فهرست مطالب

High Risk Behaviors & Addiction - Volume:6 Issue: 2, Jun 2017

International Journal of High Risk Behaviors and Addiction
Volume:6 Issue: 2, Jun 2017

  • تاریخ انتشار: 1396/03/20
  • تعداد عناوین: 13
|
  • Mansour Karajibani *, Farzaneh Montazerifar, Abdurrashid Khazaei Feizabad Page 1
    Context: This study was a systematic review that aimed to extract published articles regarding oxidant and antioxidants status in opium addiction by searching in PubMed, Google Scholar engine, SID, and Magiran databases.
    Evidence Acquisition: Sixty-six published articles were investigated in this review, which were selected from studies among the Iranian society and other societies from 1976 to 2015. All articles published in different fields of descriptive-analytical, experimental, and interventional studies were considered.
    Results
    Several studies have shown that with increased production of free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS), the enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants such as glutathione (GSH) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase activities, and also the concentration of vitamins A, E, C and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) decrease in opium addiction. Increased atherogenic indexes such as Low density lipoprotein/high density lipoprotein (LDL/HDL) ratio and malondialdehyde (MDA) may contribute to the increased risk of cardiovascular disease. However, it has also increased other markers of oxidative stress including: isoprostanes, 8-oxoguanine and protein carbonyl.
    Conclusions
    Oxidative stress increases in opium-addicted people. It seems that opium is capable of provoking oxidative stress and also, has harmful effects on lipid profile and antioxidant enzyme. Drug addicts were found to have antioxidant vitamin deficiency.
    Keywords: Antioxidants, Oxidants, Drug Addicts
  • Hamid Ravaghi, Hamed Zandian, Parvin Afsar Kazerooni, Mojhgan Sabet, Hakimeh Mostafavi, Minoo Alipouri Sakha* Page 2
    Background
    In Iran, the most common mode of HIV transmission among male intravenous drug users is sharing injection needles and syringes.Harm reduction initiatives, as a way of reducing the burden of this problem , are a set of policies and programs which attempt primarily to reduce the adverse health, social, and economic consequences of substances to drug users, their families, and communities.
    Objectives
    The objective of this study was to elucidate the challenges and successes of HIV/AIDS services delivery as perceived by senior officials and service providers.
    Patients and
    Methods
    Face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were conducted in Shiraz, Iran with a purposive sample of sub-national service providers. A thematic analysis of these qualitative data was conducted by the authors.
    Results
    Participants identified major challenges and successes of HIV/AIDS services delivery. Service delivery and accessibility, in terms of challenges and successes, were classified.
    Conclusions
    Our study demonstrates that, despite greater availability of HIV/AIDS services, this availability is not associated with greater accessibility and utilization because of multiple, complex, and interrelated barriers to HIV/AIDS service provision at the service delivery level.
    Keywords: Harm Reduction, Service Providers, DIC, Sex Workers
  • Babak Moeini, Seyyed Mohammad Mehdi Hazavehei, Iraj Zareban, Amirabbas Mousali *, Saeid Bashiriyan, Ali Reza Soltanian, Vahid Kafami Page 3
    Background
    Sexual risk behaviors are the most important risky behaviors that put individuals and the society at risk of serious infectious diseases such as acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and viral Hepatitis, considering the high prevalence of unsafe sexual behavior.
    Objective
    The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of an educational program based on the theory of planned behavior to improve safe sexual behaviors intention among male substance abusers.
    Patients and
    Methods
    This quasi-experimental study was performed on 104 substance abusers (52 participants in the interevention group and 52 in the control group) covered by the Substance abuse treatment centers in Hamadan, the west of Iran. Data collecting tools was a questionnaire that consisted of demographic information and the theory of planned behavior variables. The participants in the intervention group participated in four training sessions. Effect of educational intervention on behavioral intention was assessed two months after the last training session. Data were analyzed by SPSS-16 using appropriate statistical tests including paired t-test, independent t-tests, McNemar and multivariate logistic regression analysis
    Results
    Significant improvements were found in attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and behavioral intention for the intervention group (P
    Conclusions
    Comprehensive implementation of educational courses based on the theory of planned behavior would be effective to improve safe sexual behaviors intention amonge male substance abusers that prevent sexually transmitted diseases.
