Estimation of sexual behavior in the 18-to-24-years-old Iranian youth based on a crosswise model study

Background: In many countries, negative social attitude towards sensitive issues such as sexual behavior has resulted in false and invalid data concerning this issue.This is an analytical cross-sectional study, in which a total number of 1500 single students from universities of Shahroud City were sampled using a multi stage technique. The students were assured that their information disclosed for the researcher will be treated as private and confidential. The results were analyzed using crosswise model, Crosswise Regression, T-test and Chi-square tests. Findings. It seems that the prevalence of sexual behavior among Iranian youth is 41% (CI = 36-53). Conclusion: Findings showed that estimation sexual relationship in Iranian single youth is high. Thus, devising training models according to the Islamic-Iranian culture is necessary in order to prevent risky sexual behavior. © 2014 Vakilian et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Prevalence of depression among infertile couples in Iran: A meta-analysis study

Background: Several studies have been conducted in Iran in order to investigate the prevalence of depression among infertile couples. However, there is a remarkable diversity among the results. This meta-analysis was conducted to estimate an overall prevalence rate of depression among infertile couples in Iran. Methods: International and national electronic databases were searched up to June 2011 including MEDLINE, Science Citation Index Expanded, Scopus, SID, MagIran, and IranMedex as well as conference databases. Furthermore, reference lists of articles were screened and the studies' authors were contacted for additional references. Cross-sectional studies addressing the prevalence of depression among infertile couples were included in this meta-analysis. We assessed 12 separate studies involving overall 2818 participants of which 1251 had depression. Results: Overall prevalence rate of depression among infertile couples was 0.47 (95% CI: 0.40, 0.55). The prevalence rate of depression was 0.44 (95% CI: 0.32, 0.56) during 2000 to 2005 and 0.50 (95% CI: 0.43, 0.57 during 2006 to 2011. The prevalence rate of depression was 0.46 (95% CI: 0.39, 0.53) among women and 0.47 (95% CI: 0.40, 0.54) among men. Conclusion: Not only the prevalence of depression in infertile couples was high but also had increasing growth in recent years. Furthermore, despite many studies conducted addressing the prevalence of depression in infertile couples, there is however a remarkable diversity between the results. Thus, one can hardly give a precise estimation of the prevalence rate of depression among infertile couples in Iran now

Short communication: The effect of feed ingredients on the settling velocity of feces in tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus L.)

Knowledge on the solid waste characteristics is valuable to set up a proper facility in order to increase the removal efficiency and also to understand the factors influencing waste quality. There are two main methods to evaluate removal efficiency of solids generated from a fish farm: feces recovery percentage and settling velocity of feces. Both the recovery efficiency and settling velocity of particles generally have a direct relationship to the weight and size of particles (the heavier the particle, the faster the deposit). Manipulation of diet composition alters fecal physical properties improving feces consistency and leading to a higher recovery and a larger particle size

Effects of prebiotic Immunogen on growth performance, intestinal bacteria colonization, and survival rate in Rutilus frisii fry

This study was carried out to determine the effects of Immunogen as a prebiotic on growth related parameters and gut micro-flora in R. frisii fry. A basal diet was formulated using common feed ingredients supplemented with Immunogen at 0, 1, 1.5, and 2 g.kg-1 leading to four experimental diets. Fish were randomly distributed in 500 L fiberglass tanks (1×1×0.5 m). The experiment lasted for eight weeks and the water temperature ranged between 21-24 °C. R. frisii fry with an initial weight of 300 ± 1.7 mg and were randomly distributed in the experimental tanks. At the end of the experiment, growth performance, feed efficiency, and gut micro-flora were assessed. Results showed that inclusion of 1g.kg-1 Immunogen improved final weight, feed conversion efficiency (FCR), and specific growth rate (SGR) (p<0.01) in the fry. A larger survival rate of R. frisii fry was observed at 1 g kg-1 prebiotic inclusion level (p<0.01). However, body protein, fat, and ash were not influenced by prebiotic inclusion. Supplementation of 1 g.kg-1 prebiotic increased the total count of bacteria (p<0.05), but bacterial count did not change at 1.5 and 2 g.kg-1 prebiotic inclusion compared to control diet. In conclusion, Immunogen administration of 1 g. kg- 1 is capable of improving the nutrients efficiency and performance of R. frisii fry through growth stimulation of beneficial intestinal bacteria

