Effect of Multi-sensory Stimulation on Neuromuscular Development of Premature Infants

Background: preterm birth is considered as a risk factor for developmental disabilities, which can lead to long-term effects on the nervous system of children.Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the effect of multi-sensory stimulation on neurodevelopment of premature infants.Materials & Methods: In this two-group double-blind clinical trial conducted from June to August 2016 in Iran, 80 preterm infants were randomly divided into two groups. The Intervention group received multisensory stimulation for 12 min per session, 5 sessions per wk along with routine NICU care the control group received ward's routine care. Neuromuscular Maturity each infant was assessed by New Ballard Score.Results: The intervention group showed higher Neuromuscular Maturity compared to the control group. The Posture, Arm Recoil, Popliteal angle and Heel to ear were statistically significant between the groups.Conclusions: The results shows that Multi-sensory stimulation can have beneficial effects on the development of neuromuscular in premature infants.Keyword: Multisensory stimulation. Neurodevelopmen. premature infant

Ultra-mini-percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) versus standard PCNL: A randomised clinical trial

Objective: To assess the effectiveness and advantages of ultra-mini-percutaneous nephrolithotomy (UM-PCNL) versus standard PCNL (S-PCNL), as one of the most important differences between the various PCNL techniques is the size of the renal access, which contributes to the broad spectrum of complications and outcomes. Patients and methods: This clinical randomised trial was conducted in 2016. In all, 70 patients with renal or upper ureteric stones of 10â20â¯mm in diameter, who were candidates for PCNL, were divided equally into two groups. Group A, underwent UM-PCNL using a 9.8-F ureteroscope through a 16-F sheath; and Group B, underwent S-PCNL using a 24-F nephroscope through a 30-F sheath. The stones were fragmented by pneumatic lithotripsy. Any perioperative complications and need for analgesia were recorded, and postoperative pain was assessed in both groups using a visual analogue scale (VAS). Results: There were statistically significant differences in postoperative haemoglobin values, haemoglobin drop, transfusion rate, duration of hospitalisation and postoperative VAS pain score between the groups (Pâ¯<â¯0.05). There were no significant differences in operation time, need for auxiliary procedures or stone-free rate. Conclusion: A minimally invasive UM-PCNL using a 9.8-F ureteroscope can play an important role in the treatment of symptomatic renal and upper ureteric stones of <20â¯mm in diameter with lesser blood loss, duration of hospitalisation, need of transfusion, and postoperative pain compared with S-PCNL. Keywords: Ultra-mini-percutaneous nephrolithotomy, Standard percutaneous nephrolithotomy, Renal/upper ureteric stones, Outcome

In silico evaluation of atazanavir as a potential HIV main protease inhibitor and its comparison with new designed analogs

Starting three decades ago and spreading rapidly around the world, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is an infectious disease distinct from other contagious diseases by its unique ways of transmission. Over the past few decades, research into new drug compounds has been accompanied by extensive advances, and the design and manufacture of drugs that inhibit virus enzymes is one way to combat the AIDS virus. Since blocking enzyme activity can kill a pathogen or correct a metabolic imbalance, the design and use of enzyme inhibitors is a new approach against viruses. We carried out an in-depth analysis of the efficacy of atazanavir and its newly designed analogs as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) protease inhibitors using molecular docking. The best designed analogs were then compared with atazanavir by the molecular dynamics simulation. The most prom ising results were ultimately found based on the docking analysis for HIV protease. Several exhibited an esti mated free binding energy lower than − 9.45 kcal/mol, indicating better prediction results than the atazanavir. ATV7 inhibitor with antiviral action may be more beneficial for infected patients with HIV. Molecular dynamics analysis and binding energy also showed that the ATV7 drug had more inhibitory ability than the atazanavir drug.Fil: Yoosefian, Mehdi. Graduate University of Advanced Technology; IránFil: Moghani, Maryam Zeraati. Graduate University of Advanced Technology; IránFil: Juan, Alfredo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Física del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Física. Instituto de Física del Sur; Argentin

Evaluation of the Effect of Acute and Chronic Restraint Stress on Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase and Nitric Oxide Levels in Wound Healing Process in Rat

Background and Aim: Considering that stress slows down wound healing, the main purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of acute and chronic restraint stress on inducible Nitric Oxide synthase (iNOS) and Nitric Oxide (NO) concentrations in wound tissue in rat. Materials and Methods: 48 male and female rats in 6 groups (n=8) including male control, male animals exposed to acute stress, male animals exposed to chronic stress, female control, female animals exposed to  acute stress and female animals exposed to chronic stress were used in this study. Tissue samples were collected on the 3rd and 7th days after wound creation. iNOS concentration were measured by ELISA method and the concentration of NO was measured by determining nitrite concentrations in the samples using Griess reagent. Results: Acute (P< 0.001) and chronic (P< 0.05) stress caused a significant increase in iNOS concentrations on the 3rd  and 7th days post wounding in male animals comparing to the control group. The concentration of iNOS was significantly increased in female animals only in the group exposed to the acute stress and on the 3rd day compared to the control group (P< 0.05). Acute and chronic stress caused a significant (P < 0.001) increase in NO concentrations in male animals when compared with the control group. NO concentrations was increased significantly in female animals exposed to acute stress comparing to the control group on 3rd day post wounding (P< 0.001). Conclusion: Stress induced elevations in iNOS and NO concentrations could be one of the mechanisms underlying delayed wound healing by stress

