Seroepidemiology of rubella, measles, HBV, HCV and B19 virus within women in child bearing ages (Saravan City of Sistan and Bloochastan Province)

Present survey basically focused on women between 15-45 years of age resident in a town of Sistan and Baluchistan province named as Saravan city located in border of Pakistan-Iran in order to find out the seropositivity against the viruses in child bearing ages in the above stated under study community. This descriptive cross-sectional study was carried-out from 2001 up to 2002. Saravan town was divided into 4 geographical areas and each area was further sub-divided into 10 blocks and in each block 10 families were chosen randomly. In the next step by referring to each family from the chosen married women with specified age i.e., 15-45 years, 5 mL blood was collected. Serum was then separated and stored at -20°C before the assay. ELISA kit was employed to detect anti B19, anti rubella, anti measles, anti HBV and anti HCV antibody. Furthermore during samples collection a questionnaire filled for each woman under study. This study showed that 89.6% of women understudy were seropositive against measles, rubella (96.2%), B19 (59.2%), HCV (0.8%) and HBV (19.8%), respectively. According to the results of no serious problem with rubella in this area; But, about measles, the present immunity against measles in this area is insufficient. It seems that incidence of B19 infection in this region is same as other places in Iran. The rate of seropositivity against HBV and HCV indicated of these viruses circulating in the population in this area. © 2007 Academic Journals

The Effects of Functional Therapy on Motor Development in Children with Cerebral Palsy

ObjectivesThe cause of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) as a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease is still unknown. It appears that both genetic and environmental factors play a role in its pathogenesis. Recent studies reveal that in addition to the CNS, immune cells synthesis neurotransmitters so that these catecholamines can regulate immune functions. The aim of this study is to evaluate the dopamine receptor gene expression profiles on peripheral blood mononuclear cells of rheumatoid arthritis patients in comparison with normal individuals.Material & MethodsIn the present study, we investigated dopamine receptor gene expression in PBMCs of 40 RA patients and 40 healthy individuals using Real Time-PCR.The specificities of the obtained Real time PCR products for the respective dopamine receptors fragments were confirmed by sequenced analysis capillary systemResultsWe found that DRD1-DRD5 types of dopamine receptors genes expression profiles of rheumatoid arthritis patients differ compared to healthy individuals. Moreover, a significant difference of DR2 and DR4 gene expression was seen in rheumatoid arthritis patients.ConclusionThis study showed that some types of dopamine receptors genes expression profiles alter in rheumatoid arthritis patients with comparison to healthy individuals Moreover, this alteration possibly could result in dysfunction of dopaminergic system in immune cells and finally lead to rheumatoid arthritis

Challenges toward Sustainability? Experiences and Approaches to Literary Tourism from Iran

Interdisciplinary narrative studies are of great importance in several disciplines, especially in the humanities and social sciences. Cultural tourism and its sub-disciplines, including the complex issue of ‘literary tourism’, is an interdisciplinary field of investigation, positioned in between geography and urban–rural studies. In Iran, this form of tourism has been neglected so far—with no distinction between urban and rural areas—despite a particularly rich literary heritage. The present study recognizes the challenge of literary tourism in Iran, delineating some possible actions to develop it as a future engine of economic growth, especially in rural districts. As a contribution to a refined comprehension of literary tourism development paths, a content analysis was run collecting views and textual data on literary tourism in Iran. The empirical results of this study indicate that the mentioned challenges can be classified into several main dimensions and a broader set of sub-themes. The possible actions responding to such challenges can be classified into more dimensions and a vast number of sub-themes. Actions reducing territorial disparities and fueling entrepreneurship in local communities are appropriate to stimulate the emergence (and, possibly, consolidation) of literary tourism districts in Iran, giving an original contribution to sustainable development especially—but not exclusively—in rural settlements

In vitro and in vivo anticancer effect of pH-responsive paclitaxel-loaded niosomes

In this study, paclitaxel (PTX)-loaded pH-responsive niosomes modified with ergosterol were developed. This new formulation was characterized in terms of size, morphology, encapsulation efficiency (EE), and in vitro release at pH 5.2 and 7.4. The in vitro efficacy of free PTX and niosome/PTX was assessed using MCF7, Hela, and HUVEC cell lines. In order to evaluate the in vivo efficacy of niosomal PTX in rats as compared to free PTX, the animals were intraperitoneally administered with 2.5 mg/kg and 5 mg/kg niosomal PTX for two weeks. Results showed that the pH-responsive niosomes had a nanometric size, spherical morphology, 77% EE, and pH-responsive release in pH 5.2 and 7.4. Compared with free PTX, we found markedly lower IC50s when cancer cells were treated for 48 h with niosomal PTX, which also showed high efficacy against human cancers derived from cervix and breast tumors. Moreover, niosomal PTX induced evident morphological changes in these cell lines. In vivo administration of free PTX at the dose of 2.5 mg/kg significantly increased serum biochemical parameters and liver lipid peroxidation in rats compared to the control rats. The situation was different when niosomal PTX was administered to the rats: the 5 mg/kg dosage of niosomal PTX significantly increased serum biochemical parameters, but the group treated with the 2.5 mg/kg dose of niosomal PTX showed fewer toxic effects than the group treated with free PTX at the same dosage. Overall, our results provide proof of concept for encapsulating PTX in niosomal formulation to enhance its therapeutic efficacy. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