    Keywords: Sexual Behavior, Safe Sex, Substance Abuse Treatment Centers
  • Zoi Tsimtsiou*, Foteini Dantsi, Zafiria Sekeri, Nikolaos Trikoilis, Panagiotis Nanos Page 4
    Background
    Little is known regarding the Internet activities of children, although Internet habits and pathological usage have been previously described in adolescents.
    Objectives
    This study aimed in describing Internet use in both primary and secondary school children in order to early detect habits with high risks of developing pathological Internet use.
    Patients and
    Methods
    2,473 children from 26 primary (aged from 6 to 12) and 16 secondary schools (12 - 15 years old) from seven different regions in Greece participated. Participants answered questions regarding their Internet activities and demographics.
    Results
    367 (40.9 %) children from primary and 707 (44.9 %) from secondary schools played online games daily, while 115 (12.8 %) and 965 (61.2 %) respectively had a Facebook profile. The boys played games and used Facebook more than girls [primary: OR = 1.2, 95% CI (1.0, 1.9), secondary school: OR = 2.3, 95% CI (1.9, 2.9), and [OR = 2.1, 95% CI (1.3, 3.2), OR = 1.3, 95% (1.1, 1.6), accordingly]. Students with home Internet access were more likely to use online games and go on Facebook.
    Conclusions
    The male gender and home Internet access are both associated with the higher usage of online games and Facebook, while profiles in Facebook are illegally created at the first years of primary school. Since both Internet activities have been repetitively associated with pathological Internet usage, educators and social services should work on increasing awareness in young children and their parents.
    Keywords: Primary School, Secondary School, Internet, Habits, Children, Social Networks
  • Selim Gunuc* Page 5
    Background
    Internet and digital game addictions can be seen mostly amongst adolescents, although it is possible to see individuals at all ages suffering from these problems. According to international literature, the prevalence of Internet and digital game addictions amongst adolescents increased in several countries.
    Objectives
    This study tried to seek answers to the following research questions: does peer influence have a role in the development of Internet and digital game addictions, do peers form a group involving addicted members or non-addicted members and lastly, are Internet and digital game addictions “contagious or infectious” amongst best friends?
    Patients and
    Methods
    The study was carried out on 184 students from a high school located in the Eastern part of Turkey. A personal information form, digital game addiction questionnaire and Internet addiction scale were all used as data collection tools. Relationships amongst adolescents were determined by a social network analysis (SNA).
    Results
    It was found that Internet / digital game addicted individuals formed close friend groups and interacted with other Internet/digital game addicted individuals and that the non-addicted individuals formed groups with other non-addicts.
    Conclusions
    Consequently the SNA in this study revealed that peer influence is an important factor in explaining the causes of the spread of Internet and digital game addictions.
    Keywords: Adolescent, Behavior, Addictive, Internet, Social Networks, Peer Influence
  • Anahita Alizadeh, Masoumeh Zheani Asoudeh, Fatemeh Abdi, Mohammad Moshiri, Mahdi Balali Mood, Leila Etemad * Page 6
    Background
    Poisoning is dangerous and common in children. We evaluated the epidemiological pattern of acute pediatric poisoning and its recent changes in Mashhad.
    Objectives
    The current study aimed to evaluate the epidemiological pattern and recent changes of APP in Mashhad city during 2011- 2013.
    Patients and
    Methods
    This cross sectional/descriptive study was performed based on the data (including age, sex, home address, and diagnosis) recorded in the hospital information system (HIS) regarding children admitted to pediatric toxicology unit of Imam Reza Hospital, the only referral hospital in Mashhad, during 2011 - 2013.
