Knowledge and practice of urban Iranian pregnant women towards folic acid intake for neural tube defect prevention.

To assess the knowledge and practice of urban Iranian pregnant women regarding periconceptional folic acid intake for neural tube defect (NTD) prevention. The population-based study was done on 676 primiparous women in an urban area in Golestan province in northern Iran from June to November, 2008. A questionnaire was completed by the subjects regarding their knowledge of folic acid. Questionnaires were administered to women who were seeking routine antenatal care at health centres, private gynaecological clinic and the Dezyani Gynaecologic and Obstetric Hospital. Questions covered knowledge and use of folic acid supplements and demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. Out of the 676 women surveyed, 96.2% reported that they heard of folate. Of these, only 27.6% knew that folate was something important in the prevention of neural tube defects. Overall, 20.12% of the total women took folic acid during periconceptional period. The most common information sources on folate were healthcare service (54.5%). Besides, 37.6% of the subjects who heard about folate were aware that green leafy vegetables were fortified with folic acid. In univariate analysis, knowledge and intake of folic acid was not associated with education and the age of women. A healthcare plan for intervention to increase the knowledge and intake of folic acid by pregnant women during the protective period is required

The knowledge and the attitude of youth couples on/towards consanguineous marriages in the north of Iran

Aim: Consanguinity is an important risk factor in genetic diseases and in congenital malformations. This study was done to assess the knowledge and the attitude of youth couples on/towards consanguineous marriages in the north of Iran. Material and Methods: This descriptive-analytic study was carried out on 250 young people (125 couples) in Northern Iran during the year 2008. The information was obtained by a direct interview and the questionnaire included four sections which comprised of 39 closed questions. The data was analyzed by using SPSS, version 11.5 and the Chi-Square test. Results: Consanguineous marriages were observed in 32.5% of the couples. Consanguineous marriages were determined in 20.87% and 11.63% of the rural and the urban residents respectively. The knowledge of the youth was poor (49.2% of the females and 40% of the males) on the genetic consequences of inbreeding. The results on the attitude of youths showed that 38.8% of the subjects had agreed and that 61.2% of them had disagreed on consanguineous marriages. There was a significant association between the knowledge of the youths and their attitudes towards consanguineous marriages with their ethnicity, education and residency (p<0.05). Conclusions: This study showed that the knowledge of the youth couples towards consanguineous marriages was poor. Health education programs are needed to improve the knowledge of the youth couples on consanguineous marriages; that they are a potential risk factor in congenital malformations and in genetic diseases in the offspring

Deficiencies of the microelements, folate and vitamin B12 in women of the child bearing ages in Gorgan, Northern Iran

Background: The deficiencies of folic acid, vitamin B12, and microelements during pregnancy may affect the health of newborns. Objectives: To assess the serum levels of folate, vitamin B12, iron, zinc and copper in healthy women of the childbearing ages in Gorgan, northern Iran. Methodology: This descriptive, cross-sectional study was carried out on 100 women of childbearing ages in northern Iran during November 2007-March 2008. The serum levels of folate, vitamin B12, iron, copper and zinc were evaluated by laboratory tests. Results: Iron, copper, folate, vitamin B12 deficiencies and folate with vitamin B12 deficiency were detected in 13%, 32%, 13%, 32% and 11% women of the childbearing ages, respectively. According to the ethnicity, vitamin B12, folate and iron deficiencies in the Sistani group were observed in 38.3%, 12.9% and 12.9% of the women, respectively. In the native Fars group, the above mentioned deficiencies were found in 31.1%, 13.4% and 7.5% of the subjects. Folate and vitamin B12 deficiencies were observed in the urban habitant in 32.7% and 11.5% of the subjects as compared to those in the rural habitant (in 30.4% and 15.2%of the subjects respectively). The folate deficiencies in the under and above 18 years old subjects were 22.2% and 9.9%, respectively. Conclusions: This study showed that the deficiency of the micronutrients was considerable in women of the childbearing ages in Gorgan, northern Iran

Witnessing, testimony and trauma in indian school days

Residential schools functioned from 1876 to 1996 in Canada in order to assimilate Indigenous children to Euro- Canadian culture. By implementation of Indian Act (1876), the Indigenous children were taken away from their parents and sent to these schools. The trauma that these kids underwent as a result of physical, mental and sexual abuse at these residential schools has been reflected in Basil H. Johnstons' Indian School Days. The novel will be analyzed based on Judith Herman's concept of trauma and Shoshana Felman and Dori Laub's concept of witnessting and testimony since the literary work can be a witness to the historical incidents that happened at residential schools in Canada. However, the novel also reflects the incidents that remained non-documented within various narratives within the selected novel

