[Effect of Kombucha prepared from green tea on blood glucose level and lipid profile in diabetic rats]

Diabetes is chronic and progressive disease in which lipid disorder is one of the common disorders which in turn cause the formation of its short-and long-term effects. This study was aimed to examine effect of Kombucha prepared from green tea on blood glucose and lipid profile in diabetic rats. In the present study, 30 alloxan-induced diabetic wistar rats randomly divided in to three groups: 1] control group, 2] diabetic group receiving green tea and 3] diabetic group receiving Kombucha prepared from green tea. Experimental diabetes in rats was induced by intraperitoneal injection of Aloxan [130 mg/kg]. The animals of groupsgreen tea and Kombucha received respectively green tea and Kombucha [made from green tea] and group1 received water 5 ml/kg by oral gavage daily for four weeks. Then glucose and lipid profile were measured. Compared to control group, Serum glucose levels in groups green tea and kombucha were significantly reduced [respectively p=0.002 and p=0.0001]. Compared with green tea, Kambocha decreased glucose significantly [p=0.050]. Increasing concentrations of HDL in kombucha group in comparison with green tea group was significant [p=0.02] and reduction of total cholesterol and LDL concentration in groups kombucha and green tea in comparison with control group was significant. Meanwhile, decreased average total cholesterol and LDL concentration in kombucha group in comparison with grean tea group was also significan [respectively p= 0.0001 and p =0. 0001]. Use of Kombucha caused a decrease in serum glucose, LDL, total cholesterol and an increase in HDL cholesterolthat this effects are probably because of fermentation process products

Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index [WOMAC] in Persian Speaking Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis of the knee is the most common chronic joint disease that involves middle aged and elderly persons. There are different clinical instruments to quantify the health status of patients with knee Osteoarthritis and one example is the WOMAC score that has been translated and adapted into different languages. The purpose of this study was cultural adaptation, validation and reliability testing of the Persian version of the WOMAC index in Iranians with knee Osteoarthritis. We translated the original WOMAC questionnaire into Persian by the forward and backward technique, and then its psychometric study was done on 169 native Persian speaking patients with knee degenerative joint disease. Mean age of patients was 53.9 years. The SF-36 and KOOS were used to assess construct validity. Reliability testing resulted in a Cronbach's alpha of 0.917, showing the internal consistency of the questionnaire to be a reliable tool. Inter-correlation matrix among different scales of the Persian WOMAC index yielded a highly significant correlation between all subscales including stiffness, pain, and physical function. In terms of validity, Pearson's correlation coefficient was significant between three domains of the WOMAC with PF, RP, BP, GH, VT, and PCS dimensions of the SF-36 health survey [P<0.005] and KOOS [P<0.0001]. The Persian WOMAC index is a valid and reliable patient- reported clinical instrument for knee os-teoarthritis

[Coronary artery lesions and some of its related factors in more than 5000 patients in Kosar angiography center [Golestan province] from 2007 to 2009]

Coronary heart disease is the most common cause of death in Iran and most parts of the world. Major factors are involved in severity and extension of arterial obstruction. There have been different reports about location and severity of coronary artery lesions. This study determines factors related to the severity of coronary artery obstruction in the patients in Kosar Angiography Center. This was a descriptive analytical study and included 5444 patients. The characteristics of every patient were recorded in a check list. After measurement of blood pressure of the patients and recording history of hypertension, diabetes and drug consumption, data were introduced into a special software and then SPSS [16.00] software. Data analysis was performed by ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis and Chi-square tests. p

[Ultrastructural changes of epididymal spermatozoa in alcohol consuming rats]

