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Extent of food and nutrition literacy considerations in primary school curriculum and textbooks
No full textBackground and Objectives: The aim of this study was to analyze contents of Grades 1�6 textbooks in Iran, regarding food and nutrition literacy domains and their components. Materials & Methods: This study included content analysis of primary school textbooks (Grades 1�6) in 2019�2020 academic year. Analysis included all pages of 41 books of primary schools (4878 pages). Data collection was carried out using checklists comprised of three principal domains of food and nutrition literacy, including cognitive, skill and value-attitude as well as their components. The research tool reliability was assessed based on the agreement rate between the two coders, using Holsti method. The reliability assessment was 85.29. Results: Of all the food and nutrition literacy components in the books, 92 were related to the cognitive domain whereas 8 belonged to the skill domain of food and nutrition literacy. The value-attitude domain, including nutritional tendency, nutritional health values and cultural and social issues related to foods were mostly missing. Critical factors of food and nutrition literacy in primary school curriculum included media literacy, skills linked to food label analysis, and interactive and critical food and nutrition skills. Conclusion: In conclusion, revision of the textbook contents and curriculums is necessary to ensure that they provide acceptable levels of food and nutrition-linked skills, promoting positive attitudes of healthy eating. © 2021, National Nutrition and Food Technology Research Institute. All rights reserved
Causes and grounds of childbirth fear and coping strategies used by kurdish adolescent pregnant women in iran: A qualitative study
Full text linkBackground: Fear of childbirth is one of the most common problems among pregnant women that can threaten their and their baby's health. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the causes and grounds of childbirth fear and the strategies used by pregnant adolescent women in Iran to overcome such fears. Methods: In this study, which was conducted among primiparous Kurdish women in Iran, conventional qualitative content analysis was used. Data were selected through purposive sampling and semi-structured interviews. Data saturation was reached with 15 participants. The Lincoln and Guba criteria were used to strengthen the research. Results: After analyzing the data, two main categories were resulted. The first category was fear of childbirth with subcategories of fear of child health, fear of childbirth process, fears about inappropriate medical staff performance, fears about hospital environment, and postpartum fears. The second category was strategies to reduce childbirth fear with subcategories of choosing appropriate medical centers, increasing information on childbirth, avoiding stressful sources, improving self-care, getting prepared for delivery day in advance, and resorting to spirituality. Conclusion: Pregnancy in adult age is better than adolescent age. The women's fear can be reduced by increasing their assurance about child health, providing appropriate training during pregnancy, explaining the whole process of childbirth and making it easier, improving the hospital environment and medical staff specialization, as well as providing appropriate conditions for further care and support after birth. © 2021 Avicenna Research Institute. All rights reserved
Economic evaluation of ivabradine in treatment of patients with heart failure: a systematic review
No full textBackground: Chronic heart failure (CHF) is a clinical status and a progressive health disorder extremely related to increased morbidity and mortality worldwide. Accordingly, this study aimed to assess systematic review of literature on cost-effectiveness done in patients with heart failure receiving Ivabradine plus standard treatment compared with standard treatment alone. Areas covered: This study is a systematic review in which all published articles related to the study topic were assessed in time range of 2014�2020. In order to find articles, internet search in foreign databases of PubMed, Embase, ISI/Web of Science (WoS), SCOPUS, Global Health databases, through keywords related to the objective was performed. Six articles out of 1524 article related to final topic were assessed. In addition, quality of studies was evaluated using CHEERS checklist. In six countries investigated (Iran, Thailand, Australia, United States of America, United Kingdom, and Greece), willingness-to-pay (WTP) thresholds higher cost per QALY, and highest ICER for Ivabradine was in USA (55,600 /QALY) and the lowest was in Thailand (10,616/QALY). Most items of CHEERS were estimated in the studies and studies had good quality. Expert opinion: Regarding our investigation, ivabradine combined with standard care was more cost-effective than standard care alone in most of the evaluated studies, although the cost of this intervention was higher than its effectiveness. However, the threshold chosen by each country can have a significant impact on these results. And to have a more accurate result, it is required to pay more attention to the income level in different countries. © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
miRNAs; a novel strategy for the treatment of COVID-19
