Original Article
Masoomeh Ghanavat Amani; Reza Jalilzadeh Yengejeh
Abstract
Background: The main aspect of water purification to serve the human drinking purpose is the elimination of microbial agents and pathogens using the disinfectants. Although chemicals such as chlorine are the most common water disinfectants, the researchers have always sought to identify and ...
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Background: The main aspect of water purification to serve the human drinking purpose is the elimination of microbial agents and pathogens using the disinfectants. Although chemicals such as chlorine are the most common water disinfectants, the researchers have always sought to identify and introduce new disinfectants due to the formation of potentially carcinogenic byproducts. Owing to the high efficiency and lack of hazardous residues, nanoparticles have recently been used in many scientific activities. Objectives: In this study conducted in summer 2018, the copper and silver nanoparticles were used to remove Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Klebsiella from the synthetic and real samples. Methods: This experimental study was performed on Nano particles and by adding nanoparticles to samples (real and synthetic), the efficiency of removal of E. coli and Klebsiella was measured by MPN and pure plate methods. Results: By optimizing the conditions, in 200 ppm concentration as 2ml with pH=7, it has the highest removal rate of 99.25% for E. coli, and in 250ppm concentration as 1.5 ml with pH = 7, it has the removal rate of 81.25% for Klebsiella. Conclusions: In this case study, we found that using Nano particles led to high level of efficiency at a short time; moreover, they were cost-effective and environmentally friendly.
Original Articles
Sanaz Amiri; Forough Saki; Mozhgan Seif; Alireza Mirahmadizadeh
Abstract
Background: Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) or type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is known as a chronic autoimmune disease with an increasing prevalence and incidence. This study was conducted to determine the incidence rate and prevalence of insulin-dependent diabetes in Iran in 2016 and 2017. ...
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Background: Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) or type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is known as a chronic autoimmune disease with an increasing prevalence and incidence. This study was conducted to determine the incidence rate and prevalence of insulin-dependent diabetes in Iran in 2016 and 2017. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, the prevalence of IDDM in insured subjects under the age of 19 was measured through the prescribed insulin in two consecutive years. In this study, we assumed that IDDM patients are those who receive at least one prescription containing any insulin over 2 years in insurance databases. This study was carried out on 98% of patients under age 19, and the prevalence and incidence of IDDM were calculated. Finally, the result of this method was compared with Integrated Health System (IHS) databases. Results: In general, 1,135,105 insured persons under 19 years of age were enrolled in this study, and the prevalence rates of IDDM in subjects under 19 were 117.6 (111.5-124.2) and 136.8 (130.1-143.8) per 100,000 in 2016 and 2017, respectively. The incidence rate of this disease was 27.4 (24.6-30.8) per 100,000. The highest incidence and prevalence were significantly observed in the age group of 14-19 years. The prevalence of IDDM was not significantly different between boys and girls. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that the method of prescription follow up was appropriate, acceptable, convenient, and accurate. Our findings showed that the incidence and prevalence of IDDM in this method were in line with other worldwide reliable and accurate reports, even in the developed countries. The results of the present study showed that the prevalence and incidence rate of IDDM in Iran (Fars province) is at an intermediate level.
Original Article
Abiodun Ebenezer Kolapo; Olayinka Stephen Ilesanmi; Temitope Olajumoke Omoju; Olugbenga Adeola Odukanmi; Dayo Olufemi Akanbi; James Olatunde Okediran; Muhammad Shakir Balogun
Abstract
Background: This study aimed to assess the knowledge, perception, and sources of COVID-19 information among Nigerian youths. Methods: We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional study among 817 National Youth Service Corps members. Participants’ overall general knowledge about COVID-19 was ...
