Introduction à l’épidémiologie participative et son application à la surveillance participative de l’influenza aviaire hautement pathogène: Manuel pour les praticiens de la surveillance participative des maladies

Dans le cadre du projet de détection précoce, de rapportage et de surveillance de l’influenza aviaire en Afrique, financé par l’Agence américaine pour le développement international (USAID), un certain nombre de formations en surveillance participative de la maladie (SPM) concernant l’influenza aviaire hautement pathogène (IAHP) ont été réalisés en Afrique de l’Ouest et de l’Est en 2008 et 2009. L’objet de ce manuel est d’offrir une référence aux vétérinaires et aux agents de santé animale pendant et après une formation en SPM. Le manuel est principalement axé sur la SPM de l’IAHP, mais les méthodes peuvent être facilement adaptées et appliquées à d’autres maladies du bétail

Introduction to participatory epidemiology and its application to highly pathogenic avian influenza participatory disease surveillance: A manual for participatory disease surveillance practitioners

The purpose of this manual is to provide a reference for veterinarians and animal health workers during and after PDS training. The main focus of the manual is on HPAI PDS but the methods can be easily adaptedand applied to address other livestock diseases

Applying a basic development needs approach for sustainable and integrated community development in less-developed areas: Report of ongoing Iranian experience

Introduction: Despite considerable achievements in the provision of basic developmental facilities in terms of drinking water, access to primary healthcare services, high-quality and nutritious food, social services, and proper housing facilities, there are many rural and slum communities in Iran where these essential needs remain unfulfilled. Lack of equity is prominent, as large differences exist in underprivileged provinces. New policies developed in the past two decades have resulted in substantial achievements in meeting population needs and reducing the socio-economic gap; nevertheless, poverty levels, unemployment due to a large increase in the birth rate in the early 1980s, and lack of community participation are matters yet to be addressed. To overcome these deficiencies, a basic development needs approach was adopted to promote the concept of community self-help and self-reliance through intersectoral collaboration, creating an environment where people could take an active part in the development process, with the Iranian government providing the necessary support to achieve the desired level of development. Description of the project: Following firm commitment from the Iranian government and technical support from the World Health Organization Regional Office, basic development needs was assigned a high priority in health and health-related sectors, reflected in the third National Masterplan (2001-2005). A comprehensive intersectoral plan was designed, and pilot projects were commenced in three villages. Each village elected a representative, and committee clusters were formed to run and monitor projects identified by a process of local needs assessment and priority assignment. In each region, a variety of needs were elicited from these assessments, which were actively supported by local authorities. Lesson learned: A basic development needs approach was found to be a reliable discipline to improve community participation, needs-led resource allocation and intersectoral co-operation in community development, particularly in underprivileged areas. Iran's initial experience of basic development needs has gained widespread public support but will require periodical evaluation as it is introduced into other rural and urban regions across the country. © 2004 The Royal Institute of Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Toxicity assessment of chemical contaminants;transition from in vitromethods to novel in vitro methods

Exposure to occupational and environmental contaminants is a major contributor to human health problems. Despite significant achievements in the risk assessment of chemicals, the toxicological database, particularly for industrial chemicals, remains limited. Considering there areapproximately 80, 000 chemicals in commerce, and an extremely large number of chemical mixtures, in vivo testing of this large number is unachievable from ethical, economical and scientific perspectives. Therefore, increasing the number of available industrial chemicals andnew products has created a demand for alternatives to animal methods for better safety evaluation. Recent toxicity studies have demonstrated that in vitro methods are capable of rapidly providing toxicity information. In this review, current toxicity test methods for risk evaluation of industrial chemical contaminants are presented. To evaluate the potential applications of  more recent test methods developed for toxicity testing of chemical contaminants are discussed. Although  to be considered more broadly for risk assessment of human chemical exposures. In vitro methods,in vitro toxicology methods cannot exactly mimic the biodynamics of the whole body, in vitro  relationships (QSARs) and physiologically based toxicokinetic (PBTK) models have a potentialtest systems in combination with the knowledge of quantitative structure activity

Pregnancy age on the basis of bone formation among patients referred to the Shahid Beheshti University Medical Center

History and Objectives: Due to the importance of determination of the developmental stages of embryo pregnancy age differences on the basis of determination of embryonic age in various races and different countries, the present investigation was carried out on the distal femoral epiphysis size among individuals referred to Shaheed Beheshti University Clinic Center in 1995-1997. Materials and Methods: A descriptive study on 1300 females with LMP characteristics at their 28-40 week of pregnancy was carried. Patient's consent was obtained before the study was initiated. For any given week, 100 patients were selected and 13 weeks interval was chosen. Patients were devoid of other underlying illnesses. In DFE sonography, on its largest diameter, 1.5 magnification and 5-7.5 MHZ transduction, was determined. Results: From 28th to 40th week of pregnancy, 1300 patients were examined. DFE was not detected at the 28th week of pregnancy. DFE was 0.08±0.37 at the 29th week of pregnancy. A table of DFE and age of pregnancy is presented. Conclusion: Pregnancy age on the basis of DFE was determined. It is suggested that figures obtained in this study should be evaluated for the prediction of embryonic age. The present procedure can be used in clinical settings with sufficient validity

