Esmat Boshaq; Fereshteh Davoodi; Reza Bahari; Kimia Taheri Aligoodarzi
Volume 24, Issue 1 , 2022
Abstract
Background: Nurses have experienced severe psychological stress which seriously affected their mental health during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic due to exposure to numerous critically ill patients, increased working time, and their colleagues disease or demise.
Objectives: The present ...
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Background: Nurses have experienced severe psychological stress which seriously affected their mental health during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic due to exposure to numerous critically ill patients, increased working time, and their colleagues disease or demise.
Objectives: The present study aimed to examine clinical nurses' mental health status and elucidate its relationship with the quality of care provided by them.
Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in 2020 on the nurses working at two hospitals affiliated with Lorestan University of Medical Sciences. A total of 104 nurses were selected from all wards via convenience sampling. The data were collected using the Quality Patient Care Scale and Goldberg and Williams's General Health Questionnaire to check nurses general health status. Statistical tests, including canonical correlation analysis, were used to analyze the data in SPSS software (version 20).
Results: There was a negative correlation between mental health and the quality of care provided by male (=-0.556; P<0.001) and female (=-0.351; P=0.017) nurses. Social dysfunction, anxiety, and insomnia in male nurses, as well as somatic symptoms and social dysfunction in female nurses, had the largest share of their general health, while physical care had the largest share of nursing care quality
Conclusion: As evidenced by the obtained results, female nurses had better mental health status and provided higher-quality nursing care during the COVID-19 pandemic, as compared to male nurses. This higher quality may be attributed to women's better mental health status. The important findings of the current study highlight the necessity of regular programs for the improvement of nurses' mental health, thereby enhancing the quality of nursing care.
Miran Gholami; Paria Ghahremani; Zhaleh Mohsenifar; Mohammad Mahdi Jaafarzadeh; Ali Momeni; Mohammad Reza Parvizi
Volume 24, Issue 1 , 2022
Abstract
Background: Lead, as the most important toxic heavy element, has several devastating effects on human health and influences most biochemical and physiological functions. It is widely accepted that lead can adversely affect the cardiovascular system since it can be quickly absorbed and recycled in the ...
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Background: Lead, as the most important toxic heavy element, has several devastating effects on human health and influences most biochemical and physiological functions. It is widely accepted that lead can adversely affect the cardiovascular system since it can be quickly absorbed and recycled in the blood strain.
Objectives: This survey scrutinized the effects of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on the oxidative damage, inflammation, and expression of protein kinase C-alpha (PKC-?) and ankyrin repeat domain 1 (ANKRD1) genes in the heart tissue of rats exposed to lead (Pb).
Methods: The rats were incidentally divided into five groups, including four study groups for the investigation of the effects of the single and continuous doses of lead were examined with and without NAC and a control group (G1). The levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), interleukin (IL)-10, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-?) were analyzed. A reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction was applied to investigate the expression of PKC-? and ANKRD1 genes.
Results: Continuous exposure to Pb significantly decreased serum levels of TAC and IL-10; however, it increased MDA and TNF-? contents (P<0.001). The continuous dose of Pb also dramatically increased the expression of PKC-? and ANKRD1 genes in the cardiac tissue by 4.27-fold and 3.07-fold, respectively (P<0.001). N-acetylcysteine treatments not only improved morphological changes, oxidative stress, and inflammatory biomarkers but also compensated antioxidant capacity and the expression of PKC-? and ANKRD1 genes in cardiac tissues.
Conclusion: Lead exposure is remarkably related to cardiotoxicity mainly by inducing oxidative stress, inflammation, and antioxidant discharge. N-acetylcysteine ameliorates Pb-induced cardiotoxicity by improving the antioxidants capacity, mitigating oxidative stress, and down expressing PKC-? and ANKRD1 genes.
Reza Mahdian Jouibari; Abolfazl Movafagh; Alireza Molaei
Volume 23, Issue 11 , 2021
Abstract
Background: Neural tube defects (NTDs) are classed as multifactorial birth defects of the brain and spinal cord that arise during embryonic development. Although the etiology is not well understood, NTDs are reported to be prevented by maternal folic acid supplementation before and during early pregnancy.
Objectives: ...
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Background: Neural tube defects (NTDs) are classed as multifactorial birth defects of the brain and spinal cord that arise during embryonic development. Although the etiology is not well understood, NTDs are reported to be prevented by maternal folic acid supplementation before and during early pregnancy.
Objectives: This meta-analysis study aimed to assess the association between fetal and maternal methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T and methionine synthase reductase (MTRR) A66G polymorphisms with the risk of NTDs.
Methods: The PubMed, Scopus, and Springer Link databases were searched (from March 2000 to November 2020) for the literature on the association between MTHFR C677T and MTRR A66G polymorphisms with the risk of NTDs.