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Background: This study aimed to assess the knowledge, perception, and sources of COVID-19 information among Nigerian youths. Methods: We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional study among 817 National Youth Service Corps members. Participants’ overall general knowledge about COVID-19 was assessed using nine questions that consisted of general knowledge on the cause, origin, mode of transmission, signs and symptoms, availability of a potent vaccine and specific therapy, prevention strategies of COVID-19 and knowledge of proper handwashing practices. P-values Results: The mean age of the respondents was 24.1± 2 years, 317 (41.2%) were males, and 73 (8.9%) had studied a health-related course. Of the 754 respondents who responded to the COVID-19 knowledge questions, 187 (24.8%) had general knowledge about COVID-19, while 280 (37.1%) had knowledge in all domains; mode of spread, symptoms and signs, and prevention of COVID-19. Among the respondents, 129 (40.7%) males had satisfactory knowledge of COVID-19 (p=0.070), while 38 participants (52.1%) who had studied a health-related course had satisfactory knowledge of COVID-19 (p=0.003). Regarding the knowledge of handwashing, 184 (58%) males displayed satisfactory knowledge (p=0.007). Social media (64.4%) and television (58%) were the main sources of COVID-19 information. Respondents who had studied a health-related course were twice likely to have satisfactory knowledge of COVID-19 (AOR=2, 95% CI=1.25-2.5 p=0.003,) and six times likely to have satisfactory knowledge of handwashing (AOR=5.6, 95%CI=3.3-10.0, p=<0.0001). Conclusion: Utilization of both social media and the mainstream mass media in disseminating health education information and correcting fake news and misconceptions is needed. Health promotion strategies should be organized for all youths, especially among those who have no previous education in the health and allied courses.
Original Article
Mohammad Hoseini; Solmaz Aslan Pour; Gholam Hossein Safari
Abstract
Background: Health care waste (HCW) management is highly important and has received special attention from the authorities and people. Objectives: This study was conducted to investigate the management of HCW in general and specialized hospitals of Tabriz, Iran. Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional ...
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Background: Health care waste (HCW) management is highly important and has received special attention from the authorities and people. Objectives: This study was conducted to investigate the management of HCW in general and specialized hospitals of Tabriz, Iran. Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, field investigations were conducted on gathering data on HCW management activities using the WHO questionnaire including 100 questions through observation. Results: This study indicated that the total in-use beds in the studied hospitals were 3953 beds. The total amount of generating wastes in the hospitals was 13349.5 kg day-1, of which 10059 kg day-1 (75.4%) was general waste and the remaining 24.6% (3290.5 kg day-1) was categorized as medical waste. The medical waste was categorized further into infectious (3002.50 kg day-1), sharp (171.80 kg day-1), chemical (63.15 kg day-1), and pathological (52.55 kg day-1) wastes. In general and specialized hospitals, 56% and 31% of the waste separation was at a good level, respectively. The results showed that the chemical process (37.5%) was the mostly used method for the treatment of medical waste in the studied hospitals. Conclusions: Generally, the rate of waste generation in general hospitals was more than that in specialized hospitals. Higher waste generation in general hospitals can be due to the fact that in these hospitals the amount and diversity of the health services provided were more than specialized hospitals. Good separation of general wastes from medical ones, proper health waste management, and training of staff for correct segregation of wastes can lead to a reduction of treatment charges.
Original Article
Masoumeh Bagheri; Hamzeh Alipour; Ali Keshawarz
Abstract
Background: Scorpion sting is one of the serious and major medical problems in the world. Shiraz is a tourist city and one of the high-risk areas where a number of scorpion sting occurs annually.
Objectives: The present research aimed to conduct an epidemiological study of scorpion sting in Shiraz County.
Methods: ...
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Background: Scorpion sting is one of the serious and major medical problems in the world. Shiraz is a tourist city and one of the high-risk areas where a number of scorpion sting occurs annually.
Objectives: The present research aimed to conduct an epidemiological study of scorpion sting in Shiraz County.
Methods: The is a cross-sectional study performed using a checklists to collect data about scorpionism in Shiraz health center during 2014-2018.
Results: The results of the study showed that the total number of scorpion stings was 844 cases. generally, 336 cases (39.8%) were female and 508 s (59.3%) male. The results from the residential area revealed that 817 cases (96.8%) were urban and 27 (3.1%) were rural. The highest frequency of scorpionism happened in the 25-34 years old group (286,33.8%) and after that 15-24 year old (165,19.4%), 35-44 year old (157, 18.6%), 45-54 year old (108, 12.7%) groups, and the least frequency awas seen in the 0-4 year old group. The time periods between the sting and injection of anti-venom were less than 6 hours for 822, (85.5%) of cases, 6–12 hours for 101, (11.9%) of cases and, more than 12 hours for 21 (2.4%) cases. A total of 844 cases were recovered; 690 (81.7%) of them recovered with anti-venom and 154 (18.2%) injured individuals recovered without any anti-venom, the sting site was 27.6% in the foot, 57% in the hand, and 20% in the head and trunk.
Conclusion: Shiraz is a major tourist city, and most cases of scorpion-sting occur in summer and spring, when the tourist population is high, so health care providers must carry out an integrated program in those months.
