فهرست مطالب

Journal of Health Scope
Volume:9 Issue: 4, Nov 2020

  • تاریخ انتشار: 1399/09/18
  • تعداد عناوین: 12
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  • Razzagh Rahimpoor, Maryam Rostami, MohammadJavad Assari Ahmad Mirzaei, MohammadReza Zare * Page 1
    Background

     Lead toxicity has become a growing health concern in countries such as Iran. However, little information is available on the assessment and evaluation of the health effects of lead exposure in mine workers.

    Objectives

     The present study assessed the occupational exposure to lead and examine the association of blood lead (PbB) levels with hematological and kidney function parameters in mine workers.

    Methods

     In this matched case-control study, the level of PbB was measured in 100 workers (70 exposed and 30 non-exposed), and then its relationship was evaluated with complete blood count (CBC) parameters, zinc protoporphyrin (ZPP), urea, blood creatinine levels, urinary δ-aminolevulinic acid (ALA), coproporphyrin, and creatinine levels.

    Results

     The results showed a linear and significant relationship between the PbB level and B-ZPP, U-ALA, U-coproporphyrin, and U-creatinine levels in states of PbB levels > 20 μg/dL in a time and dose-dependent manner. A significant relationship was observed between the PbB level and the years of occupational exposure to lead and the B-urea level (P-value < 0.03).

    Conclusions

     Chronic occupational exposure to lead decreased hematocrit, RDW-CV, MCV, MCH, and HGB values but did not significantly change RBC counts. Therefore, a regular assessment of routine blood parameters (such as CBC and ZPP) and renal function indices can be effectively used to monitor the toxic effects of lead exposure.

    Keywords: Lead Poisoning, Blood, Occupational Exposure, Biomonitoring
  • Rohollah Kalhor, Fariba Hashemi, Nadia Neysari, Saeed Shahsavari, Sima Rafiei * Page 2
    Background

     Job performance is an important organizational factor that plays a significant role in the success of organizations.

    Objectives

     This study aimed to investigate the moderating role of entrepreneurial behavior in the association between social capital and job performance among faculty members of the Qazvin University of Medical Sciences.

    Methods

     This is a cross-sectional, analytical study that is conducted using a structural equation modeling on 260 university faculty members in different schools of Qazvin University of Medical Sciences in 2017. To evaluate the causal relationships between study variables, Structural Equation Modeling Modeling (SEM) on AMOS software, with a significant level of 0.05, was used.

    Results

     The findings indicated that entrepreneurial behaviors and social capital are good predictors for job performance. The direct effect of social capital on job performance (path coefficient: 0.17) and its indirect effect with the moderating role of entrepreneurial behavior (path coefficient: 0.39) were confirmed (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the Sobel test affirmed the indirect associations between variables (P < 0.05).

    Conclusions

     Strengthening social capital and promoting entrepreneurial behavior improve overall performance. Trust-building among staff and designing new motivation methods, which use entrepreneurial indicators for performance evaluation, can improve social capital. Therefore, managers can contribute to the improvement of job performance through developing entrepreneurial behavior among their employees.
     

    Keywords: Performance, Entrepreneurial Behavior, Social Capital
  • Sedigheh Abedini*, Farzaneh Pourjalil Shokrallah Mohseni Page 3
    Background

     Hypertension is an important health problem that can be controlled by self-care.

    Objectives

     The present study aimed to determine the impact of an educational program based (BASNEF) model on knowledge and self-care behaviors for hypertensive patients in Bastak, Iran.

    Methods

     This quasi-experimental study was performed on 180 patients with hypertension who were admitted to health centers of the Bastak city. The participants were randomly assigned to intervention (n = 90) and control (n = 90) groups. Data were collected using a questionnaire that had three sections of demographic information, knowledge, and BASNEF constructs. The questionnaires were completed before the intervention and two months after providing the intervention. After the pre-test, an appropriate educational intervention was designed and implemented only among the intervention group. To analyze the data, paired t-test, independent t-test, and Chi-square tests were run by SPSS version 19.

    Results

     The mean age of the participants was 50.62 ± 7.549 years. The results showed a statistically significant difference in the mean scores of attitudes, subjective norms, enabling factors, and self-care behaviors in the intervention group pre- and post-intervention (P = 0.001). Besides, it was found that enabling factors (0.311) play a significant role in predicting self-care behaviors.