Results: In total, 33 studies were reviewed in the present study, and it was revealed that, unlike MTRR A66G polymorphism, MTHFR C677T was statistically associated with the risk of NTDs in the overall population. The results of subgroup analysis showed that the Indian subcontinent subgroup with maternal MTHFR C677T polymorphism and the European subgroup with fetal MTHFR C677T polymorphism was significantly susceptible to NTDs.
Conclusion: The obtained results revealed that, unlike MTRR A66G, maternal and fetal MTHFR C677T polymorphisms were significantly associated with NTDs. Subgroup analysis also demonstrated that folic acid deprivation can be considered the main cause of MTHFR C677T polymorphism in some areas.
Fatemeh Asadi Rahmani; Najmeh Ranji; Hamid Saeidi Saedi
Volume 23, Issue 6 , 2021
Abstract
Background: Gastric cancer (GC) is the most prevalent malignancy worldwide and a common cause of death in Iran. Studies have proved that a variety of dysregulated microRNAs is involved in the development and progression of gastric cancer.
Objectives: The present study aimed to evaluate the expression ...
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Background: Gastric cancer (GC) is the most prevalent malignancy worldwide and a common cause of death in Iran. Studies have proved that a variety of dysregulated microRNAs is involved in the development and progression of gastric cancer.
Objectives: The present study aimed to evaluate the expression levels of plasma circulating oncogenic miR-21 and miR-192 and their association with clinical phenotypes of patients with gastric cancer in the north of Iran.
Methods: Clinico-pathological analysis was conducted using a standard protocol and pathological tests. The expression levels of miR-21 and miR-192 were measured using quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction in the plasma of twenty pre/post-operative gastric cancer patients and twenty healthy subjects. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of these microRNAs was analyzed to investigate their diagnosis properties.
Results: The study results indicated that plasma miR-21 expression was significantly associated with tumor stage and helicobacter pylori infection status (P=0.024, P=0.0004, respectively). However, no association was observed between clinic-pathological characteristics and miR-192 expression. The results showed that the plasma levels of miR-21 (P=0.0001) and miR-192 (P=0.0007) were significantly higher in GC patients compared to those in healthy individuals. Furthermore, the ROC analyses yielded the mean ±SD area under the curve (AUC) values of 0.9525±0.03 (P<0.0001) and 0.5925±0.09 (P=0.316) for miR-21 and miR-192, respectively. Pearson regression analysis showed that there was no significant correlation between the expression of miR-21 and miR-192 (P=0.1507).
Conclusion: Based on the obtained results, the expression of the plasma level of miR-21 was significantly higher in gastric cancer patients compared to that in the healthy group. Furthermore, the higher levels of AUC in miR-21 indicated the potential role of miR-21 as a noninvasive biomarker for the prognosis of gastric cancer in the population of the north of Iran.
Amir Hosein Ghazale; Ali Ghazvini; Mostafa Ghanei; Ensieh Vahedi; Abolfazl Mozafari; Shideh Omidian; Mohammad Rezapour; Nafiseh Rastgoo; Fatemeh Movaseghi; Fateme Mansouri; Mohammad Ali Zohal; Maryam Gheraati; Seyed Hassan Saadat; Hassan Goodarzi; Mohammad Gholami Fesharaki; Amir Mohammad Dehghan Banadkooki; Shahrzad Saloo; Hesamodin Salou
Volume 23, Issue 6 , 2021
Abstract
Background:
COVID-19 is a new disease for which a definitive treatment has not yet been proposed. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of combination therapy on the treatment of COVID-19 due to the importance of finding an appropriate treatment for this epidemic disease.
Materials ...
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Background:
COVID-19 is a new disease for which a definitive treatment has not yet been proposed. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of combination therapy on the treatment of COVID-19 due to the importance of finding an appropriate treatment for this epidemic disease.
Materials and Methods:
This two-center cohort study included 175 confirmed COVID-19 inpatients at two medical centers designated for the treatment of COVID-19 patients in Qom and Qazvin, Iran. In this study, four different groups of drug regimens were studied which included G1 (azithromycin, prednisolone, and naproxen), G2 (lopinavir/ritonavir, azithromycin, naproxen, and prednisolone), G3 (hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin, naproxen, and prednisolone), and G4 (levofloxacin, vancomycin, hydroxychloroquine, and oseltamivir). It should be noted that G1, G2, G3, and G4 treatment regimens were used on 48, 39,30, and 77 patients, respectively.