Original Article
Zohreh Faramarzian; Marzieh Kargar; Seyed Mohsen Dehghani; Najaf Zare
Abstract
Back ground: Constipation is a prevalent problem in pediatric patients and one of the ten most common pathological conditions visited by general pediatricians (1). It accounts for up to 25 percent of referrals to a pediatric gastroenterologist. Therefore, this study was done to evaluate the effects of ...
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Back ground: Constipation is a prevalent problem in pediatric patients and one of the ten most common pathological conditions visited by general pediatricians (1). It accounts for up to 25 percent of referrals to a pediatric gastroenterologist. Therefore, this study was done to evaluate the effects of a nurse-based education program on reducing the symptoms of chronic functional constipation in children (2). Methods: This clinical trial study was conducted on 95 children (48 control and 47 intervention group), aged 3 to 14 years old, and selected randomly out of the patients referred to Imam Reza Clinic affiliated to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in 2014. The control group only received the usual treatment prescribed by the physician; however, the intervention group received a comprehensive nursing program. Then, having completed Rome III Criteria Form immediately after the intervention for one month, two months, and three months, we collected the required data. The significance level in this study was 0.05. Results: The mean age of the samples was 78.30±32.52 months in the intervention group and 74.60±32.26 months in the control group. Also, the average weight of children in the intervention group was 23302.17±12034.96 grams and in the control group 21376.09±9351.80 grams. 18% of the samples from the intervention group and 22% of the control group were males. With a follow-up of 3 months, the percentage of changes in the intervention group in items 1 (two or fewer defecation in the toilet per week) and 4 (history of painful or hard bowel movement) was 48.9% and 74.5%, respectively, and in the control group 22.9% and 52.1%, respectively. Therefore, positive changes in the intervention group were better than the control group. The difference between these two variables was statistically significant (p-value <0.05). In other dimensions of the Rome III criteria, there was no significant difference between the intervention and control groups (p value> 0.05), despite changes in the percentage of items in different periods of 1, 2, and 3 months. Conclusion: The findings of this study indicate that nursing education programs have a desirable effect on the reduction of some symptoms of chronic functional constipation based on Rome III criteria in children aged 3-14 years.
Original Article
Roya Peirovi; Sara Javanbakht; Zohre Moeini; Monnavar Afzal Aghaee; Hossein Alidadi
Abstract
Introduction: One of the most important goals of any higher education system is to educate specialized manpower with sufficient skills and knowledge. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the environmental health engineering graduates' attitudes towards compliance of the received training ...
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Introduction: One of the most important goals of any higher education system is to educate specialized manpower with sufficient skills and knowledge. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the environmental health engineering graduates' attitudes towards compliance of the received training during their education with their occupational needs.
Methods: In this descriptive study, the viewpoints of 76 environmental health engineering graduates were investigated over the compliance of the contents of the courses passed with their occupational needs. The participants were employed in various organizational positions in Mashhad city in 2019. Data extracted from the questionnaires were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and independent t-test.
Results: In the case of Water and Wastewater, Municipality, Comprehensive Health Center, Hospital, and Common courses, the lowest compliance rate was related to the environmental health employees working at the comprehensive health centers, hospitals, water and sewerage company, and university, respectively. There was a significant difference between attitudes of males and females towards Water and Wastewater and Comprehensive Health Center courses. Findings based on the graduates' degrees showed that people with bachelor's degrees more disagreed with the set of Water and Wastewater courses than the graduates with Master's and Ph.D. degrees.
Conclusion: Considering that specialized courses had the highest compliance with the individuals' field of work, the authorities are recommended to revise the curriculum of this field of study. Furthermore, it is suggested that specialized trends in the undergraduate course should be provided to improve the impact of education and graduates' satisfaction rate in this field.
Original Article
Farideh Golbabaei; Hamidreza Heidari; Aliakbar Shamsipour
Abstract
Background: This study aimed to illustrate the applicability of the Humidex index for assessment of outdoor thermal environments in a wide range of weather conditions in different climates in Iran.
Study Design: This is a cross-sectional study.
Methods: Both field measurements (1452 measurements) ...
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Background: This study aimed to illustrate the applicability of the Humidex index for assessment of outdoor thermal environments in a wide range of weather conditions in different climates in Iran.
Study Design: This is a cross-sectional study.