    Conclusions

     The results of this study support the effectiveness of educational interventions in raising awareness and improving self-care behaviors in patients with hypertension using the BASNEF model. Therefore, with an emphasis on enabling factors, the BASNEF model can be used as a framework to develop educational interventions for self-care.

    Keywords: Education, Hypertension, BASNEF Model, Self-Care Behavior
  • Behzad Narouie, Simin Sadeghi Bojd, Mahdi Mohammadi* Page 4
    Background

     Random urine calcium/creatinine ratio (UCa/Cr) is used practically for the screening of hypercalciuria.

    Objectives

     This study aimed to determine the age-specific reference value of UCa/Cr and its relationship with urinary Na/K in children in Zahedan, South-East of Iran.

    Methods

     In a cross-sectional study, UCa/Cr and UNa/K ratios were measured in non-fasting morning urine samples of 1,506 randomly selected primary school children.

    Results

     The prevalence of hypercalciuria was 3.1%, with no significant difference between males and females. Mean UCa/Cr was 0.09 ± 0.21, and the 95th percentile was 0.27 and 0.22 in seven and 12-year-old children, respectively. Mean urinary UNa/UK was 2.90±1.89, and the 95th percentile was 7.83 and 10.57 in seven and 12-year-old children, respectively. The correlation between UCa/Cr and UNa/UK was statistically significant (r=0.128, P < 0.001). There was also a positive correlation between UCa/Cr and UNa/UK, especially in seven-year-old children (r=0.508, P < 0.001).

    Conclusions

     Different reference values of UCa/Cr for seven and 12-years-old emphasize that age-specific reference values of UCa/Cr should be established for each population to be used as a screening method for hypercalciuria.

    Keywords: Hypercalciuria, School Children, Urinary Calcium, Creatinine
  • Fateme Sedghi *, Mahdi Gholian Aval, Mohammad Vahedian Sharoodi Page 5
  • Hamed Fanaei, Tahereh Eghbali, Abdurrashid Khazaei Feizabad, Alireza Dashipour * Page 6
    Objectives

     Bread has long been one of the most popular foods and is the major source to supply energy, protein, minerals, and vitamins. The type of bread making process may affect its nutritional value. This study aimed to investigate bread baking methods and their effects on protein efficacy ratio (PER) and the status of some iron-related blood parameters in rats.

    Methods

     Four diets were used in this study, including a control diet (animals chow), fermented bread, non-fermented bread, and soda bread. At first, some chemical parameters of flour and bread were measured, and then PER and some hematological parameters were determined in rats. Descriptive statistics include mean ± standard deviation (SD), and analytical statistics include one-way ANOVA and Tukey post hoc test. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

    Results

     The wheat flour’s Fe was 18.68 mg/kg. The PER value was negative in the group that received soda bread, and the weight gain was the lowest in the soda bread group. Ferritin, RBC, Hematocrit, BUN, MCV, and MCHC mean values were significantly lower in the rats that received soda bread than other groups. There were no differences among groups in MCH.

    Conclusions

     Although bread can be used as a major source to supply energy protein and other nutritional values, the soda bread making process may decrease protein efficacy ratio and cause debilitation of hematological parameters. These effects of soda can disrupt the body's physiological processes and lead to disease in the long run.

    Keywords: Bread, Fermentation, PER, Baking Soda, Fe
  • Nezamaddin Mengelizadeh *, Hamidreza Pourzamani Page 7