The evaluation of epididymal sperm infrastructure in chronic alcohol-consuming rats. 16 male mature Wistar rats with the same age of 10 weeks were categorized into two different groups. Control group included 8 rats allowed free access to rat chow and water. Experimental group included 8 rats with free access to rat chow and 5% ethanol in the same volume [50 cc daily] as controls that received water. After 30 days, epididymal spermatozoa from two groups were aspirated for sperm electron microscopic study. No ultrastructural changes were observed in control group. In experimental animals, most of spermatozoa showed several alternations in their ultrastructures. Anomalies such as abnormal nuclear chromatin density, swollen area, rupture and lysis of plasmalemma, persistence of numerous cytoplasmic droplets, mitochondrial swelling and vaculization, absence of axonemal microtubules, complete degeneration of axoneme, deletion of one or more outer dense fibers as well as absence of tail plasmalemma were seen in majority of the alcohol-treated spermatozoa. Spermatozoa from alcohol consuming rats show spectrum of anomalies in their head, middle and principle piece of tail. These may be one of the possible causes of subfertility or infertility due to alcohol consumption

[People awareness of hypertension in Golestan province, north of Iran [2006]]

Hypertension is considered as a major public health problem in most countries due to its association with ischemic heart disease. The aim of this study was to determine people awareness of hypertension in Golestan province of Northern Iran. This cross sectional population based study carried out on 2497 subjects [15-65 years old] including 1500 men and 1247 women in Golestan province- Northern Iran during 2006. The subjects were chosen by proportional-cluster sampling based on sex and age groups. The subjects were interviewed, antropometric indexes and serum biochemical factors were evaluated. Blood pressure was measured three times with 5 minutes interval and defined based on JNC-7 classification. Serum cholesterol and fast blood sugar [FBS] were determined using laboratory kits [enzymatic methods], and spectrophotometery technique. Data was analyzed by SPSS-16 software and Chi-Square test. In general, the prevalence of hypertension in this region was 23.9%. With higher rate among women urban area by 3.3% and 5% respectively. Only 48.7% of hypertensive patients were aware of their disease and that was significantly more in women than men [P<0.001]. Low physical activity, chronical age, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, general obesity, central obesity and illiteracy were the risk factor for hypertension morbidity [P<0.05]. This study showed, in spite of prevalency of hypertension among 20% of subjects in this area only 48.7% of them were aware about their disorder

[ effect of chronic spinal cord injury on ultrastructure of epididymal sperm in rat]

The effects of chronic SCI on ultrastructure of spermatozoa aspirated from epididymis of rats. 45 adults Wistar rats were divided into 3 groups of SCI, control and sham. Following laminectomy, SCI was induced with a 15g weight dropped from a distance of 10 cm, onto exposed dura matter at T10 level. Sham group underwent laminectomy of T10 only, while control was not exposed to any types of injury or medication. The epididymal sperms were aspirated after 8 weeks in each groups for transmission electron microscopy [TEM] preparation. After primary and secondary fixations, dehydration and embedding, and ultrathin sections were collected on grids and stained by uranyl acetate and lead citrate, the samples were examined with TEM. In electron microscopic study, no ultrastructural changes were observed in sham or control groups. In SCI animals, the majority of spermatozoa showed several alternations such as swollen area, rupture and lysis of plasmalemma, disintegration of acrosomal membranes, persistence of numerous cytoplasmic droplets, mitochondrial swelling, absence of axonemal microtubules, complete degeneration of axoneme, deletion of one or more outer dense fibers, absence of tail plasmalemma, reduction of nuclear electron density, irregularities in tail architecture, formation of apoptotic vacuels and necrotic changes in heads and tails in their ultrastructures. Our electron microscopic study showed that following chronic SCI, several ultrastructure abnormalities developed in epididymal sperms. These changes may impair sperm quality and directly reduce the fertility potentiality after SCI

Time course effects of lithium administration on spatial memory acquisition and cholinergic marker expression in rats