Methods: Both field measurements (1452 measurements) and the long-term meterological data (between 1965 and 2009) were used in this research. After determining the appropriateness of correlation coefficients between these two types of data, only meteorological stations data were used to generalize the results to climatic regions. For this purpose, Arc/GIS 10.2 software was used.
Results: The results showed three levels of comfort including safe, caution and stress regions by graphical maps. The results showed that the center and south of the country, especially at the middle and the end of the shift hours, experienced more thermal stress in summer months (ranging from 39.60±1.07 to 49.29±2.13ºC for central areas and ranging from 47.76±2.59to 57.71±1.65ºC for southern areas. In the northern regions, most of the measurements in different stations and time periods at spring were in caution condition and less than 1% of them experienced stress conditions.
Conclusion:
The dependence of this index on the minimum metrological parameters (temperature and humidity), which are easily measured and reported daily in meteorological stations, and its non-dependence on the globe temperature, which is an unusual parameter in the measured metrological parameters, can be used as advantages of the humidex for assessment of the heat stress conditions in outdoor environments in different climates.
Case Reports
Sina Vakili; Sarvenaz Roshanisefat; Leila Ghahramani; Sheida Jamalnia
Abstract
Background: The latest outbreak of coronavirus (2019-nCoV), emerging in Wuhan, China, has spread exponentially in 2019. Management of gallbladder stones during COVID-19 pandemic may be challenging. We report an Iranian COVID-19 Case in a Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Patient. Case presentation: In the ...
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Background: The latest outbreak of coronavirus (2019-nCoV), emerging in Wuhan, China, has spread exponentially in 2019. Management of gallbladder stones during COVID-19 pandemic may be challenging. We report an Iranian COVID-19 Case in a Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Patient. Case presentation: In the present study, we documented a case of COVID-19 in an Iranian patient for laparoscopic cholecystectomy and established the diagnosis, symptoms, and treatments of the case in order to provide non-emergent surgical procedure triage guidelines. Conclusion: This case highlights the importance of good collaboration between doctors and the authorities of public health in Iran, plus the demand for urgent exchange of clinical experience and knowledge with regard to the treatment of this infectious disease.
Letter to Editor
Hamed Delam; Mohammad-Rafi Bazrafshan
Abstract
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a severe respiratory illness with an unknown cause that was diagnosed in December 2019 in Wuhan, China (1-3). Iran is one of the countries involved with this disease. The global outbreak of the disease raises concerns about increased anxiety due to the risk of contracting ...
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Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a severe respiratory illness with an unknown cause that was diagnosed in December 2019 in Wuhan, China (1-3). Iran is one of the countries involved with this disease. The global outbreak of the disease raises concerns about increased anxiety due to the risk of contracting the virus (4). Therefore, in addition to causing physical harm, COVID-19 also has a serious effect on people's mental health. To date, no exact information is available on the mental health problems and psychological effects of COVID-19 on people, nor is it clear how people react when faced with such a crisis; therefore, for health care providers how best to respond to challenges related to COVID-19 is confusing. However, observing the consequences of mental health and the measures taken during the outbreak of SARS in 2003 can help the health care systems to make mental health interventions for people that are involved with COVID-19 (5). However, many people may not be sure that their health care systems are ready to deal with coronavirus, and a lack of trust in the country's health care system is likely to raise concerns about the consequences of the disease. In such circumstances, people use different methods of obtaining information when faced with crisis situations; sometimes these methods are invalid. One of these methods is to obtain information from invalid social media such as Instagram, WhatsApp and so on. Nowadays, with the availability of smartphones, the expansion of activities in virtual networks has become more and more. Therefore, people in anxious situations are looking for information to relieve their anxiety and for this purpose, they search social networks and being exposed to incorrect information in social networks can aggravate their anxiety (6). Therefore, in this situation, several factors may lead to development of Chronophobia. One of these conditions is using unreliable social media. In this regard, a study conducted by the Indian people on awareness, attitude and anxiety about COVID-19 showed that people's anxiety about this disease was at a high level and distress-related social media was seen in 36.4% of the people, and the participants expressed that one of the most important resources of anxiety was the social media (7). At this time, the important question is whether the health care systems in the country are ready to deal with the growing concern of the people in such a situation that is the result of misinterpretation of the symptoms of COVID-19 and in cases where mild respiratory symptoms may develop Chronophobia. Meanwhile, the role of health care provider in reducing people's anxiety and preventing Chronophobia is vital (8, 9). Finally, it can be said that health care systems can prevent Chronophobia by increasing people's knowledge, thus improving their attitudes towards COVID-19.