    Removal of Reactive Black 5 (RB5) dye from aqueous solutions was investigated by adsorption onto Multi-walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNTs) and Single-walled Carbon Nanotubes (SWCNTs). A Taguchi orthogonal design including pH, initial RB5 concentration, contact time, and CNTs dose, was used in 16 experiments. The results showed that all four factors were statistically significant, and the optimum conditions for both adsorbents were as follows: pH of 3, adsorbent dose of 1000 mg/L, RB5 concentrations of 25 mg/L, and contact time of 60 min. An equilibrium study by Isotherm Fitting Tool (ISOFIT) software showed that Langmuir isotherm provided the best fit for RB5 adsorption by CNTs. The maximum predicted adsorption capacities for the dye were obtained as 231.84 and 829.20 mg/g by MWCNTs and SWCNTs, respectively. The results also indicated that the adsorption capacity of SWCNTs was about 1.21 folds higher than that of MWCNTs. Studies of electrochemical regeneration were conducted, and the results demonstrated that RB5-loaded MWCNTs and SWCNTs could be regenerated (86.5% and 77.3%, respectively) using the electrochemical process. Adsorbent regeneration was mostly due to the degradation of the dye by the attack of active species such as chlorate, H2O2, and, •OH, which were generated by the electrochemical oxidation process with Ti/RuO2-IrO2-TiO2 anodes. The results of Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis showed that acetic acid, 3-chlorobenzenesulfonamide, and 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid were produced after adsorbent regeneration by the electrochemical process in the solution of regeneration. The adsorption and regeneration cycles showed that the electrochemical process with Ti/RuO2-IrO2-TiO2 and graphite is a good alternative method for the regeneration of CNTs and simultaneous degradation of the dye.

    Keywords: Adsorption Isotherm, Reactive Black 5, Adsorption Kinetic, ISOFIT Software, Electrochemical Regeneration
  • Behzad Raei, Amirhossein Takian, Mehdi Yaseri, Ghahreman Abdoli, Sara Emamgholipour * Page 8
    Background

     The impact of pricing strategies on different socioeconomic groups is not uniform. There is urgency in addressing of characteristics of household demand to make a policy choice in line with development goals.

    Objectives

     This study was done to assess the effect of welfare loss from counterfactual tax-induced cigarette price increases on representative smokers by different expenditure quintiles in Iran.

    Methods

     This analytical study was conducted using pooling cross-sections and compensating variation (CV) to evaluate the costs of taxing cigarettes. The data source used in our study was the Household Income and Expenditure survey (HIES) from 2001 - 2017. We did an almost ideal demand system (AIDS) analysis to estimate elasticities for cigarette demand and compute welfare losses from simulated cigarette price increases by socioeconomic groups. We used STATA version 15.1 (StataCorp, College Station, TX, USA), and Microsoft Excel 2016 to undertake the relevant analyses and estimates.

    Results

     The highest loss was suffered by households of the poorest quintile, who should afford 1.41%, 2.47 %, and 3.20% more budget in the long-run, respectively, as the result of three simulated price increases to stay at the same well-being as before.

    Conclusions

     Concerning direct welfare loss from the cigarette taxation reform in Iran, and focusing on low-income groups, such a policy can be considered as regressive. However, this regressivity can be reduced by informing strategies to redirect sin tax revenues that benefit the poor.

    Keywords: Iran, Cigarette, Taxation, Welfare Loss
  • Amin Mohammadi, Mehdi Yousefi *, Ali Taghipour, Hossein Ebrahimipour, Mehdi Varmaghani Page 9
    Background

     Mashhad is the second-largest Iranian megacity with a population of roughly 3 million and receiving around 25 million tourists a year, wherein road traffic accidents (RTAs) have become the leading cause of death and injuries.

    Objectives

     The main purpose of this study was to calculate the burden of disease caused by RTAs in the city of Mashhad.

    Methods

     In this applied research using a descriptive cross-sectional method, data associated with RTAs in the city of Mashhad in March 2016 - March 2017 were collected based on a complete enumeration of RTA-induced fatalities and disabilities from the Organization for Cemetery Management (Ferdows Organization) affiliated to Mashhad Municipality and the database of the Ministry of Health of Iran (MOH). Following verification, the years of life lost (YLL), the number of years lost due to disability (YLD), and the disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) were measured through the method proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO).

    Results

     The total number of RTA deaths was 677 cases (men = 494 (73%) and women = 183 (27%)) and the number of DALYs was 29155 years (men = 21219/3 (72/8%) and women = 7935/1 (27/2%)). Of the total DALYs, 96% of them were associated with YLL, and 4% were related to YLD.

    Conclusions

     Mortality data are recorded with relatively high accuracy in Iran. Given low YLD in DALYs in comparison with the findings of similar studies in developed countries, there are possible defects in data quality, in particular in terms of non-fatal accidents and injuries. These findings can be thus exploited for optimal allocation of resources in Razavi Khorasan Province and across Iran.