    Results
    Over the three years, 1701 children (53% male) aged 60.57 ± 1.95 months were hospitalized. The number of acutely poisoned children (APC) and the proportion of APC to the total number of pediatric admissions were 519 (14.1%) in 2011, 472 (13.5%) in 2012, and 710 (18.1%) in 2013 (P
    Conclusions
    The number of APC increased in this area over the period of the study. The pattern of pediatric poisoning changed from a traditional opium poisoning to methadone overdose from 2011 to 2013, which may be due to the changing pattern of addiction and increased availability of methadone in the houses of addicted parents.
    Keywords: Epidemiology, Children, Intoxication, Methadone, Opium
  • Jairo N. Fuertes *, Stephanie R. Grindell, Michael Kestenbaum, Bernard Gorman Page 7
    Background
    Risk-taking behaviors are common and, unabated, can lead to serious consequences, such as unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections, drug and alcohol abuse, injuries, and death. Despite their prevalence and consequences, the psychological determinants underlying these behaviors are not well understood.
    Objectives
    The study aimed to evaluated the role of Sex, Parent Attachment, Emotional Adjustment on Risk-Taking Behaviors.
    Patients and
    Methods
    To test the role of close relationships on risk-taking behaviors,we used a correctional field design and examined the influence of parent attachment on these behaviors while accounting for participants’ sex and emotional adjustment, measured in the form of self-esteem and level of depression. A total of 269 participants from Amazon’s MTurk website completed our survey.
    Results
    Results revealed differences between men and women on all six scales that assessed for risk-taking behavior; however no differences were evident by sex on levels of attachment to mother or attachment to father or on levels of adjustment. Our results also indicate that attachment to mother is directly and inversely associated with risk taking behavior, and that adjustment is a mediator between attachment to father and risk-taking behavior.
    Conclusions
    These results and others are presented and discussed in the context of the literature along with implications for counseling and for future research in this area.
    Keywords: Sex, Attachment, Emotional Adjustment, Risk, Taking
  • Maryam Lashkaripour, Amir Adibi *, Farzaneh Farajian Mashhadi, Alireza Dashipour Page 8
    Background
    Using methamphetamine and its dependence is a serious public health problem worldwide. In Iran about 50% of hospital beds are occupied due to psychosis or mental disorder complications related to methamphetamine dependence, which seriously affects patients’ admission to psychiatric hospitals.
    Objectives
    The current study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of modafinil for treating patients with amphetamine dependence.
    Patients and
    Methods
    In the current clinical trial study, 50 male patients with amphetamine and methamphetamine dependence, who had referred to addiction treatment clinic of Baharan psychiatry hospital in Zahedan, Eastern Iran, were studied. The participants were followed for 12 weeks. The random sampling method was used and patients were divided to two groups of modafinil receivers and placebo, based on blocks permutation. To evaluate the consumption of amphetamine/methamphetamine, urinary screening for methamphetamine was conducted in the beginning of the study and every week during the study period. The drug craving and level of dependence were measured by Visual Analogue Scale of Craving (VAS) and Addiction Severity Index (ASI), respectively. At the end of the follow-up period, data were analyzed using t-test and Chi-square test by SPSS ver. 18.
    Results
    The mean age of the subjects was 29.5 ± 6.4 years. The results of urinary screening for methamphetamine were positive for 52.8% and 55.1% of the subjects in the modafinil receivers and placebo groups, respectively. The mean scores of drug craving were 76.2 ± 9.0 and 81.0 ± 8.2 for the modafinil receivers and placebo groups, respectively (P = 0.064). The mean of reduction in dependence level scores were 5.6 ± 2.7 and 2.0 ± 1.1 for the modafinil receivers and placebo groups, respectively (P = 0.001).
    Conclusions
    The results of the current study showed that modafinil was well-tolerated but not effective in reducing the level of consumption (number of negative urinary tests for amphetamine-methamphetamine). Modafinil was effective in reduction of severity addiction to amphetamine-methamphetamine.
