The Examination of the Reasons for the Need to Change and Integrate in the Dental Curriculum in Iran and the World

Objectives The aim of this research was to examine the reasons for the need to change and bring about integration in the dental curriculum in Iran and worldwide.Methods The qualitative method was used in this research. The real experiences of some reliable universities over the world and in Iran were studied on the necessity to change the dental curriculum and the integrated curriculum through library studies. In addition, the information obtained from this study was analyzed and interpreted based on the theoretical reasoning and empirical achievements of the authoritative and reliable universities.Results The result of the examination of these experiences of the various universities on the modification and integration of the dental curriculum showed that the high cost of education in this discipline and dissatisfaction of the students with the teaching methods in this field were among the most important reasons for the change in the dental curriculum in Iran and globally.  The integrated pattern of the curriculum of the universities was associated with the positive consequences on the review and applied changes in the dental curriculum.Conclusion In total, the axis of the activities of changing and modifying the curriculum in these universities was established by the focus on the integrated approaches, including  " educating research", "the evidence-based dental”, and "entering new knowledge in the dental curriculum"

The effectiveness of emotion regulation group training in reducing depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms in women during pregnancy

Background: Pregnancy and childbirth is a natural function but it is also a stressful and critical period that increases women’s vulnerability to psychological problems and also increases the mental health problems of the woman and her fetus, so they need interventions to improve maternal health during this time. This study investigated the effectiveness of emotion regulation group training in reducing depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms in women during pregnancy and postpartum. Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental study had a pre-test, post-test and follow-up (2 months follow after delivery). The study population consisted of 31 pregnant women who were randomly divided into intervention (n = 15) and control (n = 16) groups. The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Questionnaire (DASS-21) was used in this study. Eight sessions of emotion regulation group training were administered to the intervention group and the control group received information about pregnancy and childbirth during 4 sessions. After intervention and also two months after delivery, the questionnaires were completed again. The results of the scales were analyzed by SPSS software using repeated measures analysis of variance. Results: The data analysis showed that depression, anxiety and stress in the intervention group are decreasing from pre-test to post-test and follow-up significantly more than control group. Conclusion: According to the results of this study, emotion regulation group training can be effective in reducing of depression, anxiety and stress symptoms in pregnant women

Interpretation of in-situ shear test for brick masonry: a benchmark study

The determination of the shear strength parameters by means of in-situ shove test is a key issue in the material characterization of unreinforced brick masonry buildings. The wall stress distribution following the removal of the bricks and the mortar joint dilatancy affect the determination of the friction angle and the initial shear strength respectively. A new approach for the definition of the compression in the test unit and the evaluation of the effect of the joint dilatancy on the initial shear strength has been developed. The compression in the test unit is evaluated based on simple formulas which relate the compression stress on the test unit to both the geometry of the specimen and the existing compression on the wall. The joint dilatancy produces an increment of both shear and normal stress at the initial phase of the shove test when the specimen is at low level of compression and at small relative horizontal displacements. In particular, it was observed that the increment of normal stress is due to restrain the tendency of the joint to expand vertically while the brick is pushed. The new approach was validated by means of an experimental benchmark campaign developed at University of Pavia and Delft University of Technology in which specimens made by replicated brick masonry were subjected to triplet tests

Barley-based probiotic food mixture : health effects and future prospects

Consumers around the globe are increasingly aware of the relation between nutrition and health. In this sense, food products that can improve gastrointestinal health such as probiotics, prebiotics and synbiotics are the most important segment within functional foods. Cereals are the potential substrates for probiotic products as they contain nutrients easily assimilated by probiotics and serve as the transporters of Lactobacilli through the severe conditions of gastrointestinal tract. Barley is one of the important substrates for the probiotic formulation because of its high phenolic compounds, beta-glucans and tocols. The purpose of this review is to examine recent information regarding barley-based probiotic foods with a specific focus on the potential benefits of barley as a substrate for probiotic microorganisms in the development of dairy and nondairy based food products, and to study the effects of food matrices containing barley beta-glucans on the growth and features of Lactobacillus strains after fermentation.Peer reviewe