Results:
The study participants included 175 confirmed COVID-19 patients with mean±SD age of 58.9 ±15.1 years, out of whom 80 (46%) patients were male and the rest were females. The results indicated that the hospital stay period was significantly shorter in the G1 compared to other groups (G1:5.9±2.4, G2:8.1±4.2, G3: 6.3±1.7, and G4: 6.4±2.9; [P-value=0.008]). It should be noted that pulse rate, oxygen saturation, hemoglobin, and platelet count (PLT) changed significantly during the study in four treatment groups; however, a significant change in temperature, creatinine, and white blood cell (WBC) was observed only in G3, G4, and G1 groups, respectively. The number of ICU admissions and deaths were not statistically significant among the patients who received the four treatment regimens (P=0.785). Based on the results, the history of ischemic heart disease, baseline oxygen saturation, WBC, neutrophil, lymphocyte count, and C-reactive protein (CRP) are the risk factors for the prolonged hospital stay in COVID-19 patients.
Conclusion:
The obtained results in this study indicated that the combination of azithromycin, prednisolone, and naproxen is the most effective regimen for the treatment of COVID-19, compared to three other combination treatment regimens.
Atefeh Mousavi; Soheila Rezaei; Jamshid Salamzadeh; Ali Mirzazadeh; Farzad Peiravian; Nazila yousefi
Volume 23, Issue 5 , 2021
Abstract
Background: Reports, mostly from high-income countries, have shown a wide range of symptoms, clinical profiles, and outcomes for patients diagnosed with COVID-19. However, little is known about these issues in developing countries.
Objectives: This research used medical records in 15 hospitals in Tehran, ...
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Background: Reports, mostly from high-income countries, have shown a wide range of symptoms, clinical profiles, and outcomes for patients diagnosed with COVID-19. However, little is known about these issues in developing countries.
Objectives: This research used medical records in 15 hospitals in Tehran, the capital city of Iran, to assess predictors of in-hospital mortality in patients diagnosed with COVID-19.
Methods: The required information was extracted from patients' medical records, including age, gender, laboratory data (complete blood count, serum electrolytes, and liver, renal, and muscle injury tests) at admission, and the outcome of in-hospital mortality (yes/no) of 4,542 adult patients with confirmed COVID-19. This research used logistic regression to assess the predictors for mortality (measured as adjusted odds ratio [aOR]) and Chi-square automatic interaction detector to classify high-risk patients in different age groups as a decision tree model. Two models were developed through a machine learning approach.
Results: Overall, 822 (18.09%) cases passed away in the hospital. Mortality risk was increased from 4.33% in patients aged 18-40 years old to 40.96% in those aged 80+ years old. After adjusting for covariates, age (aOR 1.62 to 7.05 vs. those aged 18-40 years old), high aspartate transaminase (aOR 1.64 to 3.21), high alkaline phosphatase (aOR=2.17), low sodium (aOR=1.31), high sodium level (aOR=5.05), high potassium (aOR=2.41), low calcium (aOR=2.31), high creatine phosphokinase (aOR=2.21 to 2.24), and high creatinine (aOR=3.43) were significantly associated with in-hospital mortality.
Conclusion: Based on the results of our study, the mortality rate was high among in-hospital patients, particularly among older age and those who had liver and renal dysfunctions, muscle injury, and electrolyte imbalance at admission. Triage and special care for these high-risk patients can improve in-hospital outcomes.
Chen Peng; Yu Xing; Huang Tao; Deng Yongbing; Huang Jingrui
Volume 23, Issue 4 , 2021
Abstract
Abstract
Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) seriously affects the quality of life of patients. The present study evaluated the role of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) combined with Neuron-Specific Enolase (NSE) and S100 calcium-binding protein B (S100B) protein in predicting the prognosis ...
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Abstract
Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) seriously affects the quality of life of patients. The present study evaluated the role of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) combined with Neuron-Specific Enolase (NSE) and S100 calcium-binding protein B (S100B) protein in predicting the prognosis of moderate and severe TBI.
Methods: The TBI patients were divided into moderate TBI (TBIm) and severe TBI (TBIs) groups according to the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) after admission. The patients were then divided into good and poor prognosis groups according to the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS); moreover, their follow-ups were recorded at 3 and 6 months after injury. This study also included 65 healthy individuals with matched age and gender as the control group. The fractional anisotropy (FA) values of DTI, serum neuron-specific enolase (NSE), and S100B protein levels were detected in this study. The data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 22.0) to evaluate the role of DTI combined with NSE and S100B protein in predicting the prognosis in TBIm and TBIs.
Results: After TBI, the FA values of DTI in the TBI group were lower than those in the control group (P<0.05); moreover, the serum NSE and S100B values in the TBI group were higher than those in the control group (P<0.05). In the TBIm patients, the FA values of the corpus callosum in the good prognosis group were higher than that in the poor prognosis group (P<0.05); however, there was no significant difference between the two groups regarding the FA values of the internal capsule and the cerebral peduncle (P>0.05). The serum levels of NSE and S100B in the good prognosis group were significantly lower than those in the poor prognosis group (P<0.05). In the TBIs patients, the FA value of all areas in the good prognosis group was significantly higher than that in the poor prognosis group (P<0.05). However, there was no significant difference between the two prognosis groups regarding the serum levels of NSE and S100B (P>0.05).