Full text linkCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is the seventh member of the bat severe acute respiratory syndrome family. COVID-19 can fuse their envelopes with the host cell membranes and deliver their genetic material. COVID-19 attacks the respiratory system and stimulates the host inflammatory responses, enhances the recruitment of immune cells, and promotes angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 activities. Patients with confirmed COVID-19 may have experienced fever, dry cough, headache, dyspnea, acute kidney injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, and acute heart injury. Several strategies such as oxygen therapy, ventilation, antibiotic or antiviral therapy, and renal replacement therapy are commonly used to decrease COVID-19-associated mortality. However, these approaches may not be good treatment options. Therefore, the search for an alternative-novel therapy is urgently important to prevent the disease progression. Recently, microRNAs (miRNAs) have emerged as a promising strategy for COVID-19. The design of oligonucleotide against the genetic material of COVID-19 might suppress virus RNA translation. Several previous studies have shown that host miRNAs play an antiviral role and improve the treatment of patients with COVID-19. miRNAs by binding to the 3�-untranslated region (UTR) or 5�-UTR of viral RNA play an important role in COVID-19-host interplay and viral replication. miRNAs interact with multiple pathways and reduce inflammatory biomarkers, thrombi formation, and tissue damage to accelerate the patient outcome. The information in this review provides a summary of the current clinical application of miRNAs for the treatments of patients with COVID-19. © 2021 International Federation for Cell Biology
Effects of piracetam as an adjuvant therapy on Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial
Full text linkBackground: Stimulants are highly effective in controlling symptoms of Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but 30 of individuals with ADHD do not respond to them or cannot tolerate their side effects; thus, alternative treatment approaches need to be considered. Objectives: To evaluate the effect and safety of piracetam as an adjuvant therapy plus methylphenidate (MPH) in children with ADHD. Methods: Thirty-six children with ADHD (6-16 years old), admitted to three academic outpatient child psychiatric clinics in the second half of 2015, were randomly assigned to the "methylphenidate plus piracetam group"and the "methylphenidate plus placebo"group, in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study, for 6 weeks. The "Conner's Parents' Rating Scale-Revised (CPRS-R), Children Symptom Inventory-4 (CSI-4), Clinical Global Impression-Improvement scale (CGI-I), and Children' Global Assessment Scale (CGAS) were completed at baseline and at the ends of the third and the sixth week, and the New York State Psychiatric Institute side effect forms were completed weekly, as outcome measures. Results: The level of improvement in CPRS-R, CSI-4, and CGI-I scales were significantly higher in the "methylphenidate plus piracetam"group compared with the "methylphenidate plus placebo"group. Side effects were not remarkable in any group. Conclusions: Piracetam as a short-term adjuvant treatment to methylphenidate can have considerable therapeutic effect and safety profile in children with ADHD and deserves further exploration to assess its potentialities in ADHD treatment. Copyright © 2021, Author(s)
Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor of head of pancreas in a 5 Year-Old child
Full text linkInflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) is assumed as a rare benign tumor that can appear in various organs. Since Umiker et al. introduced inflammatory pseudotumors for the first time in 1954, it was found that occurrence in the head of pancreas is very rare (Baião et al., 2019) 1. Differentiating non-neoplastic lesions of pancreas from adenocarcinoma remains a challenge despite advances in diagnostic modalities whereas cystic and solid lesions and some normal anatomic variants can mimic malignancy (Okun and Lewin, 2016 Jan 1) 2. Histologic patterns of IMT can be identified as fibroblastic and myofibroblastic proliferation with inflammatory infiltrate. They are more common in Women and peak of occurrence is between 2 and 16 years of age (Mirshemirani et al., 2011) 3. In head of pancreas the disease can present with obstructive jaundice and the key for diagnosis is having a tissue specimen by means of needle biopsy. Though in all reported cases surgery is suggested as the lone treatment option, its natural history is obscure still and there can be a challenge in its treatment and also the extent of surgery. Here a new case of IMT of head of pancreas is reported. © 202
Predicting initial base curve of the rigid contact lenses according to Javal keratometry findings in patients with keratoconus
No full textPurpose: To find an appropriate correlation between the base curve (BC) of rigid gas permeable (RGP) contact lenses and manual keratometry findings in Iranian patients with keratoconus (KCN) in order to simplify the fitting process, reduce the time, and lower the costs. Method: This retrospective study was done in 121 eyes of 69 patients with KCN fitted with a specific trial set of RGP contact lenses over a 7-year period. The specifications of the final lens parameters included power, total diameter (1), and BC, the first two of which were fixed in all of the lenses in the trial set while BC was changed in 0.1-mm steps. Javal keratometer was used to measure keratometric values. The final fit assessment was performed based on the standard criterion of "three-point touch". Result: Single and multiple linear correlations were done and the result was the following equation: BC = 2.455 (constant of the final multiple regression model) + 0.280 (steep keratometry) + 0.368 (flat keratometry) + 0.047 (corneal astigmatism) Conclusion: The advantages of this study include simplifying the RGP fitting process, reducing the examination time, lowering the costs, enhancing the confidence of the examiners and patients, easier lens fitting in remote places where more advanced devices are not accessible. © 2020 British Contact Lens Associatio
