Prevalence and Predictors of Water Pipe (Shisha) use among Iranian High School Children

Introduction: Water pipe use is becoming increasingly common among Iranian adolescents. This study examined the prevalence and predictors of water pipe use among public high schoolchildren aged 14-17 in Iran. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade public high schoolchildren in Sanadaj City, capital of Kurdistan province of Iran during the academic year 2012-2013. Cluster sampling was used to select a sample from 8 public high schools. The data were collected using validated self-administrated questionnaire that included questions on water pipe use, socio-demographic characteristics, smoking-related knowledge, attitude toward smoking, normative believes regards perceived prevalence water pipe use among peer and adults, perception of harm, self-esteem and refusal skill. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to assess predictors of water pipe use. Results: A total of 1837 students participated in this study. Students’ ages ranged from 14 to 17 years (mean age±15.09; SD±0.82 years). The overall prevalence of ever water pipe use was 36.2% (43.1% in male and 29.2% in female, (p<0.001). Age, gender, living arrangement, pocket money, academic grade, parental history of smoking, attitude, and normative believes regards perceived prevalence water pipe use among peer and adults were predictors of water pipe use among study participants. Conclusions: The overall prevalence of water pipe is high among high school children in Sanandaj. Age, gender, pocket money, academic grade, parents smoking, attitude toward smoking and normative believes were identified as the most important predictors increasing the risk of water pipe use in the studied students.

Characteristics of hospitalized patients following suicide attempt in Hamadan district, Iran

Limited research has been undertaken on suicide in developing countries. This paper aims to investigate characteristics of suicide attempts in Hamadan district of Iran. A prospective study was conducted in all university hospitals in the Hamadan district of Iran and patients admitted for attempted suicides were included. All cases were assessed by psychiatrists and visited by two trained interns of Medicine. The incidence rate per 100,000 persons of attempted suicides was 228.6 for males and 263.1 for females; moreover, 344.9 for rural areas and 222.7 for urban areas. The suicide attempt was the highest in the 15 to 24 age category for both sexes and regions. Suicide is a complex, long-term outcome that requires multifaceted theoretical constructs for the appropriate study of its antecedents. Findings of this study along with other studies in Iran revealed that unemployed men, housewives, and rural women, high-school students, and those with a low level of education were at higher risk of suicidal behaviors

[Correlation between migraine headaches and obsessive-compulsive Disorder: a two year study]

Migraine is the most common cause of headache which affects 15% of female and 6% of male populations. Patients with migraine may have psychological problems, thus, association of migraine with depression, anxiety and other psychological disorders should be considered for choosing the best management approach. In this case-control analytical study, one hundred and twenty patients with migraine were recruited among patients who attended the Psychiatry Clinic of Farshchian Hospital in Hamedan, Iran during 2008- 2009. The patients met the IHS criteria for migraine and none had disorders, such as Huntington disease, that are associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder [OCD]. The people who accompanied patients attending the Internal Medicine Clinic of the Hospital and had no history of migraine headaches were recruited as the controls. Maudsley's inventory was used for the diagnosis of OCD. Finally, the data were analyzed by SPSS software. In the control group, 3 [2.5%] and in the case group 11 [9.17%] people had OCD [P=0.024]. All of those with OCD in the control group and 9 out of 11 in the case group were female. There were no cases of OCD among patients with mild migraine. Among 36 patients with moderate headache 5 [13.89%] people had OCD and among 62 people with severe migraine 6 [9.68%] had OCD [P=0.510]. The prevalence of OCD in patients with migraine was significantly higher than the normal population. Special attention to comorbid conditions such as OCD is necessary in the management of migraine headaches

Screening for tuberculosis among patients with chronic psychiatric disorders in Hamedan

Tubercle bacilli most often are transmitted from one person by the airborne route. The aim of the present study was to determine the frequency of latent tuberculosis infection and active pulmonary tuberculosis among patients with chronic psychiatric disorders in Hamedan. In a cross sectional study, 215 patients with chronic psychiatric disorders were investigated for tuberculin skin test. Those with an induration of >/= 10 mm were introduced for further evaluation, including a chest-x-ray and examination of the sputum for acid-fast bacilli for those with radiographic abnormalities. Of 215 patients, 62 [28.8%] had positive tuberculin skin test reaction. Age and duration of psychiatric disorders were significantly associated with test positivity. Of 62 tuberculin-positive patients, 25 [40.3%] had radiographic evidences of inactive pulmonary tuberculosis. None of them had positive sputum smear for tuberculosis. Chronic psychiatric patients are more susceptible to tuberculosis infection. Screening tests should be applied for these patients

survey of [CAG]n repeats causing juvenile Huntington disease in an Iranian family with 4 affected members

Huntingtons disease is caused by a trinucleotide repeat expansion [CAG]n in the gene coding for Huntingtin [Htt] and is one of the several polyglutamine diseases. Its physical symptoms occur in a large range of ages, with a mean occurrence in a persons late 40s and early 50s. Almost all references indicated that if the age of onset is below 20 years then it is known as juvenile HD. Our case was an Iranian family with 4 affected siblings [2 sisters and 2 brothers]. In addition to 4 affected children, they had 5 normal male progenies. There was no any other case in their family history. The onset age of the disease in our case family was 20 to 25 years. Their parents were unaffected and nonconsanguineous. Analysis of the pathogenic [CAG]n repeat region of the HD gene for the affected members have showed an expansion allele with 46, 50, 46, and 44 repeats in 4 affected siblings. Our results indicated that the age of 20 years maybe is not a stable limit point for all cases of juvenile HD, and perhaps onset ages are related with the CAG repeat sizes in such individuals