Assessment of questionnaires measuring quality of life in infertile couples: A systematic review

Background: Infertility has potentially inappropriate effects on quality of life in infertile couples. Various general and specific questionnaires have been structured for assessing different aspects of quality of life in infertile men, women, or couples. The present systematic review was designed to assess these questionnaires and also identify different factors affecting infertile couples based on the aforesaid questionnaires. Methods: The research strategy involved general and specific terms in relation to couples's infertility and their quality of life. A review was done for studies published from 1982 to 2012 that were indexed in Medline, ISI Web of Science and Scopus as well as abstract books on this subject. We also corresponded with the authors of the references in related studies for introducing more resources and references. Results: In all reviewed studies, different aspects of the quality of life in couples were evaluated including sexual, psychological, social, communicational, environmental, occupational, medical, as well as economical ones. In total, after initial screening of all studies, 10 general and 2 specific questionnaires were retrieved. Although no meta-analysis was found in the review, infertility had a negative effect on quality of life in couples. Conclusion: This study revealed that some general questionnaires such as SF-36 and WHO-QOL were mostly used for assessing quality of life in infertile couples and some specific questionnaires such as FERTI-QoL and Fertility Problem Inventory were rarely used. Thus, it seems that the evaluation of quality of life in infertile couples needs valid instruments for measurement

The Effect of the Breathing Technique With and Without Aromatherapy on the Length of the Active Phase and Second Stage of Labor

Background: Long and hard labor is a common complication of labor, which forms an important part of emergency Caesarean deliveries. Labor duration is an influencing factor on the pregnancy outcome and the injuries involving the mother and her fetus, such as infection, hemorrhage, and fetal distress. Objectives: This study was conducted intending to measure the duration of the first and the second stages of labor in mothers using the breathing techniques with lavender aroma. Materials and Methods: The project was a randomized trial study that was carried out with two groups of 60 respondents, where both used the breathing technique, one with and one without lavender essence. This study was done in Fatemieh hospital in Shahroud. The laboring mothers, being participated in the study, were candidates for vaginal delivery. The duration of the first stage of labor was recorded from cervical dilatation of three centimeters. The second stage of labor also was recorded from the full cervical dilatation time until child birth. The breathing technique was such that when the contraction began, a deep breath was taken and exhaled. Then fast shallow breathings, being 1.5 times more than ordinary breathing per minute, were performed. The mothers in the experimental group were asked to put the mask on their faces and inhale the lavender essence. In the control group, only the breathing technique was used. T-Test was used to compare the mean lengths of active phase and second phase of labor and demographic variables. Chi square test was used for nominal variables such as education and job. Results: The mean age in breathing technique with lavender and breathing technique alone were 25.5 ± 4.3 and 26 ± 4.9, respectively .Two groups were comparable in this regards (P = 0.6), but the length of active phase in interventional group was 7.85 ± 3.85 hours and in the control group it was 9.88 ± 6.65 hours. The decrease of the length of labor in the active phase was higher in the experimental group than that in the control group (P = 0.04). In the second stage, length of labor was 16.5 ± 5.7 and 28.9 ± 17.4 minutes in the experimental and control groups, respectively. Difference in length of labor was significant too (P = 0.001). Conclusions: The research showed that aromatherapy can be used to reduce labor duration

Content validity of national post marriage educational program using mixed methods

Background: Although the validity of content of program is mostly conducted with qualitative methods, this study used both qualitative and quantitative methods for the validation of content of post marriage training program provid-ed for newly married couples. Content validity is a preliminary step of obtaining authorization required to install the program in country's health care system. Methods: This mixed methodological content validation study carried out in four steps with forming three expert panels. Altogether 24 expert panelists were involved in 3 qualitative and quantitative panels; 6 in the first item devel-opment one; 12 in the reduction kind, 4 of them were common with the first panel, and 10 executive experts in the last one organized to evaluate psychometric properties of CVR and CVI and Face validity of 57 educational objectives. Results: The raw data of post marriage program had been written by professional experts of Ministry of Health, using qualitative expert panel, the content was more developed by generating 3 topics and refining one topic and its respec-tive content. In the second panel, totally six other objectives were deleted, three for being out of agreement cut of point and three on experts' consensus. The validity of all items was above 0.8 and their content validity indices (0.8-1) were completely appropriate in quantitative assessment. Conclusion: This study provided a good evidence for validation and accreditation of national post marriage program planned for newly married couples in health centers of the country in the near future. © 2015, Iranian Journal of Public Health. All right reserved

Full replacement of fishmeal by poultry by-product meal in rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum, 1972) diet

Along the plant ingredients, rendered animal protein sources such as blood meal, meat and bone meal and poultry by-product meal have potential to be replaced by fishmeal in rainbow trout feed. Therefore, the main objective of the present study is to determine the effect of full replacement of fishmeal by poultry by-products meal (PBM) on fish performance, nutrient digestibility and also liver characteristics in rainbow trout. Four experimental diets were formulated to contain graded levels of PBM at 0 (control diet), 33 (PBM33), 66 (PBM66) or 100% (PBM100), respectively. The four treatments were randomly assigned to each of 12 tanks, having three replicates for each treatment. Rainbow trout juveniles with an average initial weight of 50±0.42g were reared for two months. The fish gained lower weight and specific growth rate at PBM 66% and 100%. FCR was recorded larger for rainbow trout feeding on PBM 66% and 100% in comparison to PBM 33% and control diets (p<0.05). The whole exchange of fishmeal by PBM (PBM100%) reduced dry matter, fat and protein digestibility (p<0.05). An increase in PBM content of diet also resulted in larger fat content of the fish liver (p<0.05). Body fat content reduced and moisture content increased by increasing PBM level (p<0.05). In conclusion, PBM can be included in rainbow trout feed as an alternative for fishmeal up to 33%. A larger fat content of liver at PBM 100% may indicate a negative impact of PBM on rainbow trout health at full replacement level

Effect of different Alphamune levels in artificial diet on growth parameters, digestibility and enzyme activity of rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum 1792)

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of Alphamune, a mixed prebiotic composed of mannan-oligosaccharide and β-glucans, on the growth performance, digestibility and enzyme activity of rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss. A basal diet was formulated using common feed ingredients supplemented with Alphamune at 0, 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 g.kg^-1 leading to five experimental diets. Obtained results showed that inclusion of dietary Alphamune significantly increased the final weight and weight gain (p0.05). Also apparent digestibility coefficient (ADC) was not affected by dietary addition of the prebiotic (p>0.05). Our results indicated that amlayse and lipase activities were not significantly influenced by administration of different doses of Alphamune. The result also showed that trypsin activity was gradually increased with increasing of the probiotic level (p>0.05). In conclusion, inclusion of the prebiotic Alphamune can improve the nutrient efficiency and growth performance of rainbow trout confirming the positive effect of a mixture of prebiotics on fish

Experimental and numerical analysis of water hammer in a large-scale PVC pipeline apparatus

This paper investigates the effects of the pipe-wall viscoelasticity on water-hammer pressures. A large-scale pipeline apparatus made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) at Deltares, Delft, The Netherlands, has been used to carry out waterhammer experiments. Tests have been conducted in a reservoir-pipe-valve system with a 275.2 m long DN250 PVC pipeline. Rapid closure of a manually operated ball valve at the downstream end generated water hammer. Computed results are compared with experimental runs. Calibrated creep functions have been obtained using optimization in conjunction with an inverse hydraulic transient solver and these are used in the simulations. It is shown that the incorporation of both unsteady skin friction and viscoelastic pipe wall mechanical behaviour in the hydraulic transient model contributes to a favourable fitting between numerical results and observed data. Keywords: Water hammer, Unsteady Skin Friction, Viscoelasticity, Pipeline Apparatus, PVC Pipe