    Keywords: Amphetamine, Methamphetamine, Dependence, Treatment
  • Ali Salami *, Fatima Karaki, Wissam H. Joumaa Page 9
    Background
    Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and Diabetic Nephropathy (DN) are currently a major public health threat.
    Objectives
    The objective of this paper is to define the leading causes of CKD and DN and their complications among Lebanese patients.
    Patients and
    Methods
    In this study, 380 hemodialysis patients were included, regardless of their socioeconomic status or nationality.
    Results
    In total, 89.5% of patients were over the age of 40. The main cause of CKD was hypertension (55.3%), followed by polycystic kidney disease and repeated urinary tract infections (34.2%). The nutritional analysis of patients’ dietary history showed that 52.6%, 31.6%, and 47.4% of patients exceeded their Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of protein, caffeine, and sodium, respectively. In terms of the consequences of CKD, men were more prone to anemia and water retention than women. However, women were more affected by cardiovascular disease and malnutrition. Concerning age, anemia was more prevalent in younger patients than in older ones.
    Conclusions
    The high prevalence of behavioral and pathological factors and the resulting consequences of CKD suggest a major awareness of the Lebanese population of the risks of chronic kidney disease and the necessity of the prevention of CKD by following a healthy lifestyle and managing any existing diseases.
    Keywords: Chronic Kidney Disease, Causes, Consequences
  • Moslem Rajabi, Nour-Mohammad Bakhshani *, Mohammad Reza Saravani, Sajad Khanjani, Mohammad Javad Bagian Page 10
    Background
    Bullying among students is a problem with severe and unpleasant consequences for victims.
    Objectives
    This research studied the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral group therapy on coping strategies and in reducing anxiety, depression, and physical complaints in student victims.
    Patients and
    Methods
    This quasi-experimental study was conducted with a pretest-posttest control group. Data was collected using the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire, Achenbach’s Youth Self-Report (YSR), and Billings and Mouse’s Coping Strategies Scale. In total, 30 participants who achieved high scores on these questionnaires were randomly assigned to the experimental group or to the control group. The subjects of the experimental group were treated with cognitive-behavioral group therapy over 12 sessions of 90 minutes each. The subjects of the control group received no intervention. At the end of the cognitive-behavioral group therapy sessions, a posttest was implemented for both groups. Multivariate analysis of covariance was used to analyze the collected data.
    Results
    The results showed that cognitive-behavioral group therapy reduced anxiety, depression, and physical complaints. In addition, it reduced emotion-focused coping strategies and increased problem-focused coping strategies in the experimental group (P
    Conclusions
    Cognitive-behavioral group therapy along with the use of coping strategies can reduce anxiety, depression, and physical complaints in student victims of bullying.
    Keywords: Anxiety, Cognitive, Behavioral Therapies, Depression, Victims, Bullying
  • Mohammad Ghaderi Rammazi, Hamidreza Dehghan *, Abbas Abolghasemi Page 11
    Background
    Students with learning disabilities, in comparison to normal students, have relatively more problems.
    Objectives
    The aim of the present study is to compare the social support, aggression and self-injurious behaviors in students with and without learning disabilities.
    Patients and
    Methods
    All students with and without learning disabilities from secondary schools of Ardabil, Iran constitute the research population. Sixty students were randomly selected by cluster sampling. Raven’s IQ Test, Social Support Scale, Aggression Questionnaire and Deliberate Self-harm Inventory were utilized for data collection. The MANOVA test also was applied for data analyzing.
    Results
    The results of the present study indicated that students with learning disabilities, in comparison with normal students, have a inferior perceived social support and a higher rate of aggression as well as a higher self-injurious behavior. Analyses of regression also delineated that social support, physical aggression and verbal aggression can predict self-injurious behaviors in students with learning disabilities.
    Conclusions
    Low social support and high aggression are two important factors which affect self-injurious behaviors in students with learning disabilities.
    Keywords: Social Support, Self, injurious Behavior, Learning Disabilities
  • Maurizio Coppola *, Raffaella Mondola Page 12