Mitochondrial DNA copy number instability in ERBB2-amplified breast cancer tumors

Increase in the copy number of ERBB2, a Tyrosine Kinase Receptor (TKR) leads to the overexpression of oncogene product and consequently uncontrolled cell proliferation which has been reported in different aggressive cancers with mitochondrial malfunctions. Although, amplification of ERBB2 has been reported in different studies; however, the association between changes in mitochondrial DNA content and the ERBB2 gene copy number is poorly understood. The relative mitochondrial DNA content of breast cancer tumor tissues of 70 patients who were referred to Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex was determined using quantitative Real-time PCR. Multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) was conducted to evaluate the ERBB2 gene copy number variation and finally, two-sample Wilcoxon rank-sum (Mann-Whitney) test was used to investigate the possible association between mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) content and the ERBB2 gene amplification. Seventeen out of 70 breast cancer tumor tissues were found with ERBB2 gene amplification. Comparison of the mitochondrial DNA content of the aforementioned samples with the rest of the cases showed a significant decrease in the mitochondrial DNA content of the ERBB2-amplified samples (P=0.01). Our data provided evidence that ERBB2 have the potential to have a regulatory role over mitochondrial activity by controlling the mtDNA content

The Prevalence of Malnutrition in Elderly Members of Jahandidegan Council, Shiraz, Iran

Background: The risk of malnutrition is increased in elderly because of insufficient food intake, debilitating diseases, social loneliness, and economical limitations. It not only increases the susceptibility to the development of diseases, but it also decreases quality of life (QOL) in the absence of proper intervention. The purpose of the present study was to determine the prevalence of malnutrition and to identify sociodemographic variables which may be associated with malnutrition in elderly members of Jahandidegan Council, Shiraz, Iran. Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 180 elderly of Jahandidegan Council were selected through simple random sampling. Following obtaining informed consent, data was collected via two questionnaires of sociodemographic and the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) and then statistically analyzed. Results: About 1% of the elderly population were malnourished and 13% were at the increased risk of malnutrition. While lower educational level was found to be associated with poor nutritional status of the elderly, no significant association was observed between age, sex, marital status or previous occupation and malnutrition. Conclusion: Regarding the importance of malnutrition in elderly individuals, designing and developing a comprehensive nutrition education program for this vulnerable group is required to enhance their knowledge and nutritional skill and to improve their QOL

The Influence of a School-Based Online Educational Intervention on Oral Health Behaviors of Primary School Students during the Covid-19 Pandemic: Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior

Background: Dental caries are one of the children’s most common chronic diseases. This study aims to examine the influence of school-based online education on oral hygiene behaviors during COVID-19. Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted on 120 students in the 5th and 6th grades of primary school in Shazand, Iran, from February 2022 to April 2022. The participants were selected by cluster sampling method and divided into two groups; control (n=60) and experimental (n=60). The data collection instrument checked the participants’ demographic information, constructions of the theory of planned behavior (TPB), and oral health behaviors before and after the intervention. The experimental group participated in four online educational sessions (each session was 1 hour) in SHAD software. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) were used to analyze the data via SPSS version 23. Results: The mean ±standard deviation (SD) of the students’ age was 11.50 ± 0.50. Before the intervention, there was no significant relationship between the oral hygiene behavior of the two groups and the TPB constructions (p>0.05). A month after the intervention, the mean scores of the oral hygiene behavior, attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and intention significantly increased in the experimental group (p<0.001). After the intervention, both twice brushing a day and once a day flossing significantly increased in the experimental group; from 28.2 % to 73.3 % and from 50 % to 75 %, respectively (p<0.001). Conclusion: Rendering the results of this study, online educational intervention based on the theory of planned behavior promotes the oral health behaviors of primary school students

Effectiveness of Cognitive Orientation to Daily Occupational Performance in Parkinson’s Disease: A Case Report