Antimicrobial resistance of Shigella spp. isolated from diarrheal patients in Zahedan

One of the great challenges in the treatment of infectious diseases is the resistance of pathogenic bacteria against antibiotics, and antibiotic resistance to Shigella is broadly observed in different parts of the world. The object of this study was to determine Shigella antibiotic resistance pattern against the antibiotics such as ampicillin, amoxicillin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, chloramphenicol, nalidixic acid, ciprofloxacin and ceftriaxone. In this cross-sectional study, a total of 147 Shigella strains were collected from the diarrheic patients referring to different medical centers of Zahedan. Specific antisera were used for serotyping of isolated Shigella and their antibiotic resistance patterns were determined by standard Kirby-Bauer method. Of the 147 studied Shigella strains, 102 (69.3) belonged to S. flexneri, 32 (21.7) to S. dysenteriae, 11 (7.4) to S. boydii, and 2 (1.36) to S. sonnei species. The isolated strains showed resistance to ampicillin (99.3), trimethoprimsulfamethoxazole (52) and nalidixic acid (1.3), but there was no resistance against ciprofloxacin and ceftriaxone. According to the findings, it is suggested that antibiotics should not be used without laboratory testing (antibiogram). © 2008 Tehran University of Medical Sciences

Comparison of the tuberculin skin test and the QuantiFERON-TB Gold test in detecting latent tuberculosis in health care workers in Iran

OBJECTIVES: The tuberculin skin test (TST) and the QuantiFERON-TB Gold test (QFT) are used to identify latent tuberculosis infections (LTBIs). The aim of this study was to determine the agreement between these two tests among health care workers in Iran. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 177 tuberculosis (TB) laboratory staff and 67 non-TB staff. TST indurations of 10 mm or more were considered positive. The Student's t-test and the chi-square test were used to compare the mean score and proportion of variables between the TB laboratory staff and the non-TB laboratory staff. Kappa statistics were used to evaluate the agreement between these tests, and logistic regression was used to assess the risk factors associated with positive results for each test. RESULTS: The prevalence of LTBIs according to both the QFT and the TST was 17 (95 confidence interval CI, 12% to 21%) and 16% (95% CI, 11% to 21%), respectively. The agreement between the QFT and the TST was 77.46%, with a kappa of 0.19 (95% CI, 0.04 to 0.34). CONCLUSIONS: Although the prevalence of LTBI based on the QFT and the TST was not significantly different, the kappa statistic was low between these two tests for the detection of LTBIs

Health-related quality of life and medication adherence in elderly patients with epilepsy

© 2019 Polish Neurological Society. Objective. Considering the high prevalence of epilepsy in the elderly and the importance of maximising their quality of life (QoL), this study aimed to investigate the relationship between medication adherence and QoL, and the mediating effects of medication adherence on the association between serum antiepileptic drug (AED) level and seizure severity with QoL in elderly epileptics. Methods. In a longitudinal study, 766 elderly patients with epilepsy who were prescribed a minimum of one antiepileptic drug were selected by convenience sampling method. A Medication Adherence Report Scale (MARS-5) questionnaire was completed at the baseline. Seizure severity and QoL were assessed after six months using the Liverpool Seizure Severity Scale (LSSS) and the QoL in Epilepsy (QOLIE-31) questionnaires respectively. Serum level of AED was also measured at six-month follow-up. Results. Medication adherence was significantly correlated with both seizure severity (β = -0.33, p < 0.0001) and serum AED level (β = 0.29, p < 0.0001) after adjusting for demographic and clinical characteristics. Neither QoL nor its sub-classes were correlated with seizure severity. In addition, a significant correlation was not observed between serum AED level and QoL. However, medication adherence was significantly correlated with QoL (β = 0.30, p < 0.0001). The mediating effects of medication adherence on the association between serum AED level (Z = 3.39, p < 0.001) and seizure severity (Z = -3.47, p < 0.001) with QoL were supported by the Sobel test. Conclusion. This study demonstrates that medication adherence has a beneficial impact on QoL in elderly epileptics. Therefore, adherence to treatment should be monitored to improve their QoL