The Color Purple and Women's Time

In Women's Time, Julia Kristeva asserts that women have been deprived of linear time for progress and improvement; they have been confined to circular time, which is a vicious circle of repetition; therefore she asked for the existence of a third generation of feminists to focus on linear time and to provide the ground for women's social as well as domestic roles. She mentions that the third feminists' duty is to pay attention to the individuality of each woman. In The Color Purple, Alice Walker's female protagonist, Celie, revolts against fixed gender roles. She unites with other female characters and has a sisterhood relationship. This article intends to focus on the effect of patriarchal system on women. Moreover, it will highlight sisterhood and its effect on women's individuality and social roles. As such, this article intends to focus on Julia Kristeva's notion of women's time and the way Celie intends to follow her desires. The attention to Celie's passions and desires in life helps her to know herself better

Melancholic celie in the color purple

In her theory of the melancholic subject, Julia Kristeva asserts that the melancholic subject has a sense of loss, but she cannot share this feeling with others as she considers it as private. Although the melancholic subject is stranger to her mother tongue, she should use language to get rid of her sense of loss. In The Color Purple, Alice Walker devotes herself to the plight of black people’s lives in white society. She believes that the black feel a sense of loss as they are subject to racism, sexism and gender discrimination in white society. These black people, especially black women, should use language to express their sense of loss and deal with their traumatic experiences. This article intends to focus on Julia Kristeva’s melancholic subject and apply it to Alice Walker’s The Color Purple

Ethnical variations in the incidence of congenital heart defects in Gorgan, Northern Iran: A single-center study

Background: Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common congenital anomaly in newborns. This study was performed to determine the live birth incidence of CHD by ethnicity and sex in Gorgan, Northern Iran. Methods: In this longitudinal, hospital-based study, 18162 live births in Dezyani Hospital in Gorgan, North of Iran, were screened for CHD, from 2007 through 2009. Clinical examination, echocardiography, color Doppler, and cardio catheterization were used as diagnostic tools. Sex, ethnicity, and type of CHD for each case were recorded in a pre-designed questionnaire. Results: The incidence rates of CHD in the native Fars, Sistani, and Turkmen subjects were 5.73 (95%CI: 4.53-7.15), 12.27 (95%CI: 8.74-16.73), and 15.93 (95%CI: 10.00-24.02) per 1000 live births, respectively. The Turkmen to native Fars and Sistani to native Fars relative risk for congenital CHD malformations was 2.77 (95%CI: 1.73-4.44; p value < 0.001) and 1.29 (95%CI: 0.77-2.18; p value < 0.323), respectively. While atrial septal defect was the most common lesion in the native Fars subjects (2.14 per 1000 [95%CI: 1.42-3.06]) and in the Sistani subjects (2.84 per 1000 [95%CI: 1.29-5.36]), in the Turkmen subjects, ventricular septal defect (4.36 per 1000 [95%CI: 1.59-9.43]), followed by atrial septal defect, was the most frequent lesion. Conclusion: This study showed that the incidence and pattern of CHD among live births in Gorgan, North of Iran, varied according to ethnicity. The risk of CHD was higher in the Turkmen and Sistani groups than in the Fars population

Prevalence and pattern of congenital heart disease among neonates in Gorgan, Northern Iran (2007-2008)

Objective: Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common congenital anomaly newborns. The aim of this longitudinal, hospital-based study was to evaluate the prevalence and pattern of CHD among Iranian newborns in Gorgan, Northern Iran. Methods: 11739 live births in Dezyani hospital in Gorgan were screened for CHD, 2007 through 2008. Clinical examination, echocardiography, color Doppler and cardio catheterization were used as diagnostic tools. Clinical and demographic factors, namely sex, type of CHD and associated anomalies of diagnosed cases were recorded in a pre-designed questionnaire for analysis. Findings: The overall prevalence rate of CHD was 8.6 per 1000 live births. This was 9.96 per 1000 male births and 7.34 per 1000 female births. It was 4.5 and 13.19 per 1000 in 2007 and 2008, respectively. ASD was the commonest lesion (2.64 per 1000), followed by VSD+ASD (1.28 per 1000) and PDA (1.28 per 1000). The rate of ASD in male and female was 3.02 and 2.26 per 1000 respectively. Parents of 40 (39.6%) babies were related. 39 (38.6%) couples were first cousins. Conclusion: This study showed that the prevalence of CHD among live births in Gorgan is lower than reported in the studies for Middle East and European countries. © 2011 by Pediatrics Center of Excellence, Children's Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, All rights reserved