Introduction: Parkinson’s disease is a chronic progressive neurodegenerative disorder causing impaired motor function and various non-motor symptoms. One of the most common problems in Parkinson’s patients is occupational performance problems. The cognitive orientation to daily occupational performance (CO-OP) is one of the client-centered and problem-solving approaches in occupational therapy evaluations and interventions. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of the CO-OP approach on perceived satisfaction and occupational performance in a 62-year-old woman with Parkinson’s disease. Case Description: The client was a 62-year-old woman with moderate cognitive impairment, stage 3 on the Hoehn and Yahr scale, and signs of depression. In our case study, the outcome measures were the Canadian occupational performance measure (COPM), functional independence measure (FIM), Montreal cognitive assessment (MOCA), and Beck depression inventory-II (BDI-II). We administered the CO-OP intervention for six weeks. Sessions were performed twice a week for one hour per session. Results: The results indicate that the CO-OP intervention improves the client’s satisfaction, occupational performance, and functional independence. Although the results from this single case cannot be generalized, the findings suggest that CO-OP intervention may help improve satisfaction and occupational performance in adults with Parkinson’s disease. Further investigation is necessary. Conclusion: These results suggest that CO-OP can be a valuable occupational therapy interventions for individuals with Parkinson’s disease. We recommend that occupational therapists consider using this approach in their practice to improve the occupational performance of their patients with Parkinson’s disease

The Effect of Magnesium Sulfate on Renal Colic Pain Relief; a Randomized Clinical Trial

Introduction: Renal colic can be managed by preventing the contraction movements of ureter muscles. By reducing acetylcholine in the nerve terminals, magnesium sulfate could be effective in this regard. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of magnesium sulfate on acute renal colic pain relief. Method: The present study was a double-blind clinical trial in which the patients suffering from acute renal colic were randomly divided into 2 groups of who either received standard protocol (intravenous infusion of 0.1 mg/Kg morphine sulfate, 30 mg of Ketorolac, and 100 ml normal saline as placebo/15 minutes) or standard protocol plus 15 mg/Kg of intravenous magnesium sulfate 50%/100 ml normal saline/15 minutes. Severity of patients’ pain was measured by visual analogue scale (VAS) at baseline, and 30 and 60 minutes after infusion. The collected data were analyzed using STATA statistical software. Results: 100 cases were randomly allocated to intervention or control group. The two groups were similar in baseline pain score and demographic characteristics. At 30 and 60 minutes, mean pain score was less in the intervention group compared to the control group. Moreover, the difference between the two groups was statistically significant regarding the additional amount of morphine, suggesting that the intervention group needed less additional morphine than the control group. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that Magnesium sulfate can be used as an adjunct drug in treatment of patients suffering from renal colic. It not only alleviates the pain in the patients, but also diminishes the need for pain medications

Caregiver-related predictors of thermal burn injuries among Iranian children: a case-control study

Purpose Burns are a common and preventable cause of injury in children. The aim of this study was to investigate child and caregiver characteristics which may predict childhood burn injuries among Iranian children and to examine whether confounding exists among these predictors. Methods A hospital based case-control study was conducted using 281 burn victims and 273 hospital-based controls, which were matched by age, gender and place of residence (rural/urban). The characteristics of the children and their caregivers were analyzed using crude and adjusted models to test whether these were predictors of childhood burn injuries. Results The age of the caregiver was significantly lower for burn victims than for the controls (P<0.05). Further, the amount of time the caregiver spent outdoors with the child and their economic status had a significant positive association with the odds of a burn injury (P<0.05). A multivariate logistic regression found that Type A behaviour among caregivers was independently associated with the child's odds of suffering a burn injury (OR = 1.12, 95% CI: 1.04–1.21). The research also found that children with ADHD (Inattentive subscale: Crude OR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.16–3.95, Adjusted OR = 5.65, 95% CI: 2.53–12.61; Hyperactive subscale: Crude OR = 1.73, 95% CI: 1.23–2.41, Adjusted OR = 2.53, 95% CI: 1.65–3.87) also had increased odds of suffering a burn injury. However, several variables were identified as possible negative confounder variables, as the associations were stronger in the multivariate model than in the crude models

Prevalence of Macrosomia in Iran: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Macrosomia is a risk factor for adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes and previous studies have reported different prevalence of macrosomia in Iran. We conducted a meta-analysis to estimate the overall prevalence of macrosomia in Iran. Materials and Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted of all published literature pertaining to prevalence rates of macrosomia using international and national electronic databases ISI Web of Knowledge, PubMed, Scopus, SID, Magiran and Google Scholar from their inception until June 2017 with standard keywords. Egger test and Funnel plot were used to evaluate the publication bias and Cochran test and I2 statistics were used to examine the statistical heterogeneity. Pooled estimate of the prevalence of macrosomia were calculated using random effects meta-analysis. Results: A total of 40 studies were included in this meta-analysis. The publication bias assumption was rejected Egger test (P=0.719) and Funnel plot. The results of Cochran test and I2 statistics revealed substantial heterogeneity (Q=1040.5.00, df = 39, P2=96.3%). The overall prevalence of macrosomia using the random effect model in Iran was 5.2% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.4-5.9). Moreover, the macrosomia prevalence in Tehran and other cities were 3.9% (95% CI: 3.2-4.7) and 6.0% (95% CI: 5.0-7.1), respectively. Conclusion:The macrosomia rate in Iran is high. There is a critical need to improve the education and the gestational care and identifying at risk neonates to reduce the macrosomia rate and its adverse outcomes