The effects of chronic lithium exposure on spatial memory in rats remain controversial. In this study a time course of the effects of lithium, administered systemically, on spatial memory acquisition in Morris water maze was investigated. Lithium [600 mg/L] was administered to four groups of rats in their drinking water; the first group of animals received lithium for one week, the second group for two weeks, the third group for three weeks, and the fourth group for four weeks. As controls, four groups of animals received only normal drinking water for the same period of time. Toward the end of their lithium or water treatment, all animals were trained for four days; each day included one block and each block contained four trials. Test trials were conducted 48 hrs after completion of the lithium treatment. Escape latency, traveled distance and swimming speed were evaluated during testing trials. Brain tissues from animals were processed according to the standard protocols for immunohistochemical analysis. Lithium treatment decreased escape latency and traveled distance, but not swimming speed, compared with controls, suggesting significant spatial memory acquisition enhancement by lithium. Quantitative analysis showed that lithium, particularly after four weeks of exposure, significantly increased the number and density of immunostained ChAT-containing [choline acetyltransferase] neurons in the medial septal area in comparison with control groups. There was also a significant correlation between the number of immunostained ChAT neurons and behavioral measures. These results suggest that chronic oral administration of lithium causes spatial memory acquisition improvement in rats and an increase in ChAT immunostaining levels in medial septal nuclei

[Attitude change toward child abuse after educating behavioral intention model to mothers referred to Falavarjan health homes in 2007-2008]

Parents' attitude toward parenting styles is one of the factors that affect how they treat their children. Through enhancing the knowledge, educational interventions can moderate such attitudes. Studying new health educational models is essential for improving the traditional ones. The purpose of this study was to assess mothers' attitude toward child abuse before and after educating the behavioral intention model. This was a quasi-experimental single group before and after study. The sample consisted of 45 mothers with a child abusive attitude randomly selected among the referees to one of the Falavarjan health homes. The Adult-Adolescent Parenting Inventory [AAPI] questionnaire was used to assess their attitude toward parenting style. Data was analyzed using t-paired test via SPSS soft ware. Comparison of pretest and post test scores using paired samples t test indicated statistically significant improvement in attitudes whole mean scores [p < 0.001]. The findings indicate that educating parents may change their attitude toward proper parenting style. Such educations may result in better parenting behaviors and fewer instances of child abuse and neglect

[Examination of mechanisms involved in spasticity reduction after BTX-A injection in hemiplegic patients]

Spasticity is a common and disabling complication that occurs as a result of upper motor neuron lesion. Recently, Botulinum Toxin - A [BTX-A] has received a pronounced position in spasticity treatment because of its efficacy, high capability of selective effects and low side effects. In this study, through electrophysiologic tests, mechanisms involved in spasticity reduction following BTX-A injection were studied. This descriptive study was carried out in the year 2006, on 15 hemiplegic patients [age ranged 44- 70 yrs] with spasticity of ankle plantar flexors at Tehran University of medical Sciences. According to the Original Ashworth Scale [OAS], before and after intervention, spasticity of muscles was assessed. Electrophysiologic measurements consisted of amplitude of maximum H- reflex, M response and H / M ratio of soleus muscle, were recorded before and after injection. Toxin was injected in Gastrocnemius [200 units], soleus [75 units] and posterior tibialis muscles [50 unit]. Data were recorded in a questionnaire and analyzed by descriptive statistics and frequency distribution tables. Four weeks after injection, significant reduction in H- reflex, M response amplitudes and H / M ratio were seen. According to the OAS, severity of spasticity also, showed a meaningful reduction. H - Reflex amplitude had more expressive reduction than M response. Reduction of H -reflex amplitude and H / M ratio is the result of toxin effect on intrafusal fibers and reduction of M response amplitude is the result of toxin effect on extrafusal fibers. More significant reduction of H - reflex amplitude in comparison to M response, showed that BTX-A can reduce the spasticity through modification of gamma motor neuron system. Results of this study could help the therapists, in selecting the most efficient therapeutic exercises, for application after the BTX-A injection

[Impact of training communication skills to nurses on patients' satisfaction with nurse-patient relationship]

