Psychometric properties of the king spiritual intelligence questionnaire (KSIQ) in physical veterans of Iran-Iraq warfare

Aims: The study's purpose was to determine reliability and validity of the King spiritual intelligence questionnaires in veterans of Iran-Iraq Warfare. Methods: In this cross sectional study, 300 veterans of the Iran-Iraq war completed the King spiritual intelligence questionnaires. Principal components analysis (PCA) with varimax rotation was used to assess domain structure of the King spiritual intelligence questionnaires. Internal and external consistency reliability was assessed with Cronbach's alpha and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC). Results: Internal consistency of King spiritual intelligence questions estimated with Cronbach's alpha, 0.872 and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC).872 (CI 95%: 0.84 -0.89). The construct validity of the questionnaire was calculated using exploratory factor analysis that showed 3 factors with Eigen values of greater than one, which explained in total 44.7% of the variance. (1, 8 items, α= 0.87; 2, 5. items; α = 0.89; 3, 2 items, α= 0.51). Conclusion: The Persian version of King spiritual intelligence questionnaire demonstrated suitable validity and reliability among the Veterans of Iran-Iraq Warfare. With the consideration of the proper psychometric characteristics, this questionnaire can be used to further research spiritual intelligence in this population

Psychometric Evaluation of a Persian Version of the Cardiac Depression Scale in Iranian Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Springer Publishing Company via the DOI in this recordPurpose: The aim of this study was to validate a Persian version of the Cardiac Depression Scale (CDS) in Iranian patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI). This was a methodological study. Methods: A demographic survey and the CDS were used for data collection. The CDS was forward translated from English into Persian and back translated to English. Validity was assessed using face, content and construct validity. Results: The construct validity of the scale showed two factors with eigenvalues greater than one. The Cronbach’s alpha, Theta, McDonald, and construct reliability were greater than .70. Convergent and discriminant validity of the constructs were fulfilled. Conclusions: Given the importance of mental health in risk prevention in AMI patients, the Persian CDS is a useful screening tool for detection of depression in this patient cohort

Production of fish cheeses from silver carp by acid coagulation

Fish and fishery products have high nutrition value particularly omega-3 fatty acids. It is expected that the estimated production in 2030 will be 150 to 160 million tones but estimated demand will be 183 million tons. Processing of fish especially (culture fish) is one of the way attentions of people to fish and fishery products. Fish Finger, Fish Berger, Cracker, Fish Ball are the most important of fishery products. In this research was studied production of fish cheese from Silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) from sarcoplasmic proteins. After primary preparation of fish (beheading, cutting, filleting and deboning) minced fish was washed with salt solution (0.01, and 0.04 mol) and were isolated sarcoplasmic proteins. Acetic acid (%5) and centrifuge were used for sedimentation and extraction of these proteins. Fifteen formulas were worked for preparing of fish cheese. Minced fish, sedimented protein and fish cheese were examinated for proximal parameters (protein, ash. moisture, carbohydrate and lipid) and microbial and chemical spoilage factors (Total Viable Count, Mold and Yeast, Total Volatile Nitrogen, and Peroxide Value). The shelf life and organoleptic characterization of fish cheese were also surveyed. The results indicated that mean of protein, lipid, ash, moisture and carbohydrate in fish cheese were %14/86, %28/01, %3/46, %48/27, %4/78 respectively. The best formula was treatment of 13 with %18/26 of protein. TVN and PV, in fish cheese, were at standard level but after 30 days stored in 4o C, PV value ere slowly increased. Microbial parameters, in product, (in zero time) were log 3 and 4 but after 30 days were log 4 and 5. Organoleptic factors such as odor, frangibility, taste in fish cheese in zero and 30 days were good and medium respectively. Cost of fish cheese was varied between 2000 to 27000 Rails. As fish cheese is prepared from sarcoplasmic proteins and was not any use from fish tissue, therefore it can be produced as secondary products in processing plants and can be introduced to people as new fish product

Chemotherapy use and quality of life in cancer patients at the end of life: An integrative review