Different irradiation machines and their effects on testes exposure levels and sex hormones profile in patients with rectal cancer

Objective: Complications of pelvic irradiation for rectal cancer have gained more attention because of increased survival of patients. The aim of this study was to compare testes doses when pelvis is irradiated using Cobalt 60 (Co60) for rectal cancer in comparison with linear accelerator (LINAC) and its effect on sex hormones levels. Materials and Methods: In a cohort study, 28 rectal cancer patients that were candidate to receive pelvic radiotherapy were recruited in the study consecutively. They were sequentially assigned to receive radiotherapy using Co60 teletherapy or LINAC. Serum sex hormones levels were measured before and 3-6 weeks after irradiation. Testes absorption doses were measured three times during whole course of irradiation in nine patients. Results: Testes doses in LINAC group were significantly lower than Co60 group (p < 0.001). Serum follicular-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinising hormone (LH ) levels increased after irradiation in both groups and there was not a significant relation between FSH and LH levels with treatment machine (p < 0.2 and p < 0.6, respectively). Serum testosterone level decreased significantly in Co60 group (p < 0.05) but not in LINAC group (p < 0.3). Discussion: It seems using LINAC for pelvic irradiation in patient with rectal cancer cannot prevent hormonal changes and we suggest using extra shield to decrease testes doses below the toxic levels. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

The investigation of valid criteria for hospitalization and discharge in patients with limb cellulitis: A prospective cohort study

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate a valid model for patients� admission or discharge from emergency services to improve the health system and reduce costs. Methods: This study was carried out using a prospective cohort method. The study population was patients with limb cellulitis referring to the emergency department of Peymanieh hospital. In this research, the study participants were separated into two groups based on the duration of hospitalization (hospital stay less than 24 hours or longer than 24 hours), then the patients were again separated into 4 groups based on the classification of the the Clinical Resource Efficiency Support Team (CREST) guideline, which in each of these groups the mean age, gender, and the prevalence of underlying diseases were identified and the final outcome for each group was determined after one week from the visit to the hospital. Results: Peripheral vascular disease, history of injection drug use, immunodeficiency and congenital immune deficiency had a significant relationship with the rate of hospitalization and recurrence. There was a significant relationship between class 1 disease and hospitalization for less than 24 hours, classes 2 and 3, and hospitalization for more than 24 hours (P < 0.001). There was a significant relationship between grade 1 disease and non-recourse, grade 3 and recurrence within one week after initiation of the treatment (P < 0.001). But there was no relationship between grade 2 and grade 4 and the referral of the patient after treatment. Conclusion: Corset Scale is a reliable scale for assessing the severity of the disease to determine the process of cellulite treatment for outpatient or hospitalization. © 2020 The Author(s)

Participatory epidemiology: Principles, practice, utility, and lessons learnt

Participatory epidemiology (PE) evolved as a branch of veterinary epidemiology and has been largely employed for the control and early warning of infectious diseases within resource-limited settings. It was originally based on combining practitioner communication skills with participatory methods to facilitate the involvement of animal caretakers and owners (embracing their knowledge, experience, and motivations) in the identification and assessment of animal disease problems, including in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of disease control programs, policies, and strategies. With the importance of understanding social perceptions and drivers receiving increasing recognition by epidemiologists, PE tools are being adapted for an increasingly wide range of settings and endeavors. More recently, PE tools have been adapted for use in food and nutrition security programs, One Health activities, wildlife disease surveillance and as part of mixed-methods research across a range of socio-economic settings. This review describes the evolution of PE (in relation to veterinary epidemiology and briefly in relation to public health epidemiology), the underpinning philosophy and principles essential to its effective application and the importance of gender-sensitive approaches and data triangulation, including conventional confirmatory testing. The article also provides illustrative examples highlighting the diversity of approaches and applications of PE, hallmarks of successful PE initiatives and the lessons we can learn when these are missing. Finally, we look forward, describing the particular utility of PE for dealing with emerging infectious diseases, gaining attention of field-level cross-sector officials who can escalate concerns to a higher level and for continuing to raise the voices of those less-heard (such as women, minority groups, and remote communities with limited exposure to formal education) in defining the problems and planning activities that will likely impact directly on their well-being and livelihoods