One of the most important factors in increasing patient satisfaction and improving healthcare outcomes is appropriate nurse-patient relationship. This quasi-experimental study was performed to determine the impact of training communication skills to nurses on patients' satisfaction with nurse-patient relationship. All 60 nurses working in medical and infection wards of Imam Khomeini and Vali-e-Asr hospitals were chosen and were divided into two control and experimental groups. Similarly, 80 patients were chosen from the same wards by convenience sampling and divided into two control and experimental groups at each stage of the study. A questionnaire was used for gathering data collected before and 1 month after the intervention. After the first stage, nurses in the experimental group took part in communication-skill workshop for two days, each lasted 8 hours. Findings showed a significant difference between patients' satisfaction before and after the intervention in the experimental group [P<0.001]. There was also a significant difference in patients' satisfaction after instruction between experimental and control groups [P<0.001]. It can be concluded that communication skill training in nurses has positive effects on patients' satisfaction. Thus, communication skill training programs is recommended for nurses to improve the quality of nursing care and increase patients' satisfaction

Job satisfaction in basic and clinical faculty members in Shiraz University of medical sciences, Iran

Shiraz University of Medical Sciences as one of the oldest and largest universities of medicine in Iran with 50 years history has more than 450 faculty members and 5000 students. This study is an attempt to find out the level of job satisfaction among Shiraz University of Medical Sciences' faculty members. In midterm of 2003-2004, data on job satisfaction level among 404 faculty members from all schools of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences were collected. The translation of Spector's job satisfaction score was used including 34 questions in 9 items of job satisfaction and each one based on Likert's Scale with score an of 1-5. A question related to overall job satisfaction of faculty members was added. Of all faculties,, 252 responded to the questionnaire and 70.1% expressed satisfaction in response the added question. The mean scores of job satisfaction in items of coworkers, work nature, supervision, management methods, academic relations, promotion, salary and suitable benefits were 3,771, 3.265, 2.557, 2.454, 2.395, and 2.376 out of 5 respectively [F=223. 8, p=0.0001]. In the promotion item, the satisfaction of female faculty was lower than male subjects. The level of job satisfaction was not different between clinical faculty members of Medical School with or without private activity. The results of linear regression analysis between the items of job satisfaction revealed that reimbursement and fringe benefits could predict the overall job satisfaction [r[2]=0.70, p<0.01].. As a whole, the faculty members of the university were satisfied with their jobs, but a correction in reimbursement, benefits and promotion regulations especially in lower academic ranks is needed to improve the level of job satisfaction in this group

[ importance of phase I cardiac rehabilitation and evaluation of its performance in Tehran city Hospitals]

Few studies related to the importance of inpatient phase of cardiac rehabilitation and the percentage and full execution of phase I during admission have focused on its importance. The main goal of this study is evaluation and discussion about the importance and correct execution of phase I cardiac rehabilitation in Tehran city hospitals. Eleven hospitals among the governmental and nongovernmental ones which have cardiac surgery sections were chosen randomly. To gain the main purpose of study, we used a questionnaire that was prepared according to American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation [AACVPR] guideline. The questionnaires were sent to the heads of the cardiac rehabilitation departments by educated personnel in a two weeks period. These forms contained ten specialized questions with different scores about evaluation of the quality of phase I cardiac rehabilitation performance and attention to it. The scores were used in SPSS software to analysis the data. The results showed that only 10

[Intrapleural injection of bupivacaine for control of postoperative pain]

Post-operative pain is an unpleasant experience following various stimuli resulting in a response by the body. This process causes physiological disturbances in all of the systems of the body. In this clinical trial, 60 upper abdominal surgery patients were selected post operatively and divided into two groups of 30 patients each. In one group, bupivacaine intrapleural injection and in the other group, opioid injections were administered in the recovery room. Pain intensity with visual analogous scale was measured 6 hours after the operation. There was no difference in VAS according to patient's age, sex, and type of operation, but in the Bupivacaine injected group, VAS score was significantly lower. Intrapleural injection of bupivacaine is more useful and reliable than opioids for controlling post operative pain