Intertextual Relations of “Hereafter” in Nahj al-Balagha and the Quran

Intertextuality is a theory of interaction or relation between texts, which results in the creation of a novel idea. On this theory, every text or writing is derived from other texts, and there is no writing apart from other writings. The Quran, as the guidebook of humankind, affects the hadiths of the Prophet and Shiite Imams (a), which is why the latter frequently cite the former. One text of hadiths, which bears an intertextual relation with Quranic verses, is Nahj al-Balagha. Focused on the theme of the “hereafter,” this research adopts a descriptive-analytical method to answer the following question: How to analyze the intertextual relations between Nahj al-Balagha and the Quran on the theme of the “hereafter”? The results show that there are only two cases of full intertextuality in Nahj al-Balagha. In several parts of Nahj al-Balagha, there is modified intertextuality, but there is widespread allusive intertextuality in the words of Imam ʿAlī (a), as he frequently talks about the hereafter using themes from Quranic verses

Evaluation of HER2 gene amplification status in invasive breast cancer patients by Fluorescence in Situ Hybridization analysis and its correlation with clinical features

Precise assessment of HER2 gene status as an important biomarker plays a significant role in identifying the eligible patients for Trastuzumab therapy and determining their clinical outcomes. In this study, the researchers assigned HER2 amplification status in invasive breast cancer specimens by Fluorescence in Situ Hybridization (FISH) and determined its association with other clinical features. Formalin-fixed paraffin embedded tumor tissue specimens of 46 patients with invasive breast cancer were collected from November 2011 till May 2012. HER2status was evaluated by FISH. The Zytolight SPEC HER2/CEN17 dual color probe kit was applied for assessment of HER2status. HER2 gene amplification was defined as HER2/CEP17 ratio>2.2.The association between HER2status and clinical features like tumor grade, tumor type, tumor size, axillary lymph node involvement and age of patient was done using Chi squared test at the 0.05 level of significance (p value). Amplification of HER2 gene was detected in twelve cases (26%). On statistical analysis HER2status showed correlation with tumor grade (p=0.02).There was no correlation between HER2status and tumor type, tumor size, lymph node status and age of patients. The results of this study are consonant with the findings of other studies about the presence of HER2 gene amplification in invasive breast cancer. Statistical analysis showed patients with HER2 amplified gene have tumors with higher grade. In these patients the probability of increased proliferation and metastasis is high therefore evaluation of HER2 gene amplification status in breast cancer patients specially in high grade tumor with an accurate method such as FISH is essentia

The Effects of Occupational Stress on Quality of Life and Associated Factors among Hospital Nurses in Iran

Nurses deal with many crises at work. It is obvious that being exposed to stress for long, results in severe physical and mental complications and affects individual is welfare. This study was aimed at determining the quality of life (QOL) of nurses and whether there is any relation between occupational stress and QOL. This analytical-descriptive cross sectional study was carried out in University hospitals of Zanjan, Iran. 241 nurses were sampled using proportional to size stratified method. The data were collected by means of Iranian version of the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) and a questionnaire on demographic information and work factors. Occupational stress was measured by Toft Gray and Anderson’s tool. The questionnaires were filled by nurses themselves and the data were analyzed by Spearman’s Correlation test, Kruskal-Wallis and one-way ANOVA and Enter-method Regression with SPSS 16.0 software. The results showed a high level of occupational stress among nurses, which adversely affected their quality of life. According to the results QOL of male and female nurses differ with men having a higher QOL and less occupational stress. 2 work factors, satisfaction and others positive attitude towards nursing, affected all dimensions of QOL and occupational stress. There was no significant correlation between QOL or occupational stress and factors like position, shift, ward, experience, time off, overtime hours, interest in desertion and education. According to harmful effects of occupational stress on nurses, cognitive-behavioral interventions, learning coping strategies are proposed