in Ilam University of Medical Sciences. Methods and Material: This descriptive-analytical study was undertaken throughout the school year of 2009-2010 in the Ilam University of Medical Sciences. All the faculty members (110 teachers) and all the medical and basic sciences students (1250 people) studying in this university during the mentioned time span were considered using the census method. Collection of the faculty evaluation data was carried out using a valid and reliable questionnaire including 14 questions, where as the data on academic performance of the students was gathered via the Educational Management System (Sama). Normalization of the variables was executed using the Kolmorogrove-Smirnove test and data analysis was performed based on Pearson correlation coefficient test and linear regression. Findings: The teachers' performance evaluation mean score during the first and second semester was 4.28 and 4.17 respectively, and the students' grade point average during the first and second semester was 15.11 and 15.48 respectively. The Pearson con-elation coefficient showed that there is a negative relationship between the number of units (number of credit hours per each course) a professor should teach and the mean score of the class performance, which was statistically significant (r=0.28, P=0.031). Also, the linear regression equation showed that by increasing the number of the units each professor should teach only by one unit, the mean score of the grade point average (GPA) of the class will decrease by 22. However, there were no significant relationship between the class performance mean (the class average GPA) scores and teachers' evaluations scores mean (p=0.94). Conclusion: Considering the insignificance of the relationship between the classroom performance (mean GPA score) and the teachers' evaluation mean score -having been confirmed by similar studies- this variable should not be considered as a biased factor in evaluation of the professors, given the fact that No significant relationship was observed between the class average exam marks and the classroom evaluation mean scores (P=0.54, r=0.057). The findings of the current study have shed some light on the subject matter by providing insights from a non-western background and would help to fill up the lack of studies in this context

The effect of educational program on care burden of informal caregivers of elderly people with type 2 diabetes in Ilam in 2016-2017

Introduction: Diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases in old age. The informal caregivers of these patients undergo heavy care. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of the educational program on care burden of informal caregivers of elderly with type II diabetes in 2016-2017. Materials and Methods: The present study was carried out according to the experimental purpose. In this study 80 out of 120 informal caregivers of elderly with diabetes who were referred to the Shahid Mostafa Khomeini Hospital in Ilam were selected by convenience sampling method and then randomly were placed in experiment and control groups. The experiment group received 8 sessions with 2 hours duration (face to face teaching and telephone follow-up) as intervention. The data were collected using two questionnaires: demographic and Zarit's Care before and after intervention. The collected data were analyzed by using statistical software SPSS 22 and descriptive and inferential statistical tests (covariance) at the significant level of 0.05. Results: The results showed that there was not a significant difference between the level of care burden of the experimental and control groups before intervention. Also, there was a significant difference between the care burden of the experimental group before and after the intervention (p=0.001). There was no significant difference between care burden of control group before and after intervention (p=0.2). Conclusion: According to the results, it can be concluded that the care burden of informal caregivers of elderly people with type II diabetes, after training intervention was significantly reduced. Therefore, this interventional program can be used to reduce the care burden of informal caregivers in this group of patients

The Prevalence of Impaired Glucose Tolerance in Patients with Thalassemia Major in Iran: A systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Introduction: Impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) is one of the most common endocrine complications in major thalassemia patients. IGT prevalence in patients with thalassemia major has been differently in different studies in Iran, about which no total estimate can be proposed. Hence, this meta analysis study aimed to investigate IGT prevalence in major thalassemia patients in Iran. Methods: This study was a systematic review based on electronic databases including Magiran, Iranmedex, SID, Medlib, IranDoc, Scopus, PubMed, Sciencedirect, Cochrane, Embase, Web of Science, Springer, Online Library Wiley as well as Google Scholar search engine without any time limitations up to 2015. All the potentially relevant papers were reviewed independently by two investigators using the standard key words. Then, all the reviewed studies that had inclusion criterion were evaluated. In order to statistically analyze the study data, random effect model was used via Stata software (Ver.11.1). Results: 1346 subjects were examined in 13 studies. IGT prevalence in patients with thalassemia major was estimated 9.6 %( CI: 95%, 6.6-12.5) in Iran. The IGT prevalence in male and female major thalassemia patients were 6.5 %( CI: 95%, 1.6-11.3) and 10.2 %( CI: 95% , 6.1-14.3), respectively. Conclusion: IGT Prevalence was demonstrated to be really high in patients with thalassemia major. As a result, implementing screening programs seems to be necessary in regard with early diagnosis of endocrine disorders especially IGT in these patients. Furthermore, it is recommended that annual glucose tolerance test be taken within such patients