The Founder Effect? -FXIII Deficiency in Southeast Iran: A Molecular Study Report

Background: Congenital factor XIII (FXIII) deficiency is an extremely rare bleeding disorder (RBD) with different clinical coagulation disorders and great impacts on the perioperative patient outcome. Its prevalence in Southeast Iran is approximately 4,000 times higher than the worldwide prevalence, with Trp187Arg (c.559T&gt; C as the only causative mutation of FXIIID there. We investigated the founder effect of rs1742924, rs4960181, rs3778360 and rs4142290 using haplotype analysis to define the genetic phenomenon in this geographic region. Materials and Methods: In a case-control study, 10 patients with FXIIID and 10 healthy individuals were assessed. Initially, Trp187Arg (c.559T&gt; C) mutation was assessed in all study populations using a PCR-RFLP technique, then haplotype analysis was performed by assessing rs1742924, rs4960181, rs3778360 and rs4142290 polymorphisms. Data were analyzed using a two-proportion z-test. Results: All patients were homozygote for Trp187Arg (c.559T&gt;C), and this mutation was not observed in any form of homozygote or heterozygote in the control group. Polymorphisms in rs1742924, rs4960181, and rs377836 were homozygote (TT, GG, GG, respectively) and T, G, and G alleles distribution in cases and controls with significant difference (P&lt;0.001, P&lt;0.001, and P=0.01 respectively). Rs4142290 polymorphism showed no significant difference between patients and controls (P=0.3). Two types of haplotypes were observed in the case group, and haplotype number 1* was observed among 90% of them, while not observed in the control group. Conclusion: It seems that founder effectors of haplotype number *1 have more antiquity versus other haplotypes, and probably founder effect is responsible for this high prevalence of FXIIID in the southeast of Iran

Cardiac troponin I level before and after elective open heart surgery in pediatrics

Background Cardiac troponin I was found to be a sensitive and high specific marker of myocardial injury even in the pediatric population. This study aimed to elucidate the value of serum cardiac troponin I level after cardio-pulmonary bypass and effect of the time of aortic clamp duration on troponin I level. Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, serum troponin I level measured before, 0.5 and 24 hours after open heart surgery in one hundred pediatric patients (58 female and 42 male) with mean age of 4.5 years old (15 month to 19 years) undergoing elective open heart surgery for congenital heart disease in Tehran Shahid Rajaei cardiovascular hospital. Patients� demographic data, surgical procedure, length of intensive care unit stay, inotropic support requirement and their duration of endotracheal intubations and aortic cross clamping time on the troponin level were recorded. Findings: Baseline serum troponin level's were less than 0.1 mg/mm, stay of intensive care unit was significantly higher in patients with high troponin I level at 0.5 and 24 hour after surgery (P = 0.005, r = 0.275 and P = 0.001, r = 0.543, respectively). Troponin I level 0.5 and 24 hour after surgery was strongly related to intubation time (P = 0.004, r = 0.258 and P = 0.001, r = 0.473, respectively). Only Troponin I level's in 24 hour after surgery remained significantly predicative of need to Inotropic Agents (P = 0.001, r = 0.637). There was strongly relation between time of cardio pulmonary by-pass and troponin levels 0.5 and 24 hour after surgery (P = 0.001, r = 0.320 and P = 0.019, r = 0.235, respectively). However, aortic cross clamping time affect to troponin I level only 0.5 hour after surgery (P = 0.001, r = 0.402). Conclusion:: Evaluation of the cardiac troponin I level in patient undergone open heart surgery represent acute myocardial damage, allows further stratification of risk when combined with standard measures. Post operative troponin I level predicts length of intensive care unit stay, need for inotropic agents, and length of need for inotropic agents and intubation time. © 2018, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved

Spatial planning, urban governance and the economic context: The case of 'Mehr' housing plan, Iran

With the increasing concentration of population and economic activities in metropolitan regions, dwelling shortages and housing quality have become critical issues in urban management. Town plans considering social, economic, political, and cultural features of local communities have been developed with the aim of supporting housing, especially in emerging economies. In Iran, the 'Mehr Housing' Plan has been considered as one of the most relevant strategies for social housing since the 2000s. However, the acceptance of 'Mehr Housing' plans at the community scale has been rather low, reflecting the fact that it is a top-down, non-participatory policy. The present study investigates the most important factors affecting social acceptance of 'Mehr Housing' plans by interviewing 45 experts through a structured questionnaire that evaluated multiple analyses' dimensions of housing and urban planning in Iran. Results showed that six dimensions (physical, institutional-managerial, economic, socio-cultural, legal, and locational) had contributed to social dissatisfaction with 'Mehr Housing' local initiatives. In particular, socio-cultural and legal dimensions were demonstrated to have a large impact on local communities' dissatisfaction