Background: When curative treatments are no longer available for cancer patients, the aim of treatment is palliative. The emphasis of palliative care is on optimizing quality of life and provided support for patients nearing end of life. However, chemotherapy is often offered as a palliative therapy for patients with advanced cancer nearing death. The purpose of this review was to evaluate the state of the science relative to use of palliative chemotherapy and maintenance of quality of life in patients with advanced cancer who were at end of life. Materials and methods: Published research from January 2010 to December 2019 was reviewed using PRISMA guidelines using PubMed, Proquest, ISI web of science, Science Direct, and Scopus databases. MeSH keywords including quality of life, health related quality of life, cancer chemotherapy, drug therapy, end of life care, palliative care, palliative therapy, and palliative treatment. Findings: 13 studies were evaluated based on inclusion criteria. Most of these studies identified that reduced quality of life was associated with receipt of palliative chemotherapy in patients with advanced cancer at the end of life. Conclusion: Studies have primarily been conducted in European and American countries. Cultural background of patients may impact quality of life at end of life. More research is needed in developing countries including Mideastern and Asian countries. © 2020 The Author(s)

Behavioral Pain Indicators in Patients with Traumatic Brain Injury Admitted to an Intensive Care Unit

Introduction: A consistent approach to pain assessment for patients admitted to intensive care unit (ICU) is a major difficulty for health practitioners due to some patients’ inability, to express their pain verbally. This study aimed to assess pain behaviors (PBs) in traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients at different levels of consciousness. Methods: This study used a repeated-measure, within-subject design with 35 patients admitted to an ICU. The data were collected through observations of nociceptive and non-nociceptive procedures, which were recorded through a 47-item behavior-rating checklist. The analyses were performed by SPSS ver.13 software. Results: The most frequently observed PBs during nociceptive procedures were facial expression levator contractions (65.7%), sudden eye openings (34.3%), frowning (31.4%), lip changes (31.4%), clear movement of extremities (57.1%), neck stiffness (42.9%), sighing (31.4%), and moaning (31.4%). The number of PBs exhibited by participants during nociceptive procedures was significantly higher than those observed before and 15 minutes after the procedures. Also, the number of exhibited PBs in patients during nociceptive procedures was significantly greater than that of exhibited PBs during the non-nociceptive procedure. The results showed a significant difference between different levels of consciousness and also between the numbers of exhibited PBs in participants with different levels of traumatic brain injury severity. Conclusion: The present study showed that most of the behaviors that have been observed during painful stimulation in patients with traumatic brain injury included facial expressions, sudden eye opening, frowning, lip changes, clear movements of extremities, neck stiffness, and sighing or moaning

Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of Spiritual Well-Being Scale in Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction

The purpose of this study was to assess the psychometric properties of the Persian version of Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) in patients with acute myocardial infarction. A multisite, cross-sectional survey was employed to determine the instrument’s reliability (Cronbach’s a and construct reliability) and validity (face, content, and construct). Using systematic sampling of adult outpatients at primary care clinic sites in the Qazvin City, Iran (N = 300), it was found that the Cronbach’s alpha and construct reliability of both factors associated with the SWBS were above 0.7. The construct validity of the scale was determined using exploratory factor analysis. The findings supported two factors: relation with God and relation with life. Further investigation through confirmator

The changes of endotracheal tube cuff pressure during manual and intermittent controlling in intensive care units

This is the final version. Available from Wolters Kluwer via the DOI in this record. Usually, the endotracheal tube cuff pressure is controlled by cuff pressure monitoring. However, the intermittent pilot-manometer connection and disconnection may cause a change in the adjusted pressure. This study aimed to investigate changes in the endotracheal tube cuff pressure using both manual and intermittent controls. Materials and Methods: A semi-experimental within-subject design was conducted. Fifty-nine intubated patients in the Mazandaran Intensive Care Units (ICUs) participated through convenience sampling in 2018. In the control condition, first, the cuff pressure was adjusted in 25 cm H2O then it was measured without manometer-pilot disconnection at 1 and 5 min intervals. In the intervention condition, cuff pressure was immediately adjusted in 25 cm H2O then it was measured with manometer-pilot disconnection in the 1st and 5th minutes. Data analysis was performed using Independent t-test, Chi-square test, and Phi coefficient. Results: The mean and Standard Deviation (SD) change of cuff pressure after 1 minute, from 25 cm H2O, in the intervention condition was 20.22 (3.53) cm H2O. The mean (SD) of this change in the control condition was 25.22 (3.39) cm H2O. This difference was significant (t116= 7.83, p < 0.001, d = 1.44). The mean (SD) change of cuff pressure after 5 minutes, from 25 cm H2O, in the intervention condition was 19.11 (2.98) cm H2O. The mean (SD) of this change in the control condition was 25.47 (4.53) cm H2O. This difference was significant (t116= 9.24, p < 0.001, d = 1.70). Conclusions: The tracheal tube cuff pressure has been significantly reduced during manual intermittent measuring. Therefore, it is suggested that continuous cuff pressure monitoring and regulation should be used.Mazandaran University of Medical science