Forms of Self-immolation in Iran: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Context: Self-immolation is one of the most violent methods of suicide and is considered a psychosocial problem. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the forms of self-immolation in Iran using a systematic review and meta-analysis method. Data Sources: In this study, seven papers published from 1999 to January 2020 were selected using keywords such as self-immolation and Iran in SID, Google Scholar, PubMed, Web of Science (ISI), Scopus, and Elsevier databases. Study Selection: Study selection was done by two independent researchers. The results of studies were pooled using the Freeman-Tukey Double Arcsine Transformation method. The heterogeneity among studies was checked using the Q-test and I-2 index. Data Extraction: Data were extracted using a data extraction form. Results: The total sample size was 9,470. The mortality rate in self-immolation subjects was estimated at 64 (95 CI: 0.56 - 0.73). The most important means of self-immolation was oil 89% (95% CI: 82% - 96%). Winter had the highest numbers of self-immolation 29 (95 CI: 22 - 37). Meta-regression showed no significant correlation between the mortality of self-immolation and the year of study. Conclusions: To reduce self-immolation, easy access to oil must be restricted in families, and high-risk people should have access to psychology consultation

Comparing the effect of herbal drugs and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on primary dysmenorrhea in iran: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Several studies have been conducted to investigate the effects of herbal drugs and Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on the primary dysmenorrhea, but their results have been different.The aim of this study was to compare the effects of herbal drugs and NSAIDon the primary dysmenorrheausing meta-analysis method.A literature search was conducted in Scopus, Pub med, and Google scholar databases from1996 to December 2016 in English and Persian languages using the search keywordsof primary dysmenorrhea combined with herbal and NSAID. The random effect model was adoptedto combine the results of the studies, and I2 index was used to check heterogeneity. One hundred and ninety-nine studies were obtained, and after reading the abstracts, 21 articles were included in the study. The total number of samples was 2041 people. The standard mean difference(SMD)betweenherbal drugs and Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in the pain reduction in the first intervention was estimated atSMD= 0.2(95CI:(-0.340.74), z=0.73, p=0.463), and in second intervention it was SMD=-0.59(95CI: (-1.650.47),Z=1.09 and p=0.278). also, the SMD for the duration of menstrual variable SMD=0.18(95CI:(0.02 0.34), z=2.20, p=0.027) in favor of NSAID drugs and interval cycle of menstrual variable was SMD=0.07(95CI:(-0.140.28), z=0.68, p=0.496).Mean difference of pain intensity reduced relatively better by administering herbal medicines, which is supported by the majority of studies, and the herbal drugs were found to be more effective than the NSAIDs drugs. Finally, given the many side effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, herbal drugs can be used at the standard dosageand considering the side effects. © 2021, Islamic Azad University. All rights reserved

Prevalence of pterygium in Iran: a systematic review and meta-analysis study

Background and aim: Pterygium is one of the most prevalent pathologies involving the cornea, which can lead to various vision signs and even reduction in eyesight. No accurate estimate has been reported about the prevalence of pterygium in Iran. Hence, this study aimed to determine the pterygium prevalence in Iran by meta-analysis method. Methods: Searching for data of the last eleven years (from 2004 to 2015) was conducted using the keywords of pterygium, eye, and Iran in International and domestic indexing services and databases including Iranmedex, Scientific Information Database (SID), Magiran, Irandoc, Medlib, IranPsych, Science Direct, Web of Science (Thomson Reuters), PubMed, and Scopus. The data were analyzed using the meta-analysis method (the random effects model). The disharmony of the studies was investigated using the I2 index. The data were analyzed by STATA Ver.11 software. Results: In 5 studies conducted in Iran, with a sample size of 10,838 people between 2004 and 2015, the extent of the prevalence was estimated to be 11 (95 CI: 3 to 18). Also, the prevalence of pterygium in women and men was 18 and 13, respectively. Conclusion: According to the published reports from Iran and its comparison with other points in the world, the prevalence of pterygium in Iran is high, especially among women