The Effect of Psychoeducational Intervention on Retirement Syndrome Among Retired Nurses: A Field Trial

BACKGROUND: The retired constitutes a large portion of the society, whose psychological problems can have a great impact on mental health and quality of life among their families and society. This field trial study aimed to investigate the effect of psychoeducational intervention on retirement syndrome among retired nurses. METHODOLOGY: A total of 73 retired nurses who obtained score higher than 80 on the measure of retirement syndrome were randomly assigned to either the intervention group (receiving 8 weekly sessions of intervention) and control group (receiving no interventions) by block randomization. Outcomes were measured before, after and two months after the intervention and were analyzed using repeated measure ANOVAs and t-test. RESULTS: The results demonstrated a significant difference between the intervention and control groups regarding the retirement syndrome scores (P<0.00) and its 7 subscales during the three study periods and groups (P<0.00). CONCLUSION: This study highlighted the importance of applying psychoeducational intervention in decreasing retirement syndrome

Sustainable Multi-Objective Models for Waste-to-Energy and Waste Separation Site Selection

In the past, the Iranian government has excessively relied on fossil fuels, gas, and oil resources, leading to energy-related issues and increasing power outages in the provinces during peak seasons. One of the best opportunities for energy production in Iran is through the establishment of bio-methane and waste-based energy parks. This research aims to determine the optimal locations for waste sorting centers and the establishment of waste-to-energy plants. The coexistence and interaction of these two facilities will enhance system efficiency. To achieve this goal, two mathematical models, with three objectives, have been designed. The static allocation model assigns each industrial park to a waste sorting center, while the dynamic allocation model selects the shortest route from the industrial park to the waste-to-energy center. The first objective is to minimize establishment costs, while the second and third objectives aim to reduce the system’s waiting costs. Waiting for waste shipments leads to pollution, and the desirability and route length can increase the likelihood of organic pollution. Therefore, this research seeks to minimize these factors. The model results indicate that the sorting and energy production centers have been selected to incur the lowest establishment, transportation, and waiting costs. Additionally, the sensitivity analysis section of the model reveals the impact of coefficient changes on the model’s results

Candida Species in Cutaneous Candidiasis Patients in the Guilan Province in Iran; Identified by PCR-RFLP Method

Due to the epidemiological alteration in distribution of Candida species as well as significant increasing trend of either intrinsic or acquired in resistance of some of these fungi, the precise identification of Candida species is necessary for effective antifungal therapy and also for prevention of nosocomial infections. PCR-RFLP method is indicated to be a reliable, rapid and simple technique which is able to differentiate the Candida species. In the present study, we applied this method to evaluate the distribution of Candida species in patients affected with cutaneous candidiasis in the Guilan province. 896 clinical cutaneous samples were collected from different parts of skin and nail of suspected patients referred to clinical centers all over the Guilan province during 24 months. Samples were examined directly with 15% KOH and cultured on fungal specific media. Genomic DNA was extracted and the restriction enzyme Msp1 was applied for polymorphism analysis. Totally, 47 yeast strains were successfully isolated from different clinical samples and identified by conventional as well as PCR-RFLP methods. The results indicated that Candida albicans (36.17%) was the most frequent species followed by C. parapsilosis (25.53%), C. tropicalis (19.14%), C. guilliermondii (14.89%), C. famata (2.12%) and C. krusei (2.12%). Female finger nails were the most common location to be affected by Candida species. In conclusion, PCR-RFLP method was successfully used for recognition of clinical Candida species within the Guilan province and obtained results revealed C. albicans as the predominant causative agent of cutaneous candidiasis. However, distribution of other Candida species did not completely consist with the reported distribution of Candida species in other parts of Iran with different climate to the Guilan province

Association of Urinary Lipocalin-2 with Lupus Nephritis

Objective(s): Lupus nephritis (LN) is the main cause of mortality and disability in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients. Therefore, utilizing a reliable and non-invasive method for serial measurements of renal function seems to be necessary. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of urinary lipocalin-2 as a biomarker of renal involvement in SLE patients.   Materials and Methods: Fifty two lupus patients in this cross sectional study were divided into two groups: patients with and without nephritis. For each group, urinary lipocalin-2, values were measured and reported according to urinary lipocalin-2/creatinine. Urinary lipocalin-2/creatinine sensitivity and specificity for identifying biopsy-proven nephritis were calculated, and a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was constructed. Results : The mean urinary lipocalin-2/creatinine value of patients with biopsy-proven LN was 2.99 ± 4.1 ng/mg, and in non-LN patients was 1.16 ± 1.27 ng/mg. Urinary lipocalin-2/creatinine levels in LN patients were significantly higher than those in non-LN patients (P- Value = 0.03). In LN patients, urinary lipocalin-2/creatinine significantly correlated with proteinuria (r = 0.68; P = 0.0001). Using a cutoff value of 0.896 ng/mg, urinary lipocalin-2/creatinine had a sensitivity of 89.7% and a specificity of 39.1% for identifying SLE patients with biopsy-proven LN. The area under the ROC curve was 0.664 ± 0.076 with a 95% confidence interval of 0.52-0.81 (P=0.04). Analysis of variance showed that urinary lipocalin-2/creatinine is the same in different classes of LN (P-value=0.28). Conclusion: An important clinical conclusion is that measurement of urinary Lipocalin-2 may result in earlier diagnosis of LN