The Relationship between Development Indices and Children’s Growth Among Under 12-Month-Old Children in Markazi Province, Iran

Background: The factors affecting children’s growth and development have been discussed in various research studies. This study evaluates the association between growth and development of under 12-month-old children in Iran.Methods: This cross-sectional study uses the Ages & Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) data and demographic characteristics in the child's health records of 15,885 Iranian children in Arak city up to March 2017. The impact of growth disorder, type of delivery, preterm birth, at birth weight/height/head circumference, gross motor, problem-solving, personal-social, communication, and fine motor on the participants’ head circumference/weight/height was assessed. Unadjusted analyses were done using independent sample t-test, Pearson correlation test and one-way analysis of variance. Multiple multivariate regression was utilized for adjusted effects. P-values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant.Results: Head circumference was associated with growth disorder, type of delivery, and preterm birth. Children with known and unknown growth disorders had 610.19 and 160.58 grams less weight than those without any growth disorder. Gross motor and personal-social aspects of ASQ were found to be associated with weight at the age of 12-month old. Height at 12-months was affected by growth disorder, gross motor, personal-social, communication, and fine motor.Conclusion: Results of this study show that cesarean type of delivery, preterm birth, and low birth weight are the impacting factors associated with negative children growth trends and lower developmental status at the age of 12 months

Estimating the Marginal Causal Effect and Potential Impact of Waterpipe Smoking on Risk of Multiple Sclerosis Using the Targeted Maximum Likelihood Estimation Method: A Large, Population-Based Incident Case-Control Study.

There are few if any reports regarding the role of lifetime waterpipe smoking in the etiology of multiple sclerosis (MS). In a population-based incident case-control study conducted in Tehran, Iran, we investigated the association between waterpipe smoking and MS, adjusted for confounders. Cases (n = 547) were patients aged 15-50 years identified from the Iranian Multiple Sclerosis Society between 2013 and 2015. Population-based controls (n = 1,057) were persons aged 15-50 years recruited through random digit telephone dialing. A doubly robust estimation method, the targeted maximum likelihood estimator (TMLE), was used to estimate the marginal risk ratio and odds ratio for the association between waterpipe smoking and MS. The estimated risk ratio and odds ratio were both 1.70 (95% confidence interval: 1.34, 2.17). The population attributable fraction was 21.4% (95% confidence interval: 4.0, 38.8). Subject to the limitations of case-control studies in interpreting associations causally, these results suggest that waterpipe use, or strongly related but undetermined factors, increases the risk of MS. Further epidemiologic studies, including nested case-control studies, are needed to confirm these findings

Socioeconomic Inequalities in Metastasis, Recurrence, Stage and Grade of Breast Cancer: A Hospital-based Retrospective Cohort Study

Background: This study aims to estimate the Socio-Economic Status (SES) inequality on the metastasis, recurrence, stage and grade in Breast Cancer (BC).Methods: This retrospective cohort study conducted on 411 BC patients in Arak, Iran. Asset-based questionnaire used to estimate the household SES. For calculate of SES inequality was used from Concentration Index (C). Moreover for investigate the association between recurrence and metastasis with other variables were used from multilevel logistic regression and analysis of variance were used to investigate the relationship between SES and other variables. The data were analyzed with Stata (v.13) software.Results: Results of analysis of variance showed statistical significant relationship between SES with, insurance, surgery, grade, stage, recurrence and metastasis (p-value &lt; 0.05). Moreover the Odds Ratio (OR) were significant of recurrence with age, academic level of education, supplementary insurance history of BC in first-degree relatives, stage and grade, also, metastasis with age of &gt;80 years, insurance, supplementary insurance, history of BC in first-degree relatives, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, stage and grade four. The total C index obtained 0.015 (0.002, 0.026), 0.011 (0.003, 0.031), -0.014 (-0.034, -0.001) and -0.042 (-0.061, -0.002) for metastasis, recurrence, stage and grade of BC respectively.Conclusion: Our results showed evidence of inequality in the metastasis, recurrence, stage and grade in BC patients