Signatures of human intervention-or not? Downstream intensification of hydrological drought along a large Central Asian river: The individual roles of climate variability and land use change

The transboundary Helmand River basin (HRB) is the main drainage system for large parts of Afghanistan and the Sistan region of Iran. Due to the reliance of this arid region on water from the Helmand River, a better understanding of hydrological-drought pattern and the underlying drivers in the region is critically required for effective management of the available water. The objective of this paper is therefore to analyze and quantify spatiotemporal pattern of drought and the underlying processes in the study region. More specifically we test for the Helmand River basin the following hypotheses for the 1970-2006 period: (1) drought characteristics, including frequency and severity, systematically changed over the study period; (2) the spatial pattern and processes of drought propagation through the Helmand River basin also changed; and (3) the relative roles of climate variability and human influence on changes in hydrological droughts can be quantified. It was found that drought characteristics varied throughout the study period but largely showed no systematic trends. The same was observed for the time series of drought indices SPI (standard precipitation index) and SPEI (standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index), which exhibited considerable spatial coherence and synchronicity throughout the basin, indicating that, overall, droughts similarly affect the entire HRB with few regional or local differences. In contrast, analysis of the SDI (streamflow drought index) exhibited significant negative trends in the lower parts of the basin, indicating an intensification of hydrological droughts. It could be shown that with a mean annual precipitation of ∼ 250mmyr -1, streamflow deficits and thus hydrological drought throughout the HRB are largely controlled by precipitation deficits, whose annual anomalies on average account for ± 50mmyr-1, or ∼ 20% of the water balance of the HRB, while anomalies of total evaporative fluxes on average only account for ± 20mmyr-1. Assuming no changes in the reservoir management practices over the study period, the results suggest that the two reservoirs in the HRB only played a minor role for the downstream propagation of streamflow deficits, as indicated by the mean difference between inflow and outflow during drought periods, which did not exceed ∼ 0.5% of the water balance of the HRB. Irrigation water abstraction had a similarly limited effect on the magnitude of streamflow deficits, accounting for ∼ 10% of the water balance of the HRB. However, the downstream parts of the HRB moderated the further propagation of streamflow deficits and associated droughts because of the minor effects of reservoir operation and very limited agricultural water in the early decades of the study period. This drought moderation function of the lower basin was gradually and systematically inverted by the end of the study period, when the lower basin eventually amplified the downstream propagation of flow deficits and droughts. Our results provide plausible evidence that this shift from drought moderation to drought amplification in the lower basin is likely a consequence of increased agricultural activity and the associated increases in irrigation water demand, from ∼ 13mmyr-1 at the beginning of the study period to ∼ 23mmyr-1 at the end, and thus in spite of being only a minor fraction of the water balance. Overall the results of this study illustrate that flow deficits and the associated droughts in the HRB clearly reflect the dynamic interplay between temporally varying regional differences in hydro-meteorological variables together with subtle and temporally varying effects linked to direct human intervention. Water Resource

Rapid formulation assessment of filgrastim therapeutics by a thermal stress test

The biosimilar versions of recombinant methionyl human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (rh-Met-G-CSF, filgrastim) are now widely available. Because changes to the formulation often lead to subtle differences, there is a critical need to define techniques to test and insure the quality of these products. The present study was designed to compare formulation and thermal stress stability of filgrastim products. The formulation ingredients including acetate, polysorbate 80, and sorbitol were determined using state-of-the-art validated analytical methods. The formulation pH and osmolality were also measured. Moreover, the stability profiles of 8 filgrastim products using thermal stress at 57 °C for 4 h were assessed by size-exclusion high-performance liquid chromatography (SE-HPLC) and in vitro biological assay. The products had different stability profiles. More stable products were within the specification for formulation and less stable products were beyond the specification limits. Altogether, the results suggest that a short-time stress study at 57 °C and analysis of filgrastim by SE-HPLC could unveil formulation problems and is potentially useful for comparability studies. © 2016 International Alliance for Biological Standardization