Review of Bioprinting in Regenerative Medicine: Naturally Derived Bioinks and Stem Cells
No full textRegenerative medicine offers the potential to repair or substitute defective tissues by constructing active tissues to address the scarcity and demands for transplantation. The method of forming 3D constructs made up of biomaterials, cells, and biomolecules is called bioprinting. Bioprinting of stem cells provides the ability to reliably recreate tissues, organs, and microenvironments to be used in regenerative medicine. 3D bioprinting is a technique that uses several biomaterials and cells to tailor a structure with clinically relevant geometries and sizes. This technique's promise is demonstrated by 3D bioprinted tissues, including skin, bone, cartilage, and cardiovascular, corneal, hepatic, and adipose tissues. Several bioprinting methods have been combined with stem cells to effectively produce tissue models, including adult stem cells, embryonic stem cells (ESCs), induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), and differentiation techniques. In this review, technological challenges of printed stem cells using prevalent naturally derived bioinks (e.g., carbohydrate polymers and protein-based polymers, peptides, and decellularized extracellular matrix), recent advancements, leading companies, and clinical trials in the field of 3D bioprinting are delineated. © 2021 American Chemical Society
Artificial testis: A testicular tissue extracellular matrix as a potential bio-ink for 3D printing
No full textTesticular scaffolds may be an option for fertility preservation. The aim was to develop various procedures for the decellularization of testicular tissue and to design a bio-ink to construct a bioartificial testis. Ram testicular tissue fragments were decellularized using NaCl buffer, NaCl buffer-Triton, SDS and SDS-Triton. The removal of the cells from the tissues was confirmed by DAPI and H & E staining, as well as the evaluation of the DNA content. Alcian blue, Orcein and Masson's trichrome staining methods were also used to confirm that T-ECM was preserved intact. Then, the optimal decellularization protocol was selected to determine the parameters of the bio-ink and printing of the scaffold. The extracted T-ECM was used to print the hydrogel scaffold in combination with alginate-gelatin. The printability, morphological, mechanical and biological properties of the printed hydrogels were characterized. Decellularization of testicular tissue fragments using the NaCl buffer-Triton protocol was significantly more efficient than other decellularization methods in removing the cellular debris and preserving the T-ECM compounds. The 3D printed scaffold with 5 T-ECM showed a uniform surface morphology with high cell attachment and cyto-biocompatibility properties for spermatogonia stem cells in vitro and in vivo compared to other groups. It is concluded that T-ECM can be used as a biomimetic material to make an artificial testis with possible in vitro sperm production. © 2021 The Royal Society of Chemistry
Comparison of Re-TUR results in primary patients with non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) of low, intermediate, and high-risk for recurrence based on the EORTC scoring system
Full text linkBackground: Bladder cancer is the second mostcommonurologic malignancy. Transurethral resection (TUR) is the standard initial treatment for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). The high prevalence of residualtumorinsomepatients has necessitated repeat TUR (re-TUR). Previous studies have shown the quality of primary resection to impact re-TUR outcomes, but the role of tumor biology remains unclear. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of tumor biology on re-TUR results in primary (non-recurrent) patients with superficial bladder tumors. Methods: We studied a cohort of consecutive primary patients with superficial bladder cancer undergoing resection and routine re-TUR between March 2018 and February 2019 at our unit. Patients with TaG1 or T2 on primary pathologic report, deliberately incomplete initial resection, or absence of detrusor muscle on the initial specimen were excluded from the study. Re-TUR was performed in the sixth week. All procedures were performed by the same surgeon. The patients were divided into three groups according to the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) risk scoring system and compared for recurrence of NMIBC. Results: Of 58 primary patients, 16 were classified as low-risk, 32 as intermediate-risk, and 10 as high-risk. The mean age of subjects was 62.1 years. Residual tumor was detected on re-TUR in 19 (32.7) cases. Also, 3 (5.2) cases entailed stage progression to pT2, all of whombelonged to the high-risk group. Residual tumor rate was 0, 40.6, and 60 in the low-, intermediate-, and high-risk groups, respectively. In addition, 13 patients had macroscopic residual. Conclusions: Despite the modest study size, our results suggest that tumor biology might have an impact on residual tumor characteristics, and the EORTC scoring system may help to predict the risk of progression and residual tumor rate on re-TUR. © 2021, Author(s)