    Keywords: Burden of Disease, Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs), Roads Traffic Accidents
  • Maliheh Gharibi, Mehdi Zirak *, Hossein Momeni Mahmouei, Yousef Mehdipour Page 10
    Background

    The quantum theory has been developed so much so that its principles and concepts have been used as a paradigm in other disciplines, including management science, especially in the management of educational organizations. Universities need to restructure their management methods to succeed in dealing with issues and to be consistent with the higher education system in other successful countries.

    Objectives

    The present study aimed at designing a quantum management model for organizational learning through a systematic grounded theory approach in the Zahedan University of Medical Sciences in 2019.

    Methods

    In this qualitative study, the methods and techniques of interpretation were used to understand the phenomena from the participants’ point of view and in their particular institutional and social context. The interview was conducted with 19 people from the statistical population, including faculty members and managers of the Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, who actively participated in research and management. The data collection occurred through snowball sampling until data saturation. The information analysis process was based on three stages: open coding (creating concepts and categories), axial coding (identifying axial category, causal conditions, confounding conditions, contexts, strategies, and outcomes conditions), and selective coding (creating theory), which eventually led to the presentation of the final research model in the form of a central coding paradigm.

    Results

    In this study, data are not expressed as numbers, but are presented as words and sentences to identify and understand people’s experiences of events in a particular context. Finally, the final model of research was presented as an axial coding paradigm resulting in six themes, of which causal conditions with six categories.

    Conclusions

    Quantum management can be used in organizational learning at the Zahedan University of Medical Sciences and to achieve the desired goals by implementing the designed and presented model in this study.

    Keywords: Qualitative Study, Organizational Learning, Grounded Theory Approach, Quantum Management
  • Ghasem Miri Aliabad *, Leila Asgarzadeh Page 11

    Xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) is a rare genetic disorder inherited in an autosomal recessive pattern. Patients with XP are extremely sensitive to ultraviolet (UV) radiation that leads to defective DNA repair. People with XP often suffer from problems in the eyes, face, neck, and other areas of the body, frequently exposed to sunlight. It is characterized by photosensitivity, dry skin, pigmentary changes of the skin, premature skin aging, and a considerable increase in incidence rates of malignant skin tumors. There is no cure for XP. In this article, we have described four patients from two families, three of whom had malignant skin tumors.

    Keywords: Melanoma, DNA Repair, Xeroderma Pigmentosum, Photosensitivity
  • Amin Mohammadi, Mehdi Yousefi *, Ali Taghipour, Hossein Ebrahimipour, Mehdi Varmaghani Page 12
    Background

     Mashhad is the second-largest Iranian megacity with a population of roughly 3 million and receiving around 25 million tourists a year, wherein road traffic accidents (RTAs) have become the leading cause of death and injuries.

    Objectives

     The main purpose of this study was to calculate the burden of disease caused by RTAs in the city of Mashhad.

    Methods

     In this applied research using a descriptive cross-sectional method, data associated with RTAs in the city of Mashhad in March 2016 - March 2017 were collected based on a complete enumeration of RTA-induced fatalities and disabilities from the Organization for Cemetery Management (Ferdows Organization) affiliated to Mashhad Municipality and the database of the Ministry of Health of Iran (MOH). Following verification, the years of life lost (YLL), the number of years lost due to disability (YLD), and the disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) were measured through the method proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO).

    Results

     The total number of RTA deaths was 677 cases (men = 494 (73%) and women = 183 (27%)) and the number of DALYs was 29155 years (men = 21219/3 (72/8%) and women = 7935/1 (27/2%)). Of the total DALYs, 96% of them were associated with YLL, and 4% were related to YLD.

    Conclusions

     Mortality data are recorded with relatively high accuracy in Iran. Given low YLD in DALYs in comparison with the findings of similar studies in developed countries, there are possible defects in data quality, in particular in terms of non-fatal accidents and injuries. These findings can be thus exploited for optimal allocation of resources in Razavi Khorasan Province and across Iran.

    Keywords: Burden of Disease, Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs), Roads Traffic Accidents