In Vitro antibacterial activity of Shallot [Allium ascalonicum] crude juice

Shallot [Allium hirtifolium Bosis] belongs to genus Liliaceae There is more than 500 species in this genus. Shallot produces a cluster of bulbs from a single planted bulb. This plant has been used as an additive in foods for many years, but there is little study about antibacterial activity of Shallot. The aim of this study was to determine antibacterial activity of Shallot against clinical isolated bacteria. Crude juice of shallot [Allium hirtifolium] was tested for it's growth inhibitory effect on 4 Gram-negative and 2Gram-positive species Minimal inhibitory concentration [MIC] was determined using dilution method. All test organisms were inhibited by shallot juice. The MIC for Gram-negative enteric rods including Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirabilis ranged between 78-624 micro /ml. while the MIC for pseudomonas aeruginosa was 20-80mg/ml.The MIC for Gram -positive bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus strains and Staphylococcus epidermidis strains were 156-312 micro /ml and 19.5-78 micro /ml respectively. It is concluded that Crude juice of shallot has antibacterial activity against both gram positive cocci and Gram-negate rods. It is believed that antibacterial activity of shallot depends on its thiosulfinate components

Nurses' clinical thinking and decision making

Nowadays in health care arena, the nurses are confronting with increasingly complicated situation constantly changing. This unreliable and unstable situation requires nurses with ability of decision making. Since decision making became more complex, critical thinking is necessary to use. Regarding the importance of critical thinking and clinical decision making in modern nursing, this study aims to estimate capacities of nurses and to evaluate their relationship. This is why most of the authors believe that critical thinking improves clinical decision making. This research was a cross sectional descriptive correlation study. The study was planed with the purpose of detection of relationship between critical thinking and clinical decision making of nurses in general and intensive care wards. Furthermore, it is to compare nurses of general wards with nurses of intensive ones. This study was conducted on 140 nurses in two groups [70 nurses from general and 70 nurses from intensive wards]. The samples were selected based on stratified random sampling and the data were collected by a questionnaire. This questionnaire was consisted of three parts, demographic characteristics, clinical decision making inventory and California critical thinking skills test. Validity and reliability of the tool were confirmed with content validity, test retest and internal correlation. Data were analyzed with SPSS and descriptive and inferential statistics. Mean score of critical thinking and clinical decision making for intensive care nurses were 10.61 and 63.27 respectively. For general care nurses, they were 10.67 and 61.66 respectively. The results didn't show a difference between mean score of critical thinking in intensive and general ward nurses. Also there was not any difference between mean score of clinical decision making in intensive and general ward nurses. The result didn't show any relationship between critical thinking and clinical decision making of nurses. The findings showed that mean score of nurses' critical thinking is low. The reason can be either due to the defects during training or professional ones during working period. Also, this study didn't show any relationship between critical thinking and clinical decision making. Some experts claim that lack of relationship between critical thinking and clinical decision making is due to lack of an appropriate tool or project to measure them rather than the lack of their relationship

Left ventricular diastolic abnormalities in beta-thalassemia major with normal systolic function

In order to identify left ventricular diastolic function in patients with beta- thalassemia major and normal systolic function by noninvasive M-mode and Doppler echocardiography, an analytic study was designed in a university hospital in Sari. We have studied 44 patients [23 men and 21 women], mean age 15.48 +/- 2.16 [range 12 to 20] and 43 age and sex matched control subjects. Peak flow velocity in early diastole increased in patients compared with controls [98 +/- 14vs. 86 +/- 13 cm/sec; p<0.0001], rate of deceleration of flow velocity was also increased [778 +/- 142 vs. 592 +/- 193 cm/sec [2] and 2.24 +/- 51 vs. 1.73 +/- 36, respectively; p<0.0001]. Peak flow velocity during atrial contraction was not significantly different in patients and normal control subjects. Doppler diastolic indices had no correlation with age, serum ferritin levels and cumulative blood transfused in thalassemic patients. We concluded that left ventricular diastolic flow indices identified noninvasively by Doppler echocardiography in patients with thalassemia major are altered in an early phase, when systolic function is normal