Conclusion: Although DTI combined with NSE and S100B protein can effectively predict the prognosis of patients with moderate and severe TBI in the early stages, various other measures have been used in the studies to predict the prognosis of TBI patients. Accordingly, comparison with other measures is essential in further studies.
Nastaran Ahmadi; Seyed Mostafa Seyed Hosseini; Fatemeh Rismanian Yazdi; Masoud Mirzaei; Faezeh Dehghani-Tafti; Seyed Mahmood Sadr Bafghi; Amir Houshang Mehrparvar
Volume 23, Issue 4 , 2021
Abstract
Abstract
Background: Dyslipidemia, a genetic and multifactorial disorder of lipoprotein metabolism, is defined by elevations in the levels of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C), triglyceride, or some combination thereof ...
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Abstract
Background: Dyslipidemia, a genetic and multifactorial disorder of lipoprotein metabolism, is defined by elevations in the levels of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C), triglyceride, or some combination thereof as well as lower levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol.
Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and predictors of dyslipidemia in children and adolescents in the Yazd Greater Area, Yazd, Iran.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted as a part of the national project implemented in Yazd Greater Area, Yazd, Iran. The sampling was performed using a multi-stage cluster sampling method on three age groups of girls and boys, including 6-9, 10-14, and 15-18 years old. Out of the total 1,035 children and adolescents who initially participated in this study, only 784 participants remained until the end. Data collection was performed using lifestyle questionnaires including Kiddie-SADS-Present and Lifetime Version software.
Results: The rate of high triglyceride was estimated at 1.4% and 4.2% in 6-9 and 10-18 years old children and adolescents, respectively. Moreover, the prevalence of high cholesterol, LDL, and HDL were obtained at 3.2%, 3.2%, and 25.6%, respectively. The prevalence of dyslipidemia in the total population of children and adolescents was estimated at 64.6% and 57.3% in boys and girls, respectively (P=0.038) in terms of demographic variables. Gender and increase in body mass index (BMI) were significantly associated with dyslipidemia with OR=1.35; 95% CI: 1.01-1.81 and OR=13.781; 95% CI: 3.78- 46.43, respectively. However, after adjustment for other factors, only an increase in BMI was significantly associated with dyslipidemia (OR=16.08; 95% CI: 4.49-57.59).
Conclusion: Overweight and obese adolescents had a higher concentration of serum blood triglycerides, compared to their counterparts. Weight control, lifestyle, and diet modification are three ways to reduce lipid disorders in adolescents.
Amin Ghobadi; Akram Mousavi; Hadis Mosavi; Majid Malekzadeh Shafaroudi; Abbas Khonakdar-Tarsi
Volume 23, Issue 4 , 2021
Abstract
Background: Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is an injurious phenomenon that is the primary determinant of liver dysfunction after surgery and transplantation. The present evidence demonstrated that connexin 43 (Cx43), Cx32, and Cx26 are the essential gap junction proteins involved in the liver IRI. ...
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Background: Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is an injurious phenomenon that is the primary determinant of liver dysfunction after surgery and transplantation. The present evidence demonstrated that connexin 43 (Cx43), Cx32, and Cx26 are the essential gap junction proteins involved in the liver IRI. This study aimed to characterize the beneficial effects of silibinin on Cx43, Cx32, and Cx26 gene expression during warm hepatic ischemia-reperfusion (IR).
Materials and Methods: A total of 32 male Wistar rats weighing 250-300 g were randomly divided into four equal groups of eight animals in each group as follows: 1) control group (laparotomy+normal saline), 2) laparotomy+silibinin (30 mg/kg) (SILI), 3) liver IR procedure+normal saline (IR), and 4) liver IR procedure+silibinin (30 mg/kg) (IR+SILI). After 1 h of ischemia followed by 3 h of reperfusion, blood samples and tissue sections were gathered to assess the serum liver markers and evaluate the liver histological changes as well as gene expression, respectively.
Results: The obtained data proved no considerable differences between control and SILI groups in all experiments. Furthermore, the gene expression of Cx26, Cx32, and Cx43 was significantly induced in the IR group, compared to the control group. Silibinin markedly reduced Cx26 and Cx32 mRNA expression, whereas increased Cx43 mRNA expression. Moreover, serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase levels were markedly elevated in the IR group (P<0.001), compared to the control group. However, in the IR+SILI group, silibinin could significantly decline these elevations, compared to the IR group. In addition, silibinin diminished hepatic tissue damages during IR.
Conclusion: Silibinin could attenuate liver injury through better cell-to-cell communication via lowering Cx32 and Cx26, as well as increasing Cx